top navigation:

Native Plant Propagation Guidelines:
forbs

Allium cernuum (nodding onion)

Category: 
forbs

Allium cernuum

Perennial 10-50 cm tall, growing from an oval or tapered bulb which smells strongly of onion. Basal, grass-like leaves stay green during flowering. Many pink, bell-shaped flowers form an umbrella shaped cluster which “nods” at the end of a leafless stem curved at the top. 3-lobed fruit capsules contain black seeds (Pojar and MacKinnon, 1994).

Scientific Name: 

Allium cernuum Rorh var. cernuum

Family: 
Liliaceae
English Name: 
nodding onion

Geographical Range and Habitat Requirements

Ecological Setting: 

Dry open woods, exposed grassy places and rocky crevices at low elevations (Pojar and MacKinnon, 1994).

Soil Texture: 

Sandy, well drained soil.

Nutrients: 

Nitrogen medium sites (Klinka et al., 1995).

Soil Reaction and Salinity: 

Neutral to slightly acid.

Moisture Regime: 

Dry to moderately dry.

Shade Tolerance: 

Full sun to light shade.

Successional Status: 

Climax in dry open forests and on rocky outcrops. Occasional in early seral communities (Klinka et al., 1995).

BEC Zone and GOE Community Status: 

Plays an important ecological function.

Uses

Site Rehabilitation: 

Self-perpetuating ground cover. Hardy plant for exposed sites. Tolerates drought, wind and salt spray.

Wildlife: 

This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and other birds (Industry Canada, 1998).

Landscaping: 

Spring-flowering bulb suitable for areas receiving no summer irrigation. Showy long season bloomer. Good rockery plant or for front borders in a bed, spaced 15-30 cm apart. Attractive when mixed with harvest brodiaea (Bastin, personal communication).

First Nations: 

Bulbs cooked and eaten by several coastal groups (Pojar and MacKinnon, 1994). The Makah and the Quinault chew the plant and put it on the chest for pleurisy pains (Gunther, 1973).

Other Uses: 

Journals of Lewis and Clark mention it as an article of food and commerce; also as a remedy for flatulence due to eating too much camas (Gunther, 1973).

Seed Propagation

Flowering Time: 

June-July

Fruit Ripening Time: 

August

Seed Collection Time: 

September

Crop Intervals: 

Annual

Number of Seeds per Kilogram: 

2,600,000

Seed Viability: 

75%

Fruit and Seed Collection and Extraction: 

Shake dried seed heads into collecting bag.

Seed Storage: 

Cool and dry. Can be stored at 3-5º C for up to 6 months (Flood, Horvath, and Blessman).

Fruit/Seed Dormancy and Treatment: 

Seeds can be cold stratified and then germinated at 10º C. Germination is equal in light and dark (Baskin, C.; Baskin, J., 2001). Best method of treatment is to sow fresh seeds outdoors in containers or flats soon after collection, and allow to dormancy to be broken naturally.

Vegetative Propagation

Method Success Rate Time of Collection
Softwood cuttings n/a n/a
Semi-hardwood cuttings n/a n/a
Hardwood cuttings n/a n/a
Root cuttings n/a n/a
Suckers n/a n/a
Plant division Excellent. Divide bulb clusters in the late summer or early fall after flowering and transplant as soon as possible. Anytime (best when not flowering).

 

Outplanting Characteristics and Requirements

Bulbs transplant easily. Seedlings are very small and will take several years before flowering. After germination, seed pans can be set into the ground and held for two to three years before thinning the bulbs (Kruckeberg, 1982).

Seed and Cutting Propagation Techniques

n/a

Additional Information and Photos

For more information and pictures, visit the E-Flora BC website at www.eflora.bc.ca.

?>