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ramp, small white leek, wild leek

prairie onion, textile onion, white wild onion

Bulbs

2–6, usually borne on short rhizome, ovoid-conic, 1.5–6 × 1.5–3 cm;

outer coats enclosing 1 or more bulbs, brownish to grayish, reticulate, cells finely fibrous;

inner coat white, obscurely cellular, cells irregularly arranged.

1–3+, not rhizomatous, without basal bulbels, ovoid, 1.2–2.5 × 1–2 cm;

outer coats enclosing 1 or more bulbs, gray or brown, reticulate, cells fine-meshed, open, fibrous;

inner coats whitish, cells vertically elongate and regular or obscure.

Leaves

ephemeral, usually absent at anthesis, 2–3, basal;

blade solid, flat, elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate, (15–)20–30(–40) cm × 15–90 mm, tapering to long, slender petiole, margins entire.

persistent, green at anthesis, 2, sheathing;

blade solid, ± straight, channeled, semiterete, 10–40 cm × 1–3(–5) mm, margins entire or denticulate.

Scape

persistent, solitary, flexuous distally, terete, 10–40 cm × 2–4 mm.

persistent, solitary, erect, ± terete, 5–30(–40) cm × 1–3 mm.

Umbel

persistent, erect, loose, (6–)30–50-flowered, obconic to ± hemispheric, bulbils unknown;

spathe bracts persistent, 2, ± 3-veined, lanceolate to lance-ovate, ± equal, apex acute, beakless.

persistent, erect, compact to ± loose, 15–30-flowered, hemispheric, bulbils unknown;

spathe bracts persistent, 3, usually 1-veined, ovate, ± equal, apex acuminate.

Flowers

campanulate, 4–7 mm;

tepals erect, white to cream or yellowish, oblong to ovate, ± equal, not withering in fruit, margins entire, apex obtuse;

stamens ± equaling tepals;

anthers white to light yellow;

pollen white;

ovary crestless;

style included, linear, shorter than stamens;

stigma capitate, scarcely thickened, unlobed;

pedicel 10–20 mm.

urceolate to campanulate, 5–7 mm;

tepals erect, white or rarely pink, with red or reddish brown midribs;

outer whorl broadly ovate to lanceolate, unequal, becoming callous-keeled and permanently investing capsule, margins often obscurely toothed apically, apex obtuse to acuminate;

inner whorl narrower, margins entire, apex distinctly spreading;

stamens included;

anthers yellow;

pollen yellow;

ovary ± conspicuously crested;

processes 6, central, distinct or connate in pairs across septa, ± erect, rounded, to 1 mm, margins entire, becoming variously developed or obsolete in fruit;

style linear, equaling filaments;

stigma capitate, unlobed or obscurely lobed;

pedicel 5–20 mm.

Seed

coat shining;

cells smooth.

coat shining;

cells ± smooth, without central papillae.

2n

= 14, 28.

Allium tricoccum

Allium textile

Phenology Flowering May–Jun.
Habitat Dry plains and hills
Elevation 300–2400 m (1000–7900 ft)
Distribution
from USDA
e North America
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CO; IA; ID; KS; MN; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; SD; UT; WA; WY; AB; MB; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Bulbs mostly 4–6 cm; leaf blades (3–)5–9 cm wide; spathe bracts 2–3 cm; umbel (15–)30–50-flowered.
var. tricoccum
1. Bulbs 2–4(–5) cm; leaf blades (1.5–)2–4(–4.5) cm wide; spathe bracts 1–2 cm; umbel (6–)12–18 (–24)-flowered.
var. burdickii
Source FNA vol. 26, p. 234. FNA vol. 26, p. 243.
Parent taxa Liliaceae > Allium Liliaceae > Allium
Sibling taxa
A. aaseae, A. abramsii, A. acuminatum, A. ampeloprasum, A. amplectens, A. anceps, A. atrorubens, A. bigelovii, A. bisceptrum, A. bolanderi, A. brandegeei, A. brevistylum, A. burlewii, A. campanulatum, A. canadense, A. cepa, A. cernuum, A. columbianum, A. constrictum, A. coryi, A. cratericola, A. crenulatum, A. crispum, A. cuthbertii, A. denticulatum, A. diabolense, A. dichlamydeum, A. dictuon, A. douglasii, A. drummondii, A. elmendorfii, A. falcifolium, A. fibrillum, A. fimbriatum, A. fistulosum, A. geyeri, A. gooddingii, A. haematochiton, A. hickmanii, A. hoffmanii, A. howellii, A. hyalinum, A. jepsonii, A. kunthii, A. lacunosum, A. lemmonii, A. macropetalum, A. macrum, A. madidum, A. membranaceum, A. monticola, A. munzii, A. neapolitanum, A. nevadense, A. nevii, A. nigrum, A. obtusum, A. oleraceum, A. paniculatum, A. parishii, A. parryi, A. parvum, A. passeyi, A. peninsulare, A. perdulce, A. platycaule, A. plummerae, A. praecox, A. punctum, A. rhizomatum, A. robinsonii, A. rotundum, A. runyonii, A. sanbornii, A. sativum, A. schoenoprasum, A. scilloides, A. serra, A. sharsmithiae, A. shevockii, A. simillimum, A. siskiyouense, A. speculae, A. stellatum, A. textile, A. tolmiei, A. tribracteatum, A. triquetrum, A. tuberosum, A. tuolumnense, A. unifolium, A. validum, A. victorialis, A. vineale, A. yosemitense
A. aaseae, A. abramsii, A. acuminatum, A. ampeloprasum, A. amplectens, A. anceps, A. atrorubens, A. bigelovii, A. bisceptrum, A. bolanderi, A. brandegeei, A. brevistylum, A. burlewii, A. campanulatum, A. canadense, A. cepa, A. cernuum, A. columbianum, A. constrictum, A. coryi, A. cratericola, A. crenulatum, A. crispum, A. cuthbertii, A. denticulatum, A. diabolense, A. dichlamydeum, A. dictuon, A. douglasii, A. drummondii, A. elmendorfii, A. falcifolium, A. fibrillum, A. fimbriatum, A. fistulosum, A. geyeri, A. gooddingii, A. haematochiton, A. hickmanii, A. hoffmanii, A. howellii, A. hyalinum, A. jepsonii, A. kunthii, A. lacunosum, A. lemmonii, A. macropetalum, A. macrum, A. madidum, A. membranaceum, A. monticola, A. munzii, A. neapolitanum, A. nevadense, A. nevii, A. nigrum, A. obtusum, A. oleraceum, A. paniculatum, A. parishii, A. parryi, A. parvum, A. passeyi, A. peninsulare, A. perdulce, A. platycaule, A. plummerae, A. praecox, A. punctum, A. rhizomatum, A. robinsonii, A. rotundum, A. runyonii, A. sanbornii, A. sativum, A. schoenoprasum, A. scilloides, A. serra, A. sharsmithiae, A. shevockii, A. simillimum, A. siskiyouense, A. speculae, A. stellatum, A. tolmiei, A. tribracteatum, A. tricoccum, A. triquetrum, A. tuberosum, A. tuolumnense, A. unifolium, A. validum, A. victorialis, A. vineale, A. yosemitense
Subordinate taxa
A. tricoccum var. burdickii, A. tricoccum var. tricoccum
Synonyms A. aridum, A. reticulatum, A. reticulatum var. playanum
Name authority Solander: in W. Aiton, Hort. Kew 1: 428. (1789) A. Nelson & J. F. Macbride: Bot. Gaz. 56: 470. (1913)
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