Greene, I will do that! I have black pots, bricks, and Asian friends! Thanks for that idea!
Ken, I have chives in my rose garden that do have lovely smallish purple blossoms. I use those in salads. We also grow garlic in the rose bed, and it goes into our stir fry dishes. (When my kids were young, they called them chip dip plants, and that's how we used them! I'll never forget my daughter taking a bouquet of them to her teacher...on her own, and me finding out later!)
I think I will dig out the clumps that are invading the other plants' root systems, and leave the rest to grow, with and without covering. There's an area by my bee hives where I can toss the clumps, or do you think that would make the honey taste garlicky? I also have a bank that is eroding, and the way these bulbs stick together, it might just be the right place for them.
