Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Asparagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Allium cernuum
FAMILY
Alliaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Allium from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
INCLUDING
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Allium cernuum var. cernuum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Allium cernuum
INCLUDED WITHIN Flora of North America
Allium cernuum
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-35-005:
Allium cernuum FAMILY Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Allium cernuum
COMMON NAME:
Nodding Onion, Nodding Wild Onion
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
JK Marlow jkm0407j_08
July Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
)
JK Marlow jkm0407j_08b
July Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
A crook in the peduncle just below the umbel causes it to nod, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm060805_364
August Haywood County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
A many-flowered umbel without bulblets, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm070830_013
August SC
Clemson Forest
)
Keith Bradley kab_allium_cernuum_2310
August Madison County VA
Shenandoah National Park
)
JK Marlow s070830_ab
August SC
Clemson Forest
Leaves mostly basally disposed, glaucous, flat, to 16" long, 0.33" wide, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).
)
JK Marlow s070830_d
August SC
Clemson Forest
)
JK Marlow s070830_e
August SC
Clemson Forest
Pedicels 1.5-2.5cm long, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Allium cernuum
FAMILY
Alliaceae
INCLUDING
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Allium cernuum var. cernuum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Allium cernuum
INCLUDED WITHIN
Flora of North America
Allium cernuum
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-35-005:
Allium cernuum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Allium cernuum
53
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Generally in open woodlands or around outcrops of shale, mafic, ultramafic, or calcareous rocks, in the mountains at low elevations, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Uncommon in NC, rare in GA & SC
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple
Basal
FLOWER:
Summer
White /Pink /Purplish
Radially symmetrical
6 tepals in two whorls of 3
6 stamens
Superior ovary
Bisexual
Flowers in umbels
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p100
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p334
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p168
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p163
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p038
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p353
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p409
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p012
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".