Few-flowered Garlic - Allium paradoxum
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Species Description
Widespread and fairly frequent throughout the UK but absent from many places. Most concentrated around Edinburgh. It is increasing. Habitat includes: gardens, parks, allotments, churchyards, riverbanks, roadside verges, field margins, woodland, wasteland etc. It was introduced into cultivation in Britain in 1823 and was first recorded from the wild in 1863 near Edinburgh.
Stace 4:
Allium paradoxum (M. Bieb.) G. Don - Few-flowered Garlic.
Stems to 40cm, triangular in section with acute angles; leaves flat, keeled, 5-25mm wide; inflorescence of bulbils with or without flowers (most commonly with only 1 flower) or rarely with only flowers; tepals 10-12mm, white; stamens shorter than tepals; filaments simple; (2n=16). Neophyte-naturalised; woods, grassy places, rough ground and waysides; scattered through much of Britain and Ireland; Caucasus. Plants without bulbils are grown in gardens; they have not been reported from the wild but are allowed for in the key.
Keys:
Inflorescence consisting entirely of bulbils
- Leaves obviously bifacial, not to strongly keeled
- Stems triangular in section; leaves all basal
Inflorescence consisting of both flowers and bulbils
- Leaves obviously bifacial, not to strongly keeled
- Stems triangular in section
Inflorescence consisting entirely of flowers
- Leaves obviously bifacial, not to strongly keeled
- Tepals white to pink, greenish or purplish, sometimes dull brownish-yellow
- Leaves without petiole, linear to filiform
- Stem triangular in section
- Stigma 3-lobed; spathe 2-valved
- Leaf 1 per bulb; tepals with very narrow, faint green line