Allium ampeloprasum
broadleaf wild leek
Family AmaryllidaceaeAlso called wild leek, garden leek
About
Allium ampeloprasum is the wild leek of the Mediterranean region and the ancestor of several vegetables, including the garden leek, elephant garlic, pearl onion, kurrat and Persian leek.
Care at a glance
- Pet safety
- Toxic to dogs, cats and horses (n-propyl disulfide); can cause vomiting, breakdown of red blood cells, blood in urine and weakness.
- People
- Not recorded.
- Light
- Full sun to light shade. General guidance for the genus
- Water
- Avoid overly damp ground; wet conditions invite bulb rot and other fungal problems. General guidance for the genus
- Soil
- Fertile, loose, well-drained soil; sand or loam both suit. General guidance for the genus
- Propagation
- Divide bulb offsets in spring; seed is slower and may take years to germinate. General guidance for the genus
- Mature size
- Flowering stalks up to 180 cm tall.
“General guidance for the genus” marks advice sourced for the genus as a whole rather than this species.
Field notes
Morphology
Wild plants form bulbs up to 3 cm across. Round flowering stalks reach 180 cm and carry umbels of up to 500 urn-shaped flowers about 6 mm wide, with white, pink or red tepals and yellow or purple anthers.
Distribution & habitat
Native to southern Europe, south-western Asia and North Africa, centred on the Mediterranean basin; cultivated and naturalised in many other countries.
Cultivation notes
Grown as leek (var. porrum), elephant garlic (var. ampeloprasum), pearl onion (var. sectivum), kurrat, a leafy Egyptian salad leek, and Persian leek (tareh), whose mild leaves are eaten raw. The cultivated forms remain fully interfertile with the wild plant.
History & etymology
The epithet comes from Greek words for 'vine' and 'leek', meaning roughly 'leek of the vineyard'. Some older and archaeological sources treat the crop forms as separate species.
Conservation
Assessed as Least Concern. It is legally protected in Israel and in York County, Virginia, where it is called the Yorktown onion.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- IUCN status
- Least concern
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- easy
Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Crossed A. ampeloprasum with another species?Register the cross. If it's not documented yet you'll be the first contributor; if someone already registered it, you'll be taken there to add your photo.