Alliums can be grown both from seeds and from bulbs as well, although most people tend to plant bulbs instead of seeds. When deciding if you want to plant Allium seeds or bulbs you should consider how large your garden is, how many of them you want, and of course, what is your budget. There is a type of Allium for every budget and every garden, they even look good in smaller gardens or flower borders as well.
The difference between Allium seeds and bulbs is the time they take to flower, Allium bulbs will flower in the first year of planting while it will take around 3 years until the Allium seeds will be able to flower. On the other hand, Allium seeds are extremely cheap although their germination rate may vary. Allium bulbs will produce seeds in the first year of planting and they will self-seed relatively easily.
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Allium seeds are extremely cheap, you can get a lot of them, even from types of Alliums that tend to be expensive when you buy them as bulbs. These seeds will take around 3 years to grow big enough plants to actually flower, at which point they will produce more seeds. If you have a large garden then you should definitely use Allium seeds, it will take a while until they flower but they will fill your entire garden with color once they do.
On the other hand, if you want to have Allium flowers in the first year, but also have a lot of Alliums in your garden, then you should use bulbs and seeds as well. This way you get flowers in the first year, and more Allium plants in the following years. If you want more information about how Alliums self seed then check out my recent article Do Alliums Self Seed? ( From Seed To Flowers ).
Allium Seeds VS Bulbs Pros & Cons
The biggest pro of Allium bulbs is that they will flower in the first year, and the flowers will actually turn into seeds. One of the main cons of Allium bulbs is that they can be relatively expensive, and some varieties are really hard to find. In addition to this, bulbs are definitely harder to plant than seeds are, so if you want to plant a lot of bulbs, either get an auger or a bulb planter, just keep in mind that it is extremely hard to work with a bulb planter in clay soil.
The biggest pros of Allium seeds are that they are cheap and you can get a lot of them. The main con of Allium seeds is that it takes them around 3 years to produce flowers, and for the first couple of years you will be looking at their leaves, which are not the best looking ones in your garden. The germination rate of the seeds can be relatively low, especially if you direct sow them in the garden, so you might want to think about starting the seeds indoors. If you want to know how Allium bulbs multiply then check out my recent article Do Allium Bulbs Multiply? ( How Fast? ).
Allium Seeds Will Turn Into Bulbs
Allium seeds after germinating will slowly turn into bulbs, these bulbs will be rather small at the beginning and will not be able to flower, but they will produce leaves. The main issue with Allium seeds is that you will see their leaves for around 3 years, without seeing any flowers. Allium leaves tend to look really messy, especially as they start decaying, so make sure to use companion plants to hide their leaves.
After around 3 years the seeds should have turned into larger bulbs, at which point they will be able to grow flowers and seeds as well. At this point, the cycle of Alliums growing and self seeding in your garden will continue as long as you allow it. Alliums tend to be really good self seeders, although you should definitely harvest the seeds from the types of Alliums that you like the most. If you want to know how and when to divide Allium bulbs then check out my recent article When And How To Divide Alliums? ( Easy Guide ).
Allium Bulbs Will Create Seeds
Allium bulbs will create seeds after flowering, and as they usually tend to flower in the first year of planting you will have plenty of seeds. The bigger the Allium bulbs are the more seeds their flowers will produce. If you take the route of only planting Allium bulbs, then you should use a couple of different varieties. Allium bulbs tend to be relatively expensive especially when the planting season has arrived, which is in autumn.
Although the bulbs do cost a lot more than seeds do, but as they will produce seeds in the first year, you might actually find that in the long run, it was cheaper to buy the bulbs rather than the seeds.
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Key Takeaways
- The main difference between allium bulbs and seeds is that the bulbs will flower in the first year, while the seeds will take to flower in around 3 years.
- Although Allium seeds are relatively cheap, but the bulbs will produce more seeds in the first year.
- The bigger the Allium bulbs are the more seeds they will produce.
