Wild Garlic
Scientific Name: Allium oleraceum L.
Family: Liliaceae
MORPHOLOGY
Growth habit and size: Perennial plant, 20-90 cm tall; ovoid bulb with membranous tunics.
Stem: Robust, cylindrical stem, wrapped in sheaths up to the half.
Leaves: Hollow, linear, channelled leaves, 3-5 mm wide, generally rough underneath.
Flowers: Inflorescence with few flowers and numerous elongated and acute bulbils. Peduncles 1-3 cm, reddish, curved and often pendulous. Persistent bivalve spathe, with unequal valves, the longest of which exceeds the inflorescence. Rosy, greenish, or brownish tepals, 5-7 mm, obtuse or nearly bilobed, stamens with unequal filaments, the longest equaling the tepals. It blooms from May to September.
Fruits and seeds: Follicles about half a cm containing three seeds.
DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT
It grows throughout Italy except in Sardinia, Campania, Calabria, and Puglia, from sea level to 1,800 m. It prefers dry uncultivated soils, sunny slopes, vineyards, and riverbanks.
USE
Leaves, flowers, and bulbs are used in popular cuisine as a seasoning. The entire plant, and especially its juice, is used as a repellent. Although there are no specific references to the medicinal use of this species, it should be noted that members of the genus “Allium” normally contain active principles long used in folk medicine. Before taking any plant-based product (medicinal or non-medicinal) for therapeutic or similar purposes, it is always advisable to consult a doctor.
Photo: Provided under a free license by Saxifraga and Ed Stikvoort, Peter Meininger, Willem van Kruijsbergen, Rutger Barendse
