Allium drummondii

Drummond's onion
Allium drummondii[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Subfamily: Allioideae
Tribe: Allieae
Genus: Allium
Species: A. drummondii
Binomial name
Allium drummondii
Regel[2]
Synonyms[3]
Allium Drummondii

Drummond's onion (Allium drummondii), also known as Wild garlic and the Prairie onion, is a North American species of onion native to the southern Great Plains of North America. It is found in South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, New Mexico, and northeastern Mexico.[3][4]

Allium drummondii is a bulb-forming perennial. The lovely white flowers bloom in April and May, in a variety of colors ranging from white to pink. It is common, considered invasive in some regions.[5][6][7]

Uses

This species of Allium is gathered by Native Americans for its small edible bulbs. Drummond's Onion contains a considerable amount of inulin, a non-reducing sugar that humans cannot digest. Because of this, these onions must be heated for a long period of time in order to convert the inulin into digestible sugars.[8]

References

  1. ↑ 1913 illustration from Britton, N.L., & A. Brown. 1913. Illustrated flora of the northern states and Canada. Vol. 1: 500
  2. ↑ Regel, Eduard August von 1875. Trudy Imperatorskago S.-Peterburgskago Botaničeskago Sada 3(2): 112 in Latin
  3. 1 2 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  4. ↑ Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, University of Texas, Allium drummondii Regel
  5. ↑ Flora of North America Vol. 26 Page 239 Allium drummondii Regel, Trudy Imp. S.-Peterburgsk. Bot. Sada. 3: 112. 1875.
  6. ↑ CONABIO. 2009. Catálogo taxonómico de especies de México. 1. In Capital Nat. México. CONABIO, Mexico City.
  7. ↑ Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution map
  8. ↑ Bailey, L.H. & E.Z. Bailey. 1976. Hortus Third i–xiv, 1–1290. MacMillan, New York.
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