Nodding Onion

Allium cernuum

Nodding Onion has a posture that's immediately endearing: the flower stalk curves downward at the top, so the small cluster of pink-purple flowers hangs like a chandelier rather than standing upright. The effect is delicate, graceful, and slightly whimsical. individual flowers in the cluster bell-shaped and perfect. They bloom in July and August, exactly when many other summer perennials are flagging, and native bees find them enthusiastically. Crush a leaf and you'll smell exactly what the name promises. a mild, fresh onion fragrance. This makes it completely deer-proof and mildly pest-deterrent, which is why it grows well even in areas with significant deer pressure. It naturalizes readily in rocky, sandy, dry soil and thrives on neglect. Plant it in drifts of 10 or more at the front of a sunny border or let it naturalize in a meadow planting.