Allium atroviolaceum
broadleaf wild leek
Family Amaryllidaceae
About
Allium atroviolaceum is a tall onion from western Asia and the Caucasus with dense round heads of purple flowers, grown for food and ornament.
Care at a glance
- Pet safety
- Allium species are toxic to cats and dogs; eating large amounts can cause hemolytic anemia, and cats are most sensitive. General guidance for the genus
- People
- Not recorded.
- Light
- Full sun to light shade. General guidance for the genus
- Water
- Avoid overly damp ground; wet conditions invite bulb rot and other fungal problems. General guidance for the genus
- Soil
- Fertile, loose, well-drained soil; sand or loam both suit. General guidance for the genus
- Propagation
- Divide bulb offsets in spring; seed is slower and may take years to germinate. General guidance for the genus
- Mature size
- Flowering stalk up to 100 cm.
“General guidance for the genus” marks advice sourced for the genus as a whole rather than this species.
Field notes
Morphology
A perennial with a large round bulb, broadly linear leaves and a flowering stalk up to 100 cm, topped by a spherical umbel of crowded purple or red-violet flowers.
Distribution & habitat
Native from Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and southern European Russia. Sparingly naturalised in the eastern United States and south-eastern Europe.
Cultivation notes
Widely grown outside its range as a food plant and an ornamental.
Conservation
Listed by the IUCN as Data Deficient.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- Native to
- Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia
- IUCN status
- Data deficient
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- Not recorded
Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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