Allium obtusum
Red sierra onion
Family: Alliaceae · Type: perennial · Native
Red sierra onion is a California native perennial found in northern Coast Ranges, Cascade Range, northern and central Sierra Nevada Foothills, and Sierra Nevada at elevations between 1,000 to 3,000 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces white or pink flowers in clusters with 6 to 60 blossoms, each 4 to 12 millimeters long. Growing with slender stems 1.5 to 17 centimeters tall, it emerges from a small ovoid bulb 1 to 2 centimeters in size. Its one to two leaves are relatively long, measuring one to four times the length of the stem, with a narrow, grass-like appearance. The plant's distinctive ovary features three subtle, two-lobed crests that give it a delicate, refined structure.
Bioregions: NCoRI, CaRH, n&c SNF, SNH
California counties: Fresno, Tulare, Inyo, Alpine, Butte, Nevada, Plumas, Kern, Tuolumne, El Dorado, Mariposa, Siskiyou, Amador, Placer, Shasta, Mono, Calaveras, Mendocino, Sierra
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.