Allium ovalifolium explained

Allium ovalifolium is a Chinese species of onion widely cultivated as an ornamental in other regions. It grows at elevations of 1500–4000 m.^[1] The Tibetan people of Shangri-La and nearby areas eat its scapes.^[2]

Allium ovalifolium produces narrow cylindrical bulbs. Scapes are up to 60 cm tall, round in cross-section. Leaves are flat, lanceolate to ovate, up to 15 cm long by 7 cm wide. Umbel is spherical, densely crowded with many white or pale red flowers.^{[1] [3]}

Varieties^[1]

• Allium ovalifolium var. cordifolium (J.M.Xu) J.M.Xu - Sichuan
• Allium ovalifolium var. leuconeurum J.M.Xu - Sichuan
• Allium ovalifolium var. ovalifolium - Gansu, Guizhou, Hubei, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan

Notes and References

1. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200027510 Flora of China v 24 p 173 卵叶山葱 luan ye shan cong Allium ovalifolium
2. Ju . Yan . Zhuo . Jingxian . Liu . Bo . Long . Chunlin . 19 April 2013 . Eating from the wild: Diversity of wild edible plants used by Tibetans in Shangri-la region, Yunnan, China . Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine . 9 . 28 . 28 . 10.1186/1746-4269-9-28 . 23597086 . 3648497 . free .
3. Handel-Mazzetti, Heinrich Raphael Eduard von. 1924. Kaiserliche Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien. Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Klasse. Anzeiger. 60: 101