Growing is a passion for those who like the joy of it from their heart. Nothing can make a gardener happier than watching his/her garden flowering. It is so much more than an achievement for the hard work that has led to those good flowers beaming with prestige in your farm. The instant splash of colour by those beautiful flowers light up the face of your garden.
Allium bulbs, which get formed in groups of 4-8, can usually be harvested 60-100 days from planting, by the time which will have turned yellow, depending on the cultivar characteristics. Allium bulbs, with green leaves, are also harvested to be used in salads. Average bulb yields are in the range of 9-10 t/ha; if three crops get planted during the year, a total yield of 25-30 t/ha can be reached. Mature bulbs which are required for propagation should be thoroughly dried and kept in a well-ventilated environment at either relatively high or low temperatures before being replanted. Bulbs can be; boiled, used in soups and stews, fried or eaten raw. The leaves also get used in salads. In some tropical areas, bulbs have been chosen for their dry matter yield and suitability for dehydration.
Here are some tips to help you have a flowering garden with allium bulbs:
1.Differentiate:
(i).It is pretty confusing to distinguish between rhizome and tuberous varieties of bulbs because they look almost the same but flowers have a different look when they bloom. Prima Donna and Double Trumpet are some of the well-known varieties of bulbs. They have beautiful colours like that of red, yellow and white. They bloom in frills like that of carnations. You can differentiate between them by the fact that tubers are thicker and shorter than the rhizome variety.
(ii).Alliums are of the onion genus. Some of the varieties are edible, but some of them flower into beautiful flowers in the spring time. One of the reasons why allium bulbs are such a gardener’s delight is due to that fact that they are pretty easy to grow. A little amount of labour is needed to take care of their growth. But before planting them one should make sure that the bulbs are healthy, this will ensure good flowering of bulbs.
2. Taking Care:
(i). Bulb flowers flower in summer and fall. They grow well in soils that are well drained and get good exposure to sunlight. Water the bulb plant regularly during the season which they flower and watch out for powdery mildew. When the leaves start turning yellow, stop watering them. Gradually the plant will dry out then pull out the bulbs, get rid of the stems carefully and leave them to dry in the sun to prevent them from rotting. This way you can use them next season as well.
(ii).Alliums grow well in drained and compost rich soil. This should be done in the rainy season so that they have deep set root before the starting of the winters. Alliums should be watered consistently, not more than half an inch from the level of the soil potted in. Otherwise, they will rot under the soil.
3.Storage:
Store alliums in a cool and dry place so that they do not rot and thus you can have nice flowers next season as well.