| TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL (1993) |
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©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California
For up-to-date information about California vascular plants, visit the Jepson eFlora. |
AND IS MAINTAINED FOR ARCHIVAL PURPOSES ONLY |
Perennial to trees, from membranous bulb, fibrous corm, scaly rhizome, or erect caudex
Stem generally underground
Leaves generally basal, often withering early, alternate, generally ± linear
Inflorescence various, generally bracted
Flower generally bisexual, generally radial; perianth often showy, segments generally 6 in two petal-like whorls (outer sometimes sepal-like), free or fused at base; stamens 6 (or 3 + generally 3 ± petal-like staminodes), filaments sometimes attached to perianth or fused into a tube or crown; ovary superior or inferior, chambers 3, placentas generally axile, style generally 1, stigmas generally 3
Fruit: generally capsule, loculicidal or septicidal (berry or nut)
Genera in family: ± 300 genera, 4600 species: especially ± dry temp and subtropical; many cultivated for ornamental or food;some TOXIC . Here includes genera sometimes treated in Agavaceae, Amaryllidaceae, and other families.
Perennial from small, fibrous-coated corm
Leaves few–several, basal, narrow, generally ± cylindric
Inflorescence umbel-like; axis stiff, straight, cylindric; bracts generally 3, papery, acuminate; pedicels slender, unjointed, erect
Flower: perianth segments 6 in 2 petal-like whorls, barely fused at base, lobes generally equal, lanceolate or oblong, widely spreading, midribs 2-veined; stamens 6, filaments thread-like to winged, anthers attached at middle; style short, club-shaped, persistent, stigma 3-lobed
Fruit: capsule, subspheric, 3-angled, loculicidal
Seeds irregularly angled, black
Species in genus: ± 6 species: sw US, n Mex
Etymology: (Anagram of Allium, from superficial resemblance)
Reference: [Shevock 1984 Aliso 10:621–627]
| Native |
Leaf < 18 cm
Inflorescence 3–15 cm; pedicels 10–30 mm; flowers 3–10
Flower: perianth lobes 3–4 mm, greenish outside, white or faded blue inside; stamens 2–4 mm, filaments petal-like, ± translucent, much wider at base and fused into cylindric crown, anthers yellow
Fruit 3–7 mm
Chromosomes: n=7
Ecology: UNCOMMON. Open desert scrub, woodland, in heavy soils
Elevation: 1000–1600 m.
Bioregional distribution: s High Sierra Nevada (e slope), East of Sierra Nevada, n&w Mojave Desert
Distribution outside California: w Nevada
Flowering time: Mar–Apr