Thread onion, Nodding garlic
Allium lineare

Family: Amaryllidaceae

What it is like

An onion family plant. It is a herb that keeps growing from year to year. It grows 30-60 cm high. There can be one or two bulbs. The bulbs are covered with brown fibres. It is cylinder shaped and 5 mm across. There are 3 or 4 leaves that are hollow and 10-20 cm long by 2-4 mm wide. The flowers are pink.

They have also been put in the family Alliaceae.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It grows in arid plateau areas in north west China. It grows in grassland. It grows between 1,800-2,400 m above sea level.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Central Asia, China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia

How it is used for food

The young plants before flowering are used as a potherb or for flavouring meat dishes.

Edible parts

Leaves, bulbs, flavouring

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Northern leek, Bei juan

Synonyms

Allium christii Janka; Allium confertum Fisch.; Allium deflexum Willd.; Allium halleri Crantz; Allium tortuosum Willd. ex Schult. & Schult.f.; Porrum lineare (L.) Raf.;