Under planting aliums

Hi,
I planted allium bulbs in autumn which are now growing. There is a gap of about 10cm between each one. I want to plant something bee friendly between them- rudbeckia, echinacea, etc. is that possible? Will there be space in the container for them all to grow?
Thanks,
Phil.

 

Hello and welcome to GC. Sorry I can't really answer your question because I've no experience of alliums (other than plain old onions), but I'm sure others will be along to tell us soon enough.

 

I think those sorts of plants will be tall and swamp the Alliums - unless the Alliums have finished and died down by then, which I guess them might have done. Nothing in my planting diary that gives me an "Alliums all died down now" date I'm afraid!

 

You do not mention how deep you have planted your allium bulbs and this could be a problem if they are not deep enough.

You also do not mention the size of the container/ s?

You could've try what you suggest this year but at the end of the season you could plan for this for next year.

That is empty the container/ s and plant the allium bulbs very deep this will give more planting depth for additional plants nearer the surface.

For example ; with some of my containers I plant spring bulbs in layers at different depths e.g. Tulips in layer 1 ( bottom layer) daffodils in layer 2,Cocus & Snowdrops in layer 3 then when these are finished I plant up with shallow rooted annuals and this I find gives me more or less "all year round" interest.

Why I was concerned about the size of the containers was; Rudbeckia & Echinacea are quite bushy plants so might be prone to being blown over if the container/ s are on the small side.

I would suggest planting up with something that does not grow so high!

But as always people's tastes can vary this is why I find it difficult to be too specific about plant selection.

At least; hopefully I have given you some thoughts for future plantings.......Tg

 

I think the allium leaves will be going over and shrivelling by mid June (I'm guessing from memory here, rarely write anything down, I have to do enough of that at work) so it would be good if you can have something growing up to disguise that.

I'd recommend raising or buying plug plants which can easily be slipped in between the allium plants without doing too much damage. You could probably find Rudbeckia hirta plants in various colours.

http://www.vanmeuwen.com/flowers/fl...border-plants/rudbeckia-cherry-brandy/69017VM

 

Kinda depends on what species of Allium that you've planted. There's a huge variation in size, growth habit and blooming period in that genus.

 

Thanks for all the responses!
The allium bulbs I have planted are 'purple sensation' (Allium hollandicum) and grow up to 1m in height. I followed the planting instructions given when I purchased them, which was to plant the bulbs around 15-20cm deep (I think!) There isn't much space between each allium as I mentioned. I have some rudbeckia on my window sill currently, waiting for the weather to warm up. Will there be space in my containers to fit two of these in along with the four allium bulbs? The container is a trough about 60cm wide and 25-30cm deep. I want to hide the foliage when t starts to die away in June.
Phil.

 

I should think that will be OK. You have 15cm of soil to play with before you hit an allium bulb, plenty of room for a 3" potful, so I don't see why you shouldn't have more rudbeckias if you want. In fact, I'd go for at least 3 so you can interplant them between the bulb stems.