Dotted onion facts for kids

The Allium punctum is a special kind of wild onion. People often call it the dotted onion or Modoc onion. This plant naturally grows in the western United States. You can find it in places like the Modoc Plateau in northeastern California, northwestern Nevada, and southeastern Oregon. It's not a very common plant. It likes to grow in flat areas that were formed by old lava flows from volcanoes.

What Does the Dotted Onion Look Like?

The dotted onion starts from a bulb that looks like a small, oval-shaped onion. This bulb is usually yellow-brown or grayish and is about one or two centimeters wide (that's less than an inch!).

Stems and Leaves

• It grows a short stem, usually no taller than 10 centimeters (about 4 inches).
• It has two leaves that are shaped like a sickle (a curved tool). These leaves are usually a bit longer than the stem.

Flowers

• The plant produces a cluster of flowers called an inflorescence.
• This cluster can have up to 20 flowers.
• The flowers are often white or pink and have pretty purple lines on them.