Japanese name: ノビル（野蒜） Scientific name:Allium macrostemon
[Overview]
A bulbous perennial.
It is commonly seen in grasslands and by roadsides.
The bulb is spherical, about 15 mm in diameter.
Two to four leaves grow from the base, linear, 20–30 cm long and about 2–3 mm wide, and hollow with a crescent-shaped cross section.
The flower stalk is 40–60 cm long and leafless, bearing an umbel at the tip.
At first the inflorescence is covered by the involucre and shaped like a bird's beak.
The flowers are white to pale pink, the tepals are ovate-oblong, 4–6 mm long, and the stamens are markedly longer than the tepals.
In the inflorescence, some or all of the flowers may become bulbils (mukago).
The fruit is a capsule.
[Uses]
It has a garlic-like smell, and the bulbs and young shoots are eaten as a wild spring vegetable.
