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"Alli" is the classical Latin name for
garlic and onion plants. |
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Allium
acuminatum (Taper-tip Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Foothills. Woodlands, openings. Spring. |
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Allium
acuminatum (Taper-tip Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Foothills. Woodlands, openings. Spring. Allium acuminatum often grows in extensive patches. |
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Allium
cernuum (Nodding Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Montane, subalpine. Meadows. Summer. This Onion grows throughout the Rocky Mountain West. It is easily distinguished from other species by its nodding flowers (see next photo), and this characteristic gives rise to its specific epithet, "cernuum", which means "nodding". Roth named this species
in 1798 from a specimen collected by an unknown botanist. |
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Allium
cernuum (Nodding Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Montane, subalpine. Meadows. Summer. Notice the nod at the
top of the peduncle (the main flower stem) as well as the slightly less pronounced nod of each
pedicel (the individual flower stem). |
Allium geyeri variety geyeri (Geyer's Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Montane, subalpine, alpine. Meadows. Summer. |
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Allium geyeri
variety geyeri (Geyer's Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Montane, subalpine, alpine. Meadows. Summer. This very common onion occurs from the high foothills to timberline in moist (or just previously moist) meadows. Allium geyeri most often occurs in small patches but in moist meadows it is common to find hundreds of plants. Charles A. Geyer came to the U.S. in 1834 and botanized extensively from Missouri to Vancouver until his return to Europe in 1844. Sereno Watson named the plant for Geyer in 1879 from a collection Geyer made on the banks of the Kooskooski (Clearwater) River in Idaho on Geyer's 1843-1844 western expedition. However, Meriwether Lewis collected this species April 30, 1806 also on the banks of the Kooskooski. Click to read why Lewis' collection is not considered the type. (More biographical information about Geyer.) |
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Allium geyeri variety geyeri (Geyer's Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Montane, subalpine, alpine. Meadows. Summer. |
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Allium geyeri variety tenerum (Geyer's Onion) Amaryllidaceae. Synonyms: Liliaceae, Alliaceae. (Amaryllis Family) Montane, subalpine, alpine. Meadows. Summer. In this variety of Allium geyeri a number of flowers are replaced by bulblets. |
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Tiny purple,
pink, or white buds |
Range map © John Kartesz,
County Color Key
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Range map for Allium acuminatum Range map for Allium cernuum Range map for Allium geyeri |