Allium Violet Beauty (7)

A slightly different take on the classic ornamental onion, Allium 'Violet Beauty' produces flat-bottomed, dome-shaped clusters of starry violet-purple flowers — a distinctive form that sets it apart from the perfectly spherical heads of other alliums. Each flower head reaches up to 10cm across, held on strong, upright stems above attractive grey-green foliage.

Flowering in late spring and early summer at around 80cm tall, Violet Beauty is easy to grow and wonderfully low-maintenance, thriving in fertile, well-drained soil in full sun. Its sweetly fragrant blooms are a magnet for bees and pollinators, while remaining unappealing to deer and rabbits. Superb for cutting or drying, and equally at home left standing through winter for extra structural interest.

Plant bulbs in autumn, around 10cm deep, ideally among herbaceous perennials whose foliage will help mask the allium's own leaves as they die back.

Each bulb is hand-selected before dispatch.

Available from Pengelly Garden Centre.