giant garlic, Spanish garlic
A bulbous perennial about 50cm tall, bearing narrow, grassy mid-green leaves, dying back at flowering time. Flower umbels open in early summer, each purple flower is held on a long wiry stem, and the umbels develop bulbils at their base
0.5-1 metres
0.1-0.5 metres
| Season | Stem | Flower | Foliage | Fruit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | ||||
| Summer | ||||
| Autumn | ||||
| Winter |
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. Easily spread by bulbils and has the potential to become a nuisance without careful cultivation. See allium cultivation
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
No pruning required, other than to remove old flowered stems and foliage
May be susceptible to allium leaf miner and onion fly
May be susceptible to onion white rot, and onion downy mildew