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Information Herbs, perennial, scapose, from tunicate bulbs, with onion odor and taste. Bulbs solitary or clustered, dividing at base, or on rhizomes, reforming annually; outer coats generally brown or gray, smooth, fibrous, or with cellular reticulation (generally important in identification); inner coats membranous. Leaves generally withering from tip by anthesis, usually persistent, 1–12, basal; blade usually linear, terete, channeled, or flat (carinate in A. sativum, A. praecox, A. tuberosum, A. rotundum, A. neapolitanum, A. triquetrum, A. unifolium, and A. lacunosum), straight or ± falcate (coiled or circinate in A. nevadense and A. atrorubens), broader in A. victorialis and A. tricoccum, not petiolate (except in A. tricoccum and A. victorialis). Scape usually persistent, terete or flattened. Inflorescences umbellate, flowering centripetally (centrifugally in A. schoenoprasum), sometimes replaced totally or partially by bulbils, subtended by spathe bracts; bracts conspicuous, ± fused, usually 3+-veined, equaling pedicel except in some introduced species, membranous. Flowers erect (pendent in A. triquetrum); tepals 6, in 2 similar whorls, ± distinct, petallike, usually becoming becoming dry and persisting; stamens 6, epipetalous; filaments in all but 1 native species broad at base, fused into ring (some introduced species and A. victorialis appendaged), linear, generally glabrous (A. rotundum and A. hoffmanii papillose to ciliate proximally); anthers and pollen variously colored; ovary superior, 3-lobed, sometimes crested with processes, 3-locular, usually 2 ovules per locule (6–8 in A. nigrum), crest processes 3 or 6, smooth except in A. haematochiton, A. sharsmithiae, and A. lacunosum; style 1; stigma capitate to ± 3-lobed; pedicel erect or spreading (lax in A. triquetrum). Fruits capsular, dehiscence loculicidal. Seeds black, obovoid, finely cellular-reticulate, cells smooth or minutely roughened, with 1–8 papillae, without caruncle except in A. triquetrum. x = 7, 8, 9.

Information Bulbs 1–5+, not clustered on stout primary rhizome, increase bulbs absent or ± equaling parent bulbs, never appearing as basal cluster, ovoid to ± globose, 0.8–1.2 × 0.7–1.2 cm; outer coats enclosing 1 or more bulbs, gray to gray-brown, prominently cellular-reticulate, membranous, cells arranged in ± vertical rows, forming irregular herringbone pattern, transversely elongate, wavy, V-shaped, without fibers; inner coats white, cells obscure, ± quadrate. Leaves persistent, withering from tip by anthesis, 2, basally sheathing, sheaths not extending much above soil level; blades solid, subterete, 3–20 cm × 0.5–1 mm, margins entire. Scape persistent, solitary, erect, solid, terete, (3–)5–15(–17) cm × 0.5–2 mm. Umbel persistent, erect, compact, 4–15-flowered, hemispheric, bulbils unknown; spathe bracts persistent, 2, 3–5-veined, broadly ovate, ± equal, apex mucronate. Flowers campanulate, 5–7 mm; tepals erect, white to pale pink, lanceolate to lance-ovate, ± equal, becoming papery in fruit and remaining erect, margins entire, apex acute or obtuse, becoming ± involute at tip and appearing short-acuminate; stamens included; anthers white; pollen white; ovary crested or crestless; processes 3, central, rounded, very minute, margins entire; style linear, equaling stamens; stigma capitate, scarcely thickened, unlobed; pedicel 4–12 mm. Seed coat dull; cells minutely roughened. 2n = 14.