One of my favourite perennial onions are persian shallots, Allium stipitatum and I’ve blogged about them several times in the past: https://www.edimentals.com/blog/?s=persian+shallotThis is one of the earliest onions to appear in the spring and they flower and die down in the course of June. July is the best time to harvest the bulbs (I’ve often harvested … Continue reading Persian Shallot harvest
I’ve also harvested onions of Allium stipitatum “Album”, one of the so-called Ornamental onions…but for those in the know also a fantastic Edimental onion. I bought this one as Allium rosenbachianum “Album” from Taylor’s bulbs in 2009. My friend, THE onion man,Mark McDonough tentatively ID’d it rather as Allium stipitatum “Album” – a bit disappointed … Continue reading Persian shallot confusion!
So far so good, excellent germination outside of Persian shallot (Alium altissimum) – they had germinated some time ago and the young bulbs are already clearly visible. Planted out yesterday at different spacings to see how quickly they grow! See also http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=893 http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=357
I bought my original plant as Allium hirtifolium, a perennial ornamental onion, only later having it identified by my onion friend Wietse Mellema as Allium altissimum, one of at least three botanical species mostly wild collected in West Asia as Persian Shallot (mooseer). Wikipedia: “Most of those eaten are harvested from the wild, sliced, dried, and … Continue reading A year in the life of the Persian Shallot
Drying Persian shallot bulbs over my wood stove with the first batch of apples! Perennial Allium altissimum..
Being the focus of an art installation wasn’t something I ever imagined, but since February an installation has been exhibited at the Trondheim Art Museum Gråmølna based on my January winter vegetables and very nicely put together it was too, by a group of international artists working on the Meatigation (get it?) project through the … Continue reading Unpacking the Edimentals Herbarium
Norwegian: for en norsk oversettelse av denne artikkelen (Norwegian translation), se KVANNs (Norwegian Seed Savers) Nyhetsbrev #15 There’s always been a barberry (Berberis vulgaris) in my garden, in dry soil in the root zone of my largest spruce trees. It was a large plant when we moved here in 1984 and may be wild as … Continue reading Lemon Berberis
In 2015, I blogged on “A Year in the life of the Persian Shallot” (see http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=893) and dried a few onions for future use. Persian shallot can be one of several onion species with large bulbs, both wild collected and cultivated, apparently, mainly around the Iranian city of Hamadan, which is in the midwest part … Continue reading Mast-o Mooseer
Yesterday, I gave my first talk about my (second) love of onions (alternative title All you wanted to know about Alliums but were afraid to ask!)….fittingly in the nursery with I believe the best selection of Alliums being sold as foodplants in Europe if not the world , my friend Aiah Noack’s Naturplanteskolen just outside … Continue reading Around the world in 80 Alliums
ADDED: Mark McDonough has commented on the Alliorum Facebook forum (https://www.facebook.com/groups/575374019245196) that the plant I have isn’t rosenbachianum, but probably Allium stipitatum “Album”, one of the Alliums eaten as Persian shallot (see also http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=893) Thanks to Lieven David for attracting my attention to the following interesting paper on “Wild Allium species (Alliaceae) used in folk medicine … Continue reading Allium rosenbachianum, a new edimental from Tajikstan and Uzbekistan