A single stem with basal foliage supports a huge purple flower of 8 to 10 inches in diameter. The genus Allium (the Latin means "garlic") offers colorful, distinctive, and long-lasting forms that are standouts in the early-summer garden. Alliums are sun-lovers and prefer well-drained, even sandy, soil. Deer, mice, chipmunks, and related predators generally avoid this group, so you can plant with impunity. Tuck them among clumps of summer-flowering perennials where the Allium's withering foliage will be hidden by the expanding perennials.
