Pincushion is a small-scale ornamental onion that produces a large number of soft purple flower clusters over a tidy tuft of narrow blue-green leaves. Blooms last for many weeks and leave behind attractive seed heads.
At only 14 to 16 inches tall, it is ideal tucked along the front of a border, in rock gardens or in containers. It is not known to reseed, and it is carefree, drought tolerant and avoided by deer and rabbits. Butterflies and bees are regular visitors.
What it looks like
Numerous rounded flower clusters about 1.5 inches across of tiny starry florets in soft lilac purple, held on slender, straight stems just above the leaves. Leaves are narrow, straight, glaucous blue-green blades forming a tidy, upright tuft. The plant is 14 to 16 inches tall and 12 to 14 inches wide. At peak bloom it is densely studded with many small purple balls, like pins in a cushion.
Growing it with lavender
Pincushion grows in the same sunny, lean, well-drained soil as lavender, and its small purple globes and blue-green leaves make a neat, color-matched edging for a lavender planting.
Care
Grow in full sun to part shade in lean to average, well-drained soil; it handles drought once established. Hardy in USDA zones 4-8. Trim off any tired foliage in fall or early spring; clumps can be divided in spring every few years.
At a glance
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Botanical name: Allium
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Flower color: Soft lilac purple
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Foliage: Glaucous blue-green
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Growth habit: Small, tidy, upright tuft
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Mature size: 14–16 in tall × 12–14 in wide
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USDA hardiness zones: 4–8
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Light: full sun, part sun to part shade
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Bloom start: Late-July
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Peak bloom: Mid-August
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Bloom pattern: Long Blooming
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Deer resistance: Resistant
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Pollinator value: Excellent
Sizes and shipping
Dormant bare-root plant, sold in boxes of 25 per variety (order in multiples of 25). Bare-root plants ship or are picked up March 1–May 31 only. They are soil-free, so they may ship to every state in that window. Dormant plants often show little or no top growth on arrival; plant or heel them in promptly.