List 5 – Allium cernuum
Allium cernuum (nodding onion)
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Useful cultivars and selections:
- Allium acuminatum (Hooker’s allium); another native allium, but smaller
USDA Hardiness Zone: Zone 4-8
Size:
- 25-0.5 ft wide
- 1-1.5 ft tall
Soil & Water requirements:
- Good drainage; rocky, sandy soil
- Does not require summer irrigation
- Dry to medium moisture
Exposure:
- Full sun to part shade
Leaves:
- Narrow, grass-like leaves
- Edible; tastes like a cross between chives and green onion
- Foliage lasts into late summer before dying back
- Evergreen perennial
Flowers:
- Delicate, bell-shaped flowers
- Umbels are comprised of clusters of 10 to 40 flowers
- Bloom period is 1-2 months
- White, pink, lavender flowers
Maintenance:
- No maintenance required
Suitable uses:
- Native garden
- Hillside planting
- Window boxes
- Edible garden
- Rocky sites; rock gardens
- Seaside plantings
- Open, grassy, sunny areas
Potential pairings:
- penstemon davidsonii; antennaria rosea; eriophyllum lanatum; achillea millefolium
Attracts:
- Bees
- Butterflies
Propagation:
- Can be grown from seeds or bulbs
- Plants will self-seed
- Remove flower heads before seeds develop if you want to avoid spread
Other:
- Native perennial
- Cernuum is latin for ‘nodding’; top of flower stem starts to bend as the flowers grows larger