Alliums are one of the most iconic flowers in the spring garden. Their spherical blooms on tall slender stems create unique structure and texture. Alliums come in a range of sizes and colors from petite drumstick alliums to giant ‘Gladiator’ alliums.
While alliums are beautiful, their blooms are fleeting. If you like the way alliums look but want flowers that last longer, these easy-to-care-for plants look like ornamental onions in shape and structure.
1. Globe Thistle
The globe thistle (Echinops ritro) looks a lot like the big “Ambassador” alliums. The flowers are round blue spheres about the size of a softball that grow on thin, straight stems. You might think that globe thistle is an allium, but it’s actually a daisy.
The prickly metallic blooms make excellent cut flowers and are long lasting in the garden. Globe thistle is drought tolerant once established and thrives in full sun. It reaches 2-4 feet tall and spreads 1-3 feet wide. Hardy in zones 3-10.
2. Sea Holly
Sea holly (Eryngium varieties) has strong steel blue stems with spiny silver bracts on top that surround true blue flower heads that are shaped like cones. It has an exotic, architectural form reminiscent of ‘Schubertii’ allium.
The sea holly plant is in the same family as carrots and alliums. It prefers full sun and dry soil with excellent drainage. “Blue Glitter,” which is 18 to 24 inches tall, or “Blue Hobbit,” which is 6 to 12 inches tall, are both good choices. Hardy in zones 4-9.
3. Ornamental Onion
Despite its name, ornamental onion (Tulbaghia violacea) is not a true allium. However, it produces rounded umbels of tiny lilac flowers with bright yellow stamens atop sturdy stalks that closely resemble ‘Aflatunense’ allium.
This clump-forming perennial has attractive gray-green foliage that emits an oniony/garlicky aroma when crushed. Grows 12-24 inches tall. Thrives in sun or part shade. Tolerates drought once established. Hardy in zones 7-10.
4. Summer Hyacinth
Summer hyacinth (Galtonia candicans) is often mistaken for drumstick allium. Both produce rounded blooms on straight, slender stems. But summer hyacinth has green stalks and foliage that lacks onion scent. It also grows taller at 2-3 feet.
Summer hyacinth offers graceful white bell-shaped blooms on arching stems. It naturalizes easily by seed and bulblets. Thrives in sun to part shade. Hardy in zones 4-9.
5. Spider Flower
Spider flower (Cleome hassleriana) is an annual that mimics ‘Schubertii’ allium. It has spherical flower heads with long spidery stamens in white, pink, rose, or purple. The blooms and foliage have a pungent aroma.
Spider flower thrives in full sun and moist, well-drained soil. It self-seeds freely. Grows 3-5 feet tall. Attracts bees and hummingbirds. A great choice for vertical interest and movement in beds and borders. Treat as an annual in zones 10-11.
Growing Tips
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Plant bulbs in fall, sow annuals after last frost in spring
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Space plants 1-3 feet apart depending on mature size
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Stake tall flowers to prevent flopping in wind and rain
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Deadhead to encourage reblooming
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Water during droughts, avoid wet feet
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Fertilize bulbs at foliage emergence, feed annuals weekly
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Add organic mulch to retain moisture and reduce weeds
Companion Plants
- Grasses like miscanthus, pennisetum, stipa
- Summer bulbs: dahlia, canna, gladiolus
- Bee balm, catmint, gayfeather, lavender
- Late spring bulbs: tulips, daffodils, hyacinths
- Other daisies: coneflower, black-eyed Susan, shasta daisy
Design Uses
- Mass in drifts of 3, 5, or 7 for maximum impact
- Mix heights for dimension and structure
- Use as thriller plants in containers
- Line pathways or edge beds and borders
- Plant in rows or blocks in cutting gardens
Attract Pollinators
Flowers like globe thistle, sea holly, ornamental onion, and spider flower attract pollinators with their nectar-rich blooms. Their pollen also provides food for bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects.
Planting pollinator-friendly flowers provides essential food and habitat for bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds in the garden ecosystem.
Extend Your Bloom Season
While alliums offer unique structure and form, their flowers are fleeting. For longer lasting allium look-alikes, grow globe thistle, sea holly, ornamental onions, summer hyacinths, spider flowers, and other easy-care perennials and annuals with similar shapes and colors.
Blend classic spring flowering allium bulbs with their look-alike counterparts to enjoy gorgeous vertical structure in your garden from spring through fall.
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Among the most interesting and diverse of the fall-planted flower bulbs, alliums keep gaining in popularity year after year. These beauties are actually wild flowering onions with a huge range of attributes. Some feature enormous globular blooms, while others grow into a burst of tiny flowering clusters. From the eye-catching giant alliums such as Globemaster, Gladiator or Mont Blanc to the classic Purple Sensation, allium bulbs are sure to add the flair of the unexpected and exotic to your garden.
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FAQ
What plants are similar to alliums?
If you like alliums then you are almost certain to love agapanthus. They look like alliums in the summer, and they bloom for a long time.
What looks like an Allium?
Alliums include many familiar edible plants such as onions, leeks and garlic as well as attractive flowering types. The ornamental types are a great addition to the garden with their showy flowerheads in shades of blue, purple, white and pink, bringing globes of colour in spring and early summer.
What’s the difference between agapanthus and alliums?
I love agapanthus, they’re like alliums of the summer aren’t they, you know, sort of like great firework, crazy sparkler flowers, and they flower even longer than alliums, and their seedpods equally good, but of course unlike alliums which are bulbs, these are true perennials, this is a variety I adore called ‘Queen .