Its 9th January and the garden is still white over and frozen solid so I’m indoors and having another look at the bulbs that Sean and Deb gave me for Christmas. They are all now potted up. Very late as all of them were for Autumn planting so fingers crossed. Most of them are new to me and part of the fun is researching the varieties and finding out what to expect as they grow.

The drumstick allium looks a very interesting variety. The bulbs have already put on about 8″ of growth so I know that there is life in there.

I have read that the Allium sphaerocephalon is very adaptable and easy to use in many ways adapting well to any garden. Advice it to plant the bulbs amongst ornamental grasses or tall wild flowers. They, like all Alliums, are perennial and loved by pollinators so that’s a plus in my book. I’m also a fan of any plant that naturalises and self seeds so another tick from me. The plant is a member of the Leek family and produces reddish purple flowers. The name “sphaerocephalon” derives from ancient Greek and refers to the spherical head of the flower. Apparently these plants have a tendency to become invasive. Good luck to them in my garden then.

All Allium are said to be a bit pungent but I have no problem with that as I have absolutely no sense of smell these days.

“The juice of Allium sphaerocephalon is used as a moth repellent and the plant itself is said to repel insects although the flowers are very attractive to pollinators.”

farmer gracy