Allium thunbergii 'Album'

RHS Plant Profile
Thunberg garlic 'Album'

Save a plant

Where do you want to save Allium thunbergii 'Album'?

Plants I own
Wishlist
Go to My Plants

Other common names

Thunberg garlic 'alba', white Thunberg garlic

Synonyms

Allium thunbergii 'Alba'
Allium thunbergii album

Plants for pollinators
Bulbs
Buy this from Plant Nurseries
3 Suppliers

Clump-forming bulbous perennial with narrow, linear dark green basal leaves to 20cm long, and bearing lax globular heads of star-shaped, white flowers to 4cm across on stems 20cm tall, in late autumn

Position

Full sun

Soil Types

Chalk, Loam, Sand

Max Height

0.1-0.5 metres

Max Spread

0.1-0.5 metres

Size

Time to Maturity
2–5 years
Max Spread
0.1-0.5 metres
Max Height
0.1-0.5 metres

Growing Conditions

Chalk Loam Sand
Moisture
Well–drained
pH
Alkaline or Neutral or Acid

Position

Full sun
Aspect
South–facing or West–facing
Exposure
Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

  • H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
  • H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
  • H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
  • H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
  • H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
  • H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
  • H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
  • H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
  • H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)
H5

Colour & Scent

Fragrance Flower Foliage
Season Stem Flower Foliage Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family
Amaryllidaceae
Native to GB/Ireland
No
Foliage
Deciduous
Habit
Clump forming
Genus
Allium are bulbous herbaceous perennials with a strong onion or garlic scent, linear, strap-shaped or cylindrical basal leaves and star-shaped or bell-shaped flowers in an umbel on a leafless stem
Name Status
Unresolved

How to Grow

Cultivation

Grow in full sun and fertile well-drained soil. It is best to grow in containers where garden soil is heavy clay and prone to saturation over winter. See allium cultivation

Propagation

Propagate by seed when just ripe or in spring; or propagate by offsets which can be carefully detached by lifting the bulb after flowering has finished. See bulb propagation

Suggested planting locations and garden types

  • City and courtyard gardens
  • Coastal
  • Cottage and informal garden
  • Gravel garden
  • Patio and container plants
  • Wildlife gardens
  • Cut flowers
  • Flower borders and beds
  • Garden edging
  • Underplanting of roses and shrubs

Pruning

No pruning required, other than to remove old flowered stems and foliage

Pests

May be susceptible to allium leaf miner and onion fly

Diseases

May be susceptible to onion white rot, and onion downy mildew