A summer garden without Allium is like a cake without frosting -- where's the sweetness and fun? This super-easy bulb is just made for dotting around the sunny annual, perennial, or shrub border, popping up on the patio, and bobbing in a sea of purple in the backyard! The flowers are perfect for cutting, but you may find them so charming in the garden that you have to grow two stands -- one just for the vase, the other wherever you need bold, bright "punctuation" in the garden!'Purple Sensation' is one of the deepest, richest violets ever grown in this family. The 3-inch globes are packed with up to 50 starry florets, and you'll enjoy watching them turn from little green nubs to brilliant outstretched blooms! They arise on a thick, fat 3-foot stalk, with a skirt of silvery-green leaves at the base that looks great even when the plant's not in bloom. And if you think Daffodils are easy, wait until you grow this Allium!
'Purple Sensation' looks terrific among billowy, airy plants such as Hardy Geraniums and Russian Sage, and feels right at home in the hot, dry soil favored by Callirhoe involucrata. It's also fantastic among flowering annuals of all types! In other words, you just can't go wrong as long as you choose a hot, sunny spot with very good soil drainage! (If your soil is heavy or clay-ey, like mine here in the south, just add some humus or compost at planting time.)
Now, 'Purple Sensation' will self-sow all over the place in your garden if you let it, so I recommend snipping the flowerheads as they fade. (If you let it sow, the new plants will have pale mauve blooms, not nearly as attractive as 'Purple Sensation'!) But that's about it for maintenance -- expect it to reappear for years to come as soon as the weather heats up in summer!
Very resistant to extreme heat, cold, and drought, 'Purple Sensation' is also untroubled by deer and rabbits (who eat so many of our favorite bulbs, the rascals!). If you have a spot at the edge of your property where critters like to feed in the wee hours of the morning, plant a big stand of Allium and guarantee yourself at least some color!
A superb plant for arid climates in the north, southwest, midwest, and far west, 'Purple Sensation' also does just fine in the more humid parts of the country, provided the soil is well-drained. Its blooms are very long-lasting in the vase, and you just can't beat it for bold, beautiful violet accents! Space bulbs 12 to 15 inches apart; foliage at the base will spread up to 2 feet across. Zones 4-9.
