Allium adds a splash of excitement to the garden

Allium or ornamental onions are some of the best bulbs to plant for resistance to animal browsing and they come in many varieties. Try the popular, June-blooming Globemaster with a 10-inch pinkish-purple flower on a 2- to 3-foot stem; it lasts up to a month.

The drumstick onion, Allium sphaerocephalon, has reliable burgundy blossoms about 1 inch wide. Allium moly, lily leek, is a small species that is 10 to 14 inches tall with yellows flowers.

These are just a few of the many alliums that succeed with little effort in Midwest gardens if planted this fall. Daffodils are also easy to grow and are resistant to animal browsing, while tulips and crocuses are readily eaten.

• Peonies are dependable, long-living, hardy perennials. Their neat foliage stays green from spring until frost, and follows large, showy blooms. They do best in full sun, although they can tolerate partial shade. Flowering is reduced if they are placed in the shade.

Early October is a good time to plant peonies as well as divide and transplant existing ones. Lift roots carefully and use a sharp tool to cut the large, fleshy roots into smaller pieces. Be careful not to make these pieces too small - each section should have at least three eyes. The eyes are reddish growing buds that emerge from the top of the roots. You will find them in spring and fall.

Set these divisions an inch or 2 below the ground when you are planting them. The new plantings will benefit from a layer of mulch.

• Plants that prefer acidic soil conditions, like rhododendrons and azaleas, can benefit from an application of granular sulfur to the soil in fall.

If your blue hydrangeas have turned pink, sulfur applications may return the flower color to blue. Avoid contact with the sulfur by wearing latex gloves and keeping dust out of your eyes.

Apply to the soil and gently scratch it in. Sulfur works slowly in the soil and repeated applications may be necessary from year to year.

• Tim Johnson is director of horticulture at Chicago Botanic Garden, chicagobotanic.org.