wild garlic
Family
LiliaceaeScientific Name
Allium vinealeHabit
Plants emerge in early spring and senesce by early summer. Flowers are typically produced in late spring to early summer.
Leaves
Foliage has the scent of garlic or onion. Leaves are smooth, round, hollow and can range from a few inches tall to 24 inches at maturity and less than 0.5 inches in diameter.
Identifying Characteristics
Plant grows from a perennial bulb. Typically there is no branching of leaves, there is only one stem/leaf per bulb.
Flower Seed Head
Bulblets, the most common reproductive structure, are formed at the base of the larger bulb underground or at the top of the stem clustered in a spherical shape. However, in some cases wild garlic does make red, purple or pink flowers.
Seed Fruit
When seed is produced, which isn't often, it is contained in an egg-shaped 3 part capsule, and each capsule contains 2 black, flattened, wrinkled seeds.
Where Found
Wild garlic does not tolerate mowing well; it typically grows in areas of infrequent or no mowing such as flowerbeds, pastures, and along fences. Plants often escape mowing in warm season grasses by completing most of the growth cycle while turf is dormant in early spring.
Leaf Arrangement
rolled in bud
Life Cycle
perennial
Plant Type
Grass-like