Scientific Family
Amaryllidaceae
Synonyms
Allium bivalve, Nothoscordum striatum, Nothoscordum texanum, Ornithogalum bivalve
Other common names
Texas false garlic
false garlic
Plant type
Forbs and Subshrubs
Origin
Native
Lifecycle
Perennial
Height
8 to 16 inches
Riparian
No
This plant grows from a bulb and looks much like the wild onion but has fewer and larger flowers on long stems and lacks the onion odor. The leaves are all at the base of the plant.
Plants from bulbs with a membranous outer coat, leaves usually present when flowering, 6 fertile stamens, pedicelled flowers with 2 or more bracts and in umbels determines the genus to be Nothoscordum Flowers without odor determines the species.
Habitat
Open woods, prairies and sparsely vegetated areas.
Plant Community
Pinyon Juniper Woodlands
Montane Conifer Forest
Interior Chaparral
Grasslands
Disturbed Areas
Desert Scrub
Low elevation
0
High elevation
5600
Flower Characteristics
Flowers have 6 tepals (3 sepals and 3 petals) with a green to brown stripe and 6 stamens. Individual flowers are 1/2 inch across and grow in loose clusters on stalks 8 to 16 inches tall.
Flower color
White to yellowish-white
Flower shape
Regular
Tubular
No
First bloom month
March
Last bloom month
December
Flower clusters
Elongated
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
The leaves are all at the base of the plant, about 1/8 inch wide but often quite long, 4 to 15 inches.
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf color
Green
Leaf shape
Narrow
Leaf margin
Smooth
Leaves clasp
No
Leaf hairs
None
Spines
No
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Capsules rounded to eggshape, less than a 1/4 inch.
Fruit type
Capsule
Seeds 4 to 7 per ovary chamber.