- When is the ornamental onion usually withered?
- Remove the inflorescence after flowering - not mandatory
- Allow seeds to mature - self-sowing or sowing
- After flowering, slowly prepare for winter
When the ornamental onion blooms, it looks simply fantastic with its large ball of flowers. As flowering approaches its safe end, the buds fade and dry up. A tragedy - or maybe not?
After flowering, faded parts of the plant can be cut off
When is the ornamental onion usually withered?
The end of the flowering period depends on the species and variety. There are species like the blue allium that can bloom as early as March. But most of them only bloom from May and then into June.
There are also isolated specimens that bloom in August and until September. So take a close look at your ornamental onions! Then you will know when the heyday is over. The leaves are often completely dried up towards the end of the flowering period.
Remove the inflorescence after flowering - not mandatory
For most perennials, the flowers are cut off after flowering. The purpose of this is to protect the plant. Otherwise she would train her seeds, which costs her a lot of strength. It is the same with ornamental onions.
But if you want to get the seeds for propagation or want to use the seed pods as an ornament in the bed in autumn and winter, you do not necessarily have to remove the flowers. With a proper fertilizer application in spring, the nutrient requirement is balanced again.
Allow seeds to mature - self-sowing or sowing
If you want to harvest the seeds or intend that the ornamental onion propagates via self-sowing, you should not cut off the flowers. If you sow seeds in late autumn or spring, you should make sure that you harvest the seeds in good time. The seeds should be black in color. Caution: They quickly fall from the seed head when ripe!
After flowering, slowly prepare for winter
This is important after flowering:
- don't fertilize anymore
- no more watering
- prefer to cut down in the fall
- cover with brushwood in the fall
- or: dig up the bulb and overwinter (for frost-sensitive species)
- if necessary, dig up and separate the onions
tips
If you want to remove the inflorescence, you should cut it off just above the ground. If you want, you can still use it as an element for drying arrangements.