I love flowers with pom pom like heads............thin stems with a flower head like the Armeria I showed you in the last post.
Chives have very pretty lavender/ish pom pom like flowers, so when I saw them sprouting up all over my flower bed last Summer, I decided to wait and see if they would flower.
I left them and left them and waited..............patiently.
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| A few nice plants, lots of weeds and lots of chives, growing separately. |
Which started to look promising...........so I waited.
Then they sprouted long green tendrils not resembling petals at all.
Which died.
But patience is a virtue so I waited some more, and eventually I saw the beginnings of the resemblance of a flower.
A definite pom pom like flower.
Until I had this...........one fully open (?) lavender coloured tiny pom pom flower head.
Did you read that carefully ? I said ONE, just ONE tiny pom pom flower head that doesn't look much like other chive flowers I've seen and only lasted a couple of days.
Needless to say............this year I didn't feel like being quite so patient so I pulled them all up.
So funny! Your garden looks very lush and green.
ReplyDeletePerhaps you already know this? Those aren't chives with the funny long green tendrils. They are some kind of wild or Egyptian onion (or a relative) that forms tiny onion bulbs on the flower stalk. See http://www.eattheweeds.com/allium-canadense-the-stinking-rose-2/ and http://www.egyptianwalkingonion.com/photogalleryonionpatch.htm. Interesting reproductive strategy, I think!
ReplyDeleteThank you birdgardens, it seems the chive flower I waited for never was a chive but a wild onion, thank you for the info.
DeleteI had a few of those in the garden, but seeing yours reminds me that they haven't bloomed this year. I really liked the look of them.
ReplyDeleteI was going to say it doesn't look like my chive flowers... But I read the explanation in the comments. My chives are about to bloom all their little purple pompom heads!
ReplyDeleteHey Fiona,
ReplyDeleteI know you were excited (and very patient) about your pink pom pom petals, and the fact that you only got one must have been disappointing, but, in the end, the mystery (and discovery!) of the true personality of this pom pom was amazing, wasn't it? I'd definitely think of this as a very intriguing learning experience!
Poppy
Actual chives are the easiest things in the world to grow and the clumps will bloom profusely every year. It's nice that you gave the onions? a chance though.
ReplyDelete