Best Alliums to Grow in Washington

Zone 7's moderate climate creates a sweet spot for allium cultivation, offering enough winter chill for proper bulb development while avoiding the extreme cold that can kill tender varieties. Your 210-day growing season and relatively late spring frost (around April 1st) means you can grow both cold-hardy storage varieties and heat-sensitive types that struggle in warmer zones. The key challenge you'll face is the occasional temperature swings – those surprise warm spells in February followed by hard freezes that can confuse your garlic and shallots into premature sprouting.

When selecting alliums for Zone 7, prioritize varieties that can handle your variable spring weather and make the most of your extended growing season. Hardneck garlics like Music and German Extra Hardy will give you reliable harvests and beautiful scapes, while softneck varieties like Georgia Fire can work if you provide some winter protection. Your onion selection can be more adventurous – both short-day types like Vidalia and intermediate-day varieties like Yellow Sweet Spanish will perform well, giving you flexibility in harvest timing.