''Allium punctum'' 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 tricoccum'' (commonly known as ramp, ramps, ramson, wild leek, wood leek, o ...

known by the common name dotted onion or Modoc onion. It is native to the western United States in and around the

Modoc Plateau __NOTOC__ The Modoc Plateau lies in the northeast corner of California as well as parts of Oregon and Nevada. Nearly of the Modoc National Forest are on the plateau between the Medicine Lake Highlands in the west and the Warner Mountains in the ...

in northeastern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

(

Modoc County Modoc County () is a county in the far northeast corner of the U.S. state of California. Its population is 8,700 as of the 2020 census, down from 9,686 from the 2010 census. This makes it California's third-least populous county. The county seat ...

), northwestern

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the 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. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

( Humboldt County), and southeastern

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

( Malheur,

Lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

and Harney Counties). It is uncommon, growing in volcanic flatlands created by old lava flows.Flora of North America
/ref>

Description

''Allium punctum'' grows from a yellow-brown to grayish oval-shaped bulb one or two centimeters wide. It produces a short stem no more than 10 centimeters tall and two sickle-shaped leaves which are usually a bit longer. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

bears up to 20 flowers which are white or pink with purple veining.Cronquist, A.J., A. H. Holmgren, N. H. Holmgren & Reveal. 1977. Vascular Plants of the Intermountain West, U.S.A. 6: 1–584. In A.J. Cronquist, A. H. Holmgren, N. H. Holmgren, J. L. Reveal & P. K. Holmgren (eds.), Intermountain Flora. Hafner Pub. Co., New York.

References

punctum Onions Flora of California Flora of Nevada Flora of Oregon Flora of the Great Basin ~ Endemic flora of the United States Plants described in 1930 {{Allium-stub