''Allium obtusum'' is a species of

wild onion Wild onion can refer to * any uncultivated species in the genus ''Allium'', especially: **''Allium bisceptrum'' ** ''Allium canadense'' ** ''Allium tricoccum'' ** ''Allium validum'' ** ''Allium vineale'' * ''Asphodelus tenuifolius'' * ''Cyperus bulb ...

known by the common name red Sierra onion or subalpine onion. It is native to eastern

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and western

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

. It is a common plant in the

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

foothills and mountains of the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...

and southern

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

, from

Tulare County Tulare County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 473,117. The county seat is Visalia. The county is named for Tulare Lake, once the largest freshwater lake west of the Great Lakes. ...

Siskiyou County Siskiyou County (, ) is a county in the northernmost part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,076. Its county seat is Yreka and its highest point is Mount Shasta. It falls within the Cascadia bioregion ...

, from elevations of . In

, it is reported only from Washoe County in the northwestern part of the state.Flora of North America v 26 p 269, ''Allium obtusum''
/ref>

Description

The red Sierra onion, ''Allium obtusum'', grows from a

bulb In botany, a bulb is structurally a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs duri ...

one or two centimeters wide and bears a scape which can range from 2 to 17 cm tall. Unlike ''

Allium campanulatum ''Allium campanulatum'' is a species of wild onion known by the common name dusky onion or Sierra onion. This is a flowering plant native to the western United States from southeastern Washington and northern Oregon to southern California, and wes ...

'', ''A. obtusum'' has leaves that do not wither before the flowers bloom. Atop the scape is an

umbel In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' "p ...

of up to 60 flowers, each of which may be 4 to 12 millimeters wide. The

tepals A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

are white, purple, or pink with dark purple midveins.

Anthers The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

are yellow or purple;

pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...

purple.

Varieties

Two

varieties Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

are recognized: *''Allium obtusum'' var. ''obtusum''—Leaves 0.5-4.0 mm wide;

white with dark midveins—most of the range of the species *''Allium obtusum'' var. ''conspicuum'' Mortola & McNealMortola, W. R. & McNeal, Dale W. 1985. Aliso 11(1): 33, f. 7.—Leaves 2–14 mm wide;

pink with darker midvein—from about

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City, Nevad ...

area to Mt Lassen area

References

External links

Calflora Database: ''Allium obtusum'' (red Sierra onion)

Jepson eFlora treatment of ''Allium obtusum''

USDA Plants Profile for ''Allium obtusum'' (red Sierra onion)

''Allium obtusum'' — UC. Photos gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allium Obtusum obtusum Flora of California Flora of Nevada Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Flora of the Cascade Range Onions Plants described in 1890 Plants described in 1985

Description

Varieties

See also

References

External links