750 ORD. XLVI. Liliacee. ALLIVUM SATIVUM. 
Class Hexandria: Ord, Monogynia. Lin. Gen. Plant. 409. 
Ess. Gen. Ch. Cor. 6-partita, patens. Spatha multiflora. Umbella 
congesta. Caps. supera. 
Sp. Ch. A. caule planifolio bulbifero, bulbo composito, staminibus 
tricuspidatis. 
THE root is perennial, composed of several bulbs, enveloped in 
a common membrane, and from its base sends off many long white 
fibres: the stem is simple, and rises about a foot and a half in 
height: the leaves at the root are numerous, on the stem few; 
they are all long, flat, grass-like: the flowers of all the plants of 
this species which we have seen, arise between the small bulbs or 
rocamboles, which terminate the stem in a cluster: each flower is 
very | small, whitish,;and-commonly abortive: the calyx is a spatha 
common to all the florets and bulbs; it iS withered, and of a 
roundish shape: the corolla consists of six oblong petals:~the 
‘filaments are six, tapering, alternately trifid, shorter than the 
corolla, and furnished with oblong erect antherz: the germen is 
placed above the insertion of the corolla, short, angular, and sup- 
ports a simple style, terminated by an acute stigma: the capsule 
is short, broad, trilobed, three-celled, three-valved, and contains 
roundish seeds, It flowers in July. 
This species of Garlick, according to Linnzus, grows spontane- 
ously in Sicily ;* but as it is much used both for culinary and 
medicinal purposes, it has been long very generally cultivated in 
gardens: it shews the-same propensity to forming bulbs instead 
of flowers as the A. Scorodoprasum or Rocambole Garlick, ‘which 
it also resembles in other respects. 
Every part of the plant, but more especially the root, has a 
_ pungent acrimonious taste, and a peculiarly offensive strong smell, 
_ This odour is extremely penetrating and diffusive, for on ‘a root 
‘being taken into the stomach, the alliaceous scent impregnates the 
* Vide Spec. Plant. 
