ornamental onion
Allium schubertii
USDA zones5 to 8
SunHandles full sun to partial sun
WaterHandles dry to moist soil
Size12 to 24 inches tall12 to 18 inches wide
- Bloom season
- Spring, summer
- Bloom color
- Rose-purple
- Soil types
- Sand, loam, clay, chalk
- Soil pH
- Acid, alkaline, neutral
Garden uses
Attracts
Notes
Ornamental onion (Allium schubertii) is a bulb for borders, containers, and naturalized plantings. It is hardy to USDA zone 5, or down to -20°F (-29°C). This plant likes full or part sun and dry to moist soil of most types. Its loose, volleyball-sized heads hold rosy purple, star-shaped flowers on stalks of unequal length, like a giant firework. When the fruits ripen, the head detaches and rolls away like a tumbleweed to scatter seeds. It sits low on the menu for deer and rabbits.
Pairs well with Tickseed, Prairie dropseed, and Common milkweed.
Native range
Eastern Mediterranean to Central Asia.