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nodding onion
Scientific Name: Allium cernuum
Family: Liliaceae
Category: Monocot
Growth: Forb/herb
Duration: Perennial
Other Names: IA (nodding wild onion), MN (nodding wild onion),
Allium cernuum: Nodding Onion or Lady's Leek
Allium cernuum, commonly known as nodding onion or lady's leek, is a charming perennial wildflower prized for its unique, nodding flower heads.
Considerations for Pets
- This plant emits an onion-like odor when bruised.
- Plants resemble cultivated onions or daffodils.
Considerations for Children
- Plants resemble cultivated onions or daffodils.
Taxonomy and Nomenclature
- Scientific Name: Allium cernuum
- Common Names: Nodding onion, lady's leek, nodding wild onion, Allegheny Onion, sweet onion, barbecuing onion
- Family: Amaryllidaceae (previously Liliaceae)
- Genus: Allium
- Taxonomic Rank: Subspecies (e.g., Allium cernuum var. cernuum)
- Synonyms: lady's leek, nodding wild onion
Distribution and Habitat
- Native to most of the US and adjacent Canada.
- Found in dry woods, rock outcroppings, prairies, rocky soils on glades, bluff edges, open woods, dry meadows, gravel, rocky or wooded slopes.
Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits
- Perennial, growing from an oval or tapered bulb which smells strongly of onion.
- Grows to 0.5 m (1ft 8in) by 0.3 m (1ft).
- Hardy to zone (UK) 6 and is not frost tender.
- Basal, grass-like leaves stay green during flowering.
- Stem 10-50 cm tall, round or flattened, curved down near the top.
- Individual flowers have a long stem, forming graceful, chandelier-like heads.
- Flowers are pastel lilac-pink, white, pink, purple or rose.
- Flower umbels bend over at the top of the stem and point downward.
- Blooms July - August.
- Bulbs often grow in clusters.
Ecological Role
- Suitable perennial for woodlands and prairies.
- Attracts butterflies.
Quirky Facts
- The name "nodding onion" comes from the fact that the flower umbels bend over at the top of the stem and points downward toward the ground.
- Nodding onion blooms are like tiny fireworks.
Interactions with Other Organisms
- Attracts butterflies with its tiny, bell-shaped blossoms.
Additional Information
- Nodding Onion Gardens is a family run native wildflower business, located in Columbia Station, Ohio.
- Toadshade Wildflower Farm, a mail order nursery in Frenchtown, NJ, specializes in native perennials.
- Nature Center at Shaker Lakes Annual Plant Sale