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Stone, Robert L.

Allium drummondii

Allium drummondii Regel

Drummond's Onion, Wild Garlic, Drummond Wild Onion

Liliaceae (Lily Family)

Synonym(s): Allium helleri, Allium nuttallii

USDA Symbol: ALDR

USDA Native Status: L48 (N)

The species name of this plant is named for Thomas Drummond, (ca. 1790-1835), naturalist, born in Scotland, around 1790. In 1830 he made a trip to America to collect specimens from the western and southern United States. In March, 1833, he arrived at Velasco, Texas to begin his collecting work in that area. He spent twenty-one months working the area between Galveston Island and the Edwards Plateau, especially along the Brazos, Colorado, and Guadalupe rivers. His collections were the first made in Texas that were extensively distributed among the museums and scientific institutions of the world. He collected 750 species of plants and 150 specimens of birds. Drummond had hoped to make a complete botanical survey of Texas, but he died in Havana, Cuba, in 1835, while making a collecting tour of that island.

From the Image Gallery

58 photo(s) available in the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb
Leaf Complexity: Simple
Leaf Margin: Entire
Fruit Type: Capsule
Size Notes: Scape up to about 1 foot tall.
Flower: Flowers in 4 inch globe.
Fruit: Seeds black.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: White , Pink
Bloom Time: Mar , Apr , May , Jun

Distribution

USA: AR , KS , NE , NM , OK , SD , TX
Native Habitat: Prairie, Plains, Meadows, Pastures, Savannas

Growing Conditions

Water Use: Low
Light Requirement: Sun
Soil Moisture: Dry
Soil Description: Sandy Loam, Medium Loam, Clay Loam, Clay, Calcareous
Conditions Comments: Prefers a sunny position in a light well-drained soil. The bulbs should be planted fairly deeply and most members of this genus are intolerant of competition from other plants. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer.

Benefit

Use Ornamental: Attractive, Blooms ornamental, Pocket prairie, Shortgrass meadow
Use Food: The Cheyenne boiled wild onion with meat to flavor it, and used the bulbs for food.
Conspicuous Flowers: yes
Fragrant Foliage: yes
Nectar Source: yes
Deer Resistant: High

Propagation

Propagation Material: Seeds
Seed Collection: Blooming in spring. Harvest seeds and/or bulbelets in May/June.

Mr. Smarty Plants says

Edible Native Plants for a Small Austin Garden
March 15, 2010
Hello Mr. Smarty Plants (or Mrs. or Miss, whomever is answering this go'round)! First off, thank you so much for all the help you have given me in the past. Secondly, the company my husband works ...
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Edible plants native to Austin, TX
August 05, 2009
Hello, I am a chef from Buenos Aires Argentina visiting Austin, Texas and would like to learn about native, edible plants in the region. Please let me know if there are any native, edible plants...
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Medicinal plants at the Wildflower Center
April 19, 2006
What kinds of medicinal plants do you have at the Wildflower Center?
view the full question and answer

From the National Organizations Directory

According to the species list provided by Affiliate Organizations, this plant is on display at the following locations:

Fredericksburg Nature Center - Fredericksburg, TX
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - Austin, TX
Pineywoods Native Plant Center - Nacogdoches, TX
Sibley Nature Center - Midland, TX
Brackenridge Field Laboratory - Austin, TX
NPSOT - Austin Chapter - Austin, TX

Herbarium Specimen(s)

NPSOT 0832 Collected Mar 27, 1994 in Bexar County by Harry Cliffe
NPSOT 0313 Collected Mar 29, 1993 in Comal County by Mary Beth White

2 specimen(s) available in the Digital Herbarium

Wildflower Center Seed Bank

LBJWC-1155 Collected 2008-04-08 in Blanco County by Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

1 collection(s) available in the Wildflower Center Seed Bank

Bibliography

Bibref 765 - McMillen's Texas Gardening: Wildflowers (1998) Howard, D.
Bibref 318 - Native Texas Plants: Landscaping Region by Region (2002) Wasowski, S. & A. Wasowski
Bibref 286 - Wildflowers of the Texas Hill Country (1989) Enquist, M.

Search More Titles in Bibliography

Web Reference

Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter

Additional resources

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

Metadata

Record Modified: 2023-04-10
Research By: MWJ

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