I order from Scheepers every year. Globemaster lasts the longest but seems to be the most expensive and also seems to shrink in size every year. I will divide this year but I probably really need to fertilize. But anyway I would recommend them.

Second I like Purple Sensation. They are cheap and very pretty. Darker than liatris but not dark purple.

Buy as many as you can plant. Plan some perennials around them so their dying foliage is masked. Alliums are a great buy.

If you'd like seeds of Allium karataviense, let me know. I just harvested the seeds last week. Karataviense is a smaller variety that gets about a foot tall. The ones I have has cream colored flowers.

They're very attractive and make quite a display in June but as Kim said, the dying foliage is better masked by other perennials.

That's very kind of you, Peggy. I didn't know they could be grown from seed! I looked up that variety on Google and it looks quite interesting. It would certainly be an unusual shape that, so far, I don't have in the garden. I am about to leave on a short weekend trip but will try to figure out how to reach you when I return.

Thanks!
Linnea

Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) look very pretty with a 1-2" purple flowerhead and grows about 12-18" tall.

-Nick

Here is a link that might be useful:

My favorite is Allium christophii, which has large heads on maybe 2' tall stems. The flowers are sort of a steel-gray-amethyst color (heaviest on the amethyst), and they are just plain elegant. Allium 'Purple Sensation' is attractive, too, and much darker purple.

I planted Allium Schubertii bulbs in fall 2004. Spring 2005 was quite a spectacular show! Big center globe with with longer stems protruding from center globe with star shaped pink flowers. Once the foilage dies back you are left with the skeleton of the flower full of seeds! Haven't been able to find these bulbs for sale anywhere since I got these, but I'll keep looking until I do because I NEED SOME MORE!

Here are Van Engelen's 2005 prices for Alliums:
Globemaster 3/$17.75, 6/$33.50
schubertii 5/$9.75, 25/$44.75
cristophii 10/$8.75, 50/$35.50, 100/$67.50

I found cristophii at Brent & Becky's bulbs for 100/$56.00

I have Globemaster, cristophii, sphaerocephalon, favum, moly, pulchellum, aflatunense & 'Purple Sensation' as well as chives in my gardens. They all are beautiful. I should try schubertii since several people have raved about this allium.