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Broadleaf wild leek

Allium atroviolaceum

Also called Black Violet Leek

Broadleaf wild leek
Photo: Юрий Данилевский, CC BY-SA 4.0

A hardy perennial wild leek grown from a large round bulb, known for its dense spherical heads of purple flowers. It is grown as an ornamental and a food plant, and it does best in full sun with well-drained soil.

Family
Amaryllidaceae (Daffodil & onion family)
Grows as
Bulb, Perennial
Light
Full sun, Part shade
Water
Water moderately while in leaf and growing, then keep dry while dormant in summer.
Soil
Well-drained, gritty or sandy soil, neutral to alkaline.
Temperature
Hardy to around -20 °C; protect from prolonged waterlogging in winter.
How easy
Easy
Edible
Yes, some parts
Native range
SE. & SC. Europe to C. Asia and Arabian Pen.
Climate
temperate

About

Allium atroviolaceum is a species of flowering plant in the Amaryllidaceae family. it is commonly called the broadleaf wild leek, and is native to Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, southern European Russia and the Caucasus, but widely cultivated in other regions as a food source and for its ornamental value. The species is sparingly naturalized in parts of the United States (Illinois, Kentucky, Virginia, and North and South Carolina) and also in southeastern Europe (Italy, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Ukraine and the Balkans).

Allium atroviolaceum is a perennial herb producing a large round bulb. Scape is up to 100 cm (39 in) long. Leaves are broadly linear. Umbel is spherical with many purple or red-violet flowers crowded together.

Other Allium plants

South Idaho onion · Abrams' allium · Allium aciphyllum · Tapertip onion · Allium aeginiense · Allium aflatunense · Allium agrigentinum · Allium alabasicum · Allium albotunicatum · Allium alibile · Altai Onion · Allium altissimum

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Allium atroviolaceum by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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