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San Bernardino Mountain onion

Allium monticola

Also called San Bernardino Mountains Onion

San Bernardino Mountain onion
Photo: John Game, CC BY 2.0

San Bernardino Mountain onion is a small, uncommon wild onion from the mountains of southern California, growing from a bulb in rocky ground at high elevation. It needs good drainage and a cool, dry-summer climate to thrive.

Family
Amaryllidaceae (Daffodil & onion family)
Grows as
Bulb
Light
Full sun
Water
Water sparingly during its spring growing season and keep it nearly dry while dormant in summer.
Soil
Gritty, fast-draining soil such as a sandy or rocky mix.
Temperature
Tolerates cold winters well; protect from prolonged heat above about 35 °C.
How easy
Moderate
Edible
Yes, some parts
Native range
SW. California
Climate
temperate

About

Allium monticola is an uncommon species of wild onion known by the common name San Bernardino Mountain onion. It is endemic to southern California, where it is found in the Transverse Ranges and the northernmost section of the Peninsular Ranges. It has been reported from San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties.

Allium monticola generally grows in rocky areas at elevations 1400–3200 m. This onion grows from a bulb one or two centimeters long which often has daughter bulbs attached to it on stalks. The waxy stem reaches a maximum height near 25 centimeters and the single leaf may be a bit longer. The inflorescence contains up to about 25 flowers, each with tepals nearly two centimeters long and white or light pink with darker pink tips. Pollen and anthers are yellow.

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 monticola 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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