Flowering Raspberry vs Nodding Onion - TreeTime.ca

Flowering Raspberry vs Nodding Onion

Rubus odoratus

Allium cernuum

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Flowering Raspberry
Nodding Onion

The Flowering Raspberry is an ornamental shrubby plant that blooms with fragrant light purple flowers throughout the summer and has a large, decorative foliage of bright green leaves. The flowers resemble that of a wildrose, and the foliage turns a bright yellow in the fall. This cultivar produces small red raspberries, similar to that of a thimbleberry, but the fruit is mostly tasteless.

The Flowering Raspberry, also known as Virginia Raspberry or Purple-Flowered Raspberry, makes a great hedge plant and is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard.

Nodding Onion is a native perennial wildflower known for its nodding clusters of flowers that range in color from white to pink to purple. The lightly scented blooms provide pollen and nectar for pollinators, especially bees, which can collect while hanging upside down, a capability most other insects lack.

The narrow, grass-like leaves of the Nodding Onion can be used as a seasoning in cooked dishes, though bulbs and raw leaves should not be eaten in large quantities. All parts of the plant have an onion-like aroma when bruised, which helps deter deer and rabbits. They can self-seed readily, so removing spent blooms helps manage their spread. Tolerant of a range of soils, including alkaline, it is well-suited for a variety of plantings, including pollinator gardens and naturalization projects.

Flowering Raspberry Quick Facts

Nodding Onion Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 3a
Height: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Height: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Spread: 4 m (12 ft)
Spread: 0.2 m (0.5 ft)
Light: any
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: dry, normal
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: medium
Life span: short
Growth form: upright to spreading, clump-forming
Spreading: seeds - high
Suckering: high
Maintenance: high
Maintenance: medium


Toxicity: raw leaves and bulbs can be midly toxic
Foliage: smells of onion when crushed, edible
Bark: thornless orange
Flowers: purple
Flowers: white, pink, or purple nodding clusters
Bloom time: late spring to summer
Berries: red to purple, seedy
Firmness: firm
Flavor: tasteless
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: ON, QC, NS
Native to: AB, BC, SK, ON
Other Names: purple-flowered raspberry, virginia raspberry
Other Names: ladys leek, nodding wild onion