Stats

Lifespan: Perennial
Size: Small
Diet: Photosynthetic
Biome: Temperate deciduous forest
Range: Europe and Asia
Movement: Sessile
Breeding: Bulbs
Defense: Toxins
Status: Common

About

A woodland perennial with broad, glossy leaves and starry white flower clusters that carpet forest floors in early spring. Every part of the plant releases a strong garlic smell when bruised, which is how it earns its name despite belonging to the onion genus.

Life cycle

1.
seed
A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2.
sprout
A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3.
sapling
A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4.
mature
Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Asparagales
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Genus: Allium
Species: Allium ursinum