Allium spathaceum

Allium spathaceum, the Ethiopian onion, is a plant species native to Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia and Sudan. Of the 900 known species of onion in the world, this is one of only a few that are endemic to the area.[2]

Ethiopian onion
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Subfamily: Allioideae
Genus: Allium
Species:
A. spathaceum
Binomial name
Allium spathaceum
Synonyms[1]
  • Allium subhirsutum var. spathaceum (Steud. ex A.Rich.) Regel
  • Allium subhirsutum subsp. spathaceum (Steud. ex A.Rich.) Duyfjes

Allium spathaceum is a bulb-forming perennial up to 40 cm tall, with a scent similar to that of onion or leeks. It has very narrow, linear leaves with hairs along the edges. The umbel contains only a few flowers, with long pedicels. Tepals are white with reddish midveins.[3][4][5][6]

References
  1. The Plant List
  2. Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  3. Richard, Achille. 1850. Tentamen Florae Abyssinicae seu Enumeratio Plantarum hucusque in plerisque Abyssiniae 2: 330.
  4. Duyfjes, Brigitta Emma Elisabeth. 1972. Rev. Gen. Allium in Africa 142; Meded. Landbouwhoogeschool Wageningen, 76(11).
  5. JSTOR Global Plants compilation page, Allium spathaceum
  6. Czech Botany, Allium spathaceum
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