My alliums are done flowering, and the stalks look like straw. Can I spray-paint the flower heads now, or will it damage the plant below ground?
There are more natural and nontoxic ways of sustaining colorful garden interest. They involve planning and selecting plants that flower at different times throughout the year. Gardens are, of course, constructed landscapes and not the same as nature. Artificially colorizing spent plant matter appeals to some gardeners’ aesthetic sense but not to others. In my own garden, the alliums are done flowering but the nearby Eryngium (sea holly) is just taking off, dotting the bed with silver and blue. Some plants provide interest even when they are desiccated and brown through the winter, and I would include allium in this group.
However, if you would like to spray color on your allium heads, there are directions here that show how to make a kind of protective dropcloth out of a heavy paper plate with a notch cut into it.
It would be good to avoid getting any paint on the ground, and I suggest not doing it on a windy day. See if you can find spray paints that have lower volatile organic compounds. Despite marketing claims, there is no such thing as a non-toxic aerosol paint as this archived article claims.
There does seem to be a trend in marketing artificially painted living plants, such as succulents which are now being sold in big-box stores. This seems a pity, since there is such beauty in the actual shades of plant foliage. Additionally, this is short-sighted, because the plant will be unable to photosynthesize and transpire, and will eventually suffocate. See the following articles from Better Homes and Gardens, and Southern Living)
Another thought: if you want to cut the allium stalks and use less toxic water-soluble paints (such as casein) to paint them and display them indoors (where rain will not wash away the coloring), that is also an option. My personal preference is to appreciate the natural color of plants as they age and decay, but again, this an aesthetic choice—just like dyeing one’s hair.
How far apart should I plant my shallot starts?
According to Steve Solomon’s Growing Vegetables West of the Cascades (Sasquatch Books, 2007), plant them 3 to 4 inches apart in rows 18 inches apart. Other sources suggest you can make the rows as close together as 12 inches, and the plants as far apart as 6 inches.
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture has a useful page about shallots which recommends 4 to 6 inches between plants.
I am an Ecologist with Adopt-A-Stream Foundation, a non-profit stream restoration organization. I am creating a planting plan for a golf course in Snohomish County. My constraints: Low-growing native shrubs with extensive root systems to help filter out the golf course irrigation water before it enters the stream. Willow would be an obvious choice, but it would grow too tall and out of control. I was looking at such species as Snowberry (Symphoricarpos), Nootka Rose (Rosa nutkana), Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis), etc. It would have to be a FAC+ (streams and wetlands). Any thoughts?
FAC+ is a wetland indicator status term meaning “Facultative,” i.e., more likely to occur in wetlands but also found in non-wetlands.
I found a list in Restoring Wetlands in Washington Publ#93-17 and picked out the FAC-identified ones, eliminating all the tall trees and shrubs. Symphoricarpos (Snowberry) would be a good option, but Rosa nutkana (Nootka Rose) and Rubus spectabilis (Salmonberry) get too big for your purposes. A different rose I could recommend is Rosa gymnocarpa (Baldhip Rose). Many of the following recommendations are grasses of one sort or another. (See the USDA Wetland Indicator status definitions.)
Allium geyeri (non-native) FACU
Athyrium filix femina FAC
Carex aperta (non-native) FACW
Carex stipata FACW
Deschampsia caespitosa FACW
Juncus effusus and ensifolius FACW
Ledum glandulosum FACW
Sambucus racemosa var. melanocarpa FACU
Spirea douglasii FACW
You might also try the Snohomish County Conservation District website.
Could you tell me how to grow Allium from seed?
I will assume you are propagating ornamental Allium. According to the American Horticultural Society’s Plant Propagation (edited by Alan Toogood; DK Publishing, 1999), Allium seeds may be sown any time from late summer to early spring. Seeds should be collected when the flower heads turn brown and before the seedpods open. If you tug gently on the flower stalk and it comes away easily from the base, the seed is ripe. Cover the spot where the stalk was removed with soil to prevent entry to pests. With smaller flowering Allium, you can shake seeds directly into a paper bag (without removing stalks). Sow the seeds fresh, or store them at 41 degrees F, and sow in the spring. Germination time is usually 12 weeks, but in some cases it will take up to a year.
The Royal Horticultural Society says that Allium cultivars may not come true from seed, so you may want to consider alternate methods of propagation, such as by offsets or aerial bulbils.
“Garlic! Grow West of the Cascades” is a charming and infectious little book–that will make you eager to grow lots of this culinary staple. At least, that was my reaction as Frank Parente has an enthusiasm rarely matched by other garden writers. Based on Whidbey Island, but channeling his garden loving, Italian ancestors on both sides of his family tree, he writes to “…cover some pointers that will ensure success in wet and humid Western Washington.”
You will need these pointers, as the many varieties of garlic require specialized handling for optimum results. But don’t worry; the author takes you carefully through the many selections. He also spares no detail on soil preparation, planting, harvesting, curing, and storing, all supplemented with his instructive photographs and diagrams. You’re in good hands!
Excerpted from the Spring 2013 Arboretum Bulletin.