Native Plant Database

From the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb
Leaf Complexity: Simple
Fruit:
Size Class: 1-3 ft.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: White , Pink , Purple
Bloom Time: Jan , Feb , Mar , Apr , May , Jun , Jul , Aug , Sep , Oct , Nov , Dec

Distribution

USA: AR , IA , IL , IN , KS , MI , MN , MO , NC , ND , OK , SD , TN , TX , WI , WY
Canada: BC , MB , ON , SK
Native Distribution: Ont. to Sask., s. to TN & TX
Native Habitat: Rocky prairies, slopes, shores & ridges
USDA Native Status: L48(N), CAN(N)

Growing Conditions

Light Requirement: Part Shade
Soil Moisture: Moist
Soil Description: Mesic to dry, rocky soils.
Conditions Comments: Some Allium species can become weedy in warmer climates.

Benefit

Use Wildlife: Prairie onion attracts butterflies.
Use Food: EDIBLE PARTS: Leaves, bulbs and bulblets. Field garlic (A. vineale) is too strong for most tastes. Gather leaves during spring and fall. Gather bulbs in the second year when they are large enough to use like cultivated onions. Flower stem bulblets are collected during the summer. Use as domestic onions, for seasoning or raw in salads. Bulbs can be used raw, boiled, pickled or for seasoning. Their strong taste can be reduced by parboiling and discarding the water. To freeze onions or garlic, one should coarsely chop, blanch two minutes, drain, pat dry and place them into plastic bags. The bulbs can also be dried for use as seasoning. Use flower bulbs to flavor soup or for pickling. (Poisonous Plants of N.C.)

The bulb of wild inions are very strong but can be eaten raw or parboiled. Early explorers ate them, and they were also used by the American settlers to treat colds, coughs, and asthma, and to repel insects. (Niering)
Warning: POISONOUS PARTS: All parts but causes only low toxicity if eaten; can be safely eaten in small amounts, large quantities not recommended. Symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea. Toxic Principle: Sulfides. (Niering)
Conspicuous Flowers: yes

Propagation

Description: Division of bulb cluster; seed
Seed Collection: Not Available
Seed Treatment: Not Available
Commercially Avail: yes

Find Seed or Plants

Find seed sources for this species at the Native Seed Network.

From the National Suppliers Directory

According to the inventory provided by Associate Suppliers, this plant is available at the following locations:

Prairie Nursery - Westfield, WI

From the National Organizations Directory

According to the species list provided by Affiliate Organizations, this plant is either on display or available from the following:

Native Seed Network - Corvallis, OR

Bibliography

Bibref 902 - Ex situ plant conservation : supporting species survival in the wild (2004) Guerrant, E. O.; K. Havens; M. Maunder
Bibref 318 - Native Texas Plants: Landscaping Region by Region (2002) Wasowski, S. & A. Wasowski
* The Midwestern Native Garden: Native Alternatives to Nonnative Flowers and Plants An Illustrated Guide (2011) Adelman, Charlotte and Schwartz, Bernard L.

Search More Titles in Bibliography

Recommended Species Lists

Find native plant species by state. Each list contains commercially available species suitable for gardens and planned landscapes. Once you have selected a collection, you can browse the collection or search within it using the combination search.

View Recommended Species page

Additional resources

USDA: Find Allium stellatum in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Allium stellatum in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Allium stellatum