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No flower stems on my potted Allium bulbs?

johnnypenstemonjohnnypenstemon Posts: 120
in Problem solving


Hello fellow plant lovers,

I potted Allium Miami and Purple Rain bulbs last October with a view to plugging gaps in borders with them this spring. They were planted 3/4 times the depth of the bulb in gritty compost with a grit topping, 4 bulbs to a large 10" pot or singly in 6" pots. I haven’t fed or watered them much since. They grew well initially. Now they are doing that Allium foliage dying thing, but only two out of twenty have developed flowering stems. Where have I gone wrong? Am I being impatient? What should I do with them now? (Polite suggestions only.) Many thanks, Johnny

Posts

  • DaveGreigDaveGreig Posts: 189
    Don’t let the ones that bud flower, snip them off. When the foliage has died back remove the bulbs. If they are firm and healthy plant them in situ where you want them to flower in future years. If the bulbs are weak and soft discard them.

    it sounds like they have suffered from a lack of water and food. I purposefully impoverish my garlic cloves using a similar but not quite so harsh method and this gives me bigger garlic bulbs the following year.

    I wouldn’t recommend it for ornamentals though.
  • johnnypenstemonjohnnypenstemon Posts: 120
    DaveGreig said:
    Don’t let the ones that bud flower, snip them off. When the foliage has died back remove the bulbs. If they are firm and healthy plant them in situ where you want them to flower in future years. If the bulbs are weak and soft discard them.

    it sounds like they have suffered from a lack of water and food. I purposefully impoverish my garlic cloves using a similar but not quite so harsh method and this gives me bigger garlic bulbs the following year.

    I wouldn’t recommend it for ornamentals though.
    Many thanks belatedly Dave, I'm following your advice and hope for more blooms next year.
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