Allium 



LILIACEAE 



Lilium 



Lvs. large, few. 



Bulbs large, much thicker than the stem 1 . A. cepa 



Bulbs small, only a little thicker than the stem 2. A. fistulosum 



Lvs. small, numerous 3. A. ascalonicum 



bb. Plants without prominent bulbs, perennial, growing in mats.. 4. A. schoenoprasm 

 aa. Lvs. flat. 



c. Lvs. narrowly linear, up to 5 mm. broad: infl. usually 

 bulbiferous. 



Plant wild: fls. pink or rose-purple 5. A. macrostemon 



Plants cultivated. 



Spathes short, mucronate: fls. white 6. A. tuberosum 



Spathes long-beaked : fls. purple 7 . A. sativum 



cc. Lvs. large, over 20mm. broad: infl. not bulbil-bearing.. 8. A. porrum 



1. Allium cepa Linn. Common Onion ffiM (Yang Ts'ung; Foreign Onion) (B.M.246). 

 Stout, hollow stem, 3-6 dm. tall; fls. white, V-IX. Western Asia; locally in An., 

 Ku. Cultivated, food. 



2. Allium fistulosum Linn. Welsh Onion j& (Ts'ung; Onion) (B.M. 245). Stout, hollow 

 stem, 3-5 dm. tall; fls. white. Asia; locally in Ku. Cultivated, food. 



3. Allium ascalonium Linn. Shallot jjftjg (Fen Ts'ung; Meal-onion) (B.M.246). 

 Slender, 2-4 dm. high; fls. white or violet. Cultigen; locally in Ku. Cultivated, 

 food. 



4. Allium schoenoprasm Linn. Chive (B.M.246). Tufted; fls. rose-purple. Eurasia; 

 locally in Ku. Cultivated, food. 



5. Allium macrostemon Bunge IjsK (Hua Ts'ung; Chinese Onion) (Bunge 65). Slender, 

 to 8 dm. high; fls. pink-rose-purple, V-VII. Eastern Asia; locally in Che., Ku 

 Grassland. 



6. Allium tuberosum Roxb. White-flowered Garlic MM (Chiu Ts'ai; Leek) (H.F. 

 6:343). Lfy. at base, 3-5 dm. high; fls. white, IX; ir. X; lvs. shorter than the 

 scape. Eastern Asia; locally in Che., Ki., Ku. Cultivated, food. Fig. 478. 



7. Allium sativum Linn. Purple -flowered Garlic ;*;§* (Ta Suan; Great Garlic) 

 (B.M. 247). Small plant; fls. pink; bulbs of several parts. Introduced from Europe; 

 locally in Ku. Cultivated, food. 



8. Allium porrum Linn. Leek MM (Chiu Ts'ung; Leek Onion) (B.M.246). Stout 

 biennial; fls. pink. Eurasia; locally in Ku. Cultivated, food. 



8. Lilium Linn. Lily W^M (Pai Ho Shu) 

 Perennial erect leafy-stemmed herbs from scaly bulbs: fls. large, often pendulous, 

 solitary or in clusters: perianth of separate segments, corolline; each segment with a 

 nectar-groove at the base; anthers versatile; filaments slender: fr. a subcylindric 

 loculicidal many-seeded capsule. 100 species, in north temperate regions; 35 in China. 

 (The Latin name, from the Greek word lirion, which is applied to a subdivision of 

 the genus.) 



Key to the Species 



a. Lvs. long-petiolate; blades oblong-ovate, 10-20 cm. long, reniform- 



cordate at base 1 • L- cathayanum 



aa. Lvs. sessile or nearly so; blades mostly linear or lanceolate. 



b. Fls. trumpet-shaped: perianth segments spreading at the apex; 



stamens not divergent 2. L. brownii 



var. colchesieri 



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