Well I asked at Alliums that Ornamental Alliums be included in their FAQ. Hopefully someone will volunteer to be the editor. The number of questions fielded for allium or flowering allium asked here at Bulbs is small compared to the search results found over there. Search on allium here---171 threads search on Ornamental allium here-13 threads Search at Alliums on Allium-1,720 threads Search at Alliums on Ornamental Alliums-63 Even though there is an actual Lily Forum, questions are often asked here about lilies, and get help here. We can still field questions here on alliums, lilies, amaryllis, etc, that would maybe be better addressed on other more 'plant specific' forums.

DIRECTIONS TO COTTON-ARBO RETUM 597 Washington St. Winchester Ma. 01890 From the North: Take Rt 93 south (or from Rt. 128 to Rt 93 south, go 1 exit): Exit at Montvale Ave. /Stoneham. At end of ramp, turn right, turn left at Citgo Gas station (1st light) onto Washington St.. Look at your odometer. Go 0.6 miles, just past a strip of parkland on your left, and turn left onto Sunset Rd. and park. Walk back to Washington St., turn left and walk down 1st driveway on your left. This is the best entry to the Cotton-Arbo retum. **** PLEASE COME VISIT THE GARDENS **** **AT THE COTTON-ARBO RETUM IN WINCHESTER** The 21 year old Cotton-Arbo retum is located around a residential property in Winchester. Wishing to share the gardens with everyone,the owners have opened them permanently to the public 24/7 May through October of each year. The gardens are made up of a series of intensely planted garden rooms, linked by a series of sunken paths, ponds and waterfalls. Foliage guides the aesthetic, with great emphasis on Japanese maples, conifers, deciduous trees and shrubs. Herbaceous peonies and non-bearded iris have a strong presence in the perennials, accompanied by thousands of varieties of perennials, vines and ornamental grasses. There is a rustic shade hut and five waterfalls and ponds with sitting areas. With the changes in foliage and flowers, the gardens look quite different every two weeks or so. Peak bloom times are May, Mid June and September.The gardens were created to provide a beautiful quiet respite for everyone to enjoy. Feel free to bring a picnic lunch, or a book, or a dog (we love animals)!! We are often working in the gardens and are happy to answer questions. The Cotton-Arbo retum is open to the public, sunrise to sunset, daily, May through October. 597 Washington St. 01890 ***Remember: OPEN EVERY GATE!!! Nothing is private except the house.*** ~ The Way To Have What We Want Is To Share What We Have ~ PAST AND PRESENT IN THE COTTON-ARBO RETUM We moved to Winchester and began this garden 21 years ago. Aside from an evergreen hedge, and various mature maples, nothing that you now see - was here.There were no fences and the back of our property was a wild woodland of junk trees and scrub. We began our landscape design by laying out garden beds that were visible from key viewpoints in our house. After three years of intense garden development, our gardens were awarded the "Best in Show" prize in a competition sponsored by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and Boston Magazine. For our prize, we were sent to Holland, where, at Trompenberg, we discovered the wonderful world of conifers. This life-changing experience took us out of our perennials focus and raised our vision, literally and figuratively, so that we began to emphasize the' bones' of our gardens- with conifers, shrubs and trees. Visually, we like to play flowers off their surrounding foliage, with an emphasis everywhere on the foliage itself. As we and the gardens have grown older, we have come to realize that perennial beds are the most labor intensive of gardening, and that , while a perennial's flowers often last only 2 weeks, the foliage of shrub, vine and tree- lasts the entire gardening year- 3 seasons.The differences in foliage are like the differences in a person's fingerprints- innumerable! Size, shape, color, texture, variegation, smell, light reflectiveness, movement- all contribute to our fascination with foliage! If this is your first visit, you will be surprised how different the gardens look from one week to the next. In the spring, perennials are short, there are many empty spots, and the gardens have a much more open feeling. You can see from one area to the next. In the summer, plants grow taller and fill in so that the various gardens become their own 'garden rooms'. Fences disappear and flowering vines ramble over railings, shrubs, obelisks and arbors. By September, the plants are at their tallest, highlighted by the many ornamental grasses. Design elements we hope you will notice: The repetetive use of purple, yellow, blue and variegated foliage in providing continuity and in keeping the view lively; The role of varying plant heights in a garden bed; The role of varying garden levels and sunken paths in providing a sense of intimacy and privacy;The role of hidden elements and glimpses of vistas - in drawing you into the various garden areas; The role of water elements; The roles of garden art and architecture. We are so glad you have come to share our gardens. Please bring friends and come back often. **And remember- When you see a gate, open it and explore!!** Every gate takes you to a new garden area. Nothing is private except the house. The Way To Have What We Want Is To Share What We Have

I have been trying to come up with something that by late April would be tall enough to cover that ugliness, but here is zone 5 I haven't found anything that will beat the allium's early emergence and rapid growth. Behind the allium is a clump of grass and some daylilies around the area but they have a long way to go to be of any help. I do cut back the browned leaves often, but really that doesn't make it look much better. Any suggestions of what to plant that would mask that frost bitten foliage in late April would be appreciated. Echinaceamaniac.. I am looking forward to your spring and summer pics of your new alliums. Your garden pictures are always inspiring.

It sounds as though you should plant whatever you want to look at, while at the same time, being mindful of what could have an impact on your yard, as far as future shade, blocking your views, re-seeding, etc.. I would certainly go for shade from the SW for her, a mix of low growing shrubs and small trees, maybe evergreen, with flowers and fruits, and fall color, that won't block views for the property lines, and things that enhance the view from both your yard and her house. I am thinking of things like magnolia species, bald cypress, beech (purple or green), a grouping of deciduous magnolias, deciduous hollies, various spring flowering understory trees and shrubs such as Juneberry, fringe tree, itea, calycanthus or redbud, the more rare species dogwoods (pagoda, gray, red- or yellow-twig), various viburnums, summer to fall flowering plants such as vitex, franklinia, stewartia, gordonia, sourwood, abelias, caryopteris, clethra, bottlebrush buckeye, woody sages, camellias, witch hazel or native azaleas, etc.. I could go on, but.... Keep in mind that someone will have to water things, whether her or you. Setting up an easy watering system of temporary drip hoses around trees (for 2-3 years) might be a time and effort saver for all concerned, as connecting a hose, or two, to the end of a run of drip hose is relatively easy, while dragging hoses from tree to tree and spot to spot is a pain! Making beds or berms, and groups of trees, which you mulch, will both pull the look together and unify the yard, and make watering issues simpler. As I am sure you have already thought of...