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Pregnant Onion: Ornithogalum caudatum

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pregnant onion flowers and buds

Family: Hyacinthaceae

Above: inflorescence , Below: attached bulbil sprouting Use: bed, borders, foundation, arid landscapes, containers
pregnant onion offshoot sprouting

Plant: evergreen perennial bulb to 30"

Origin: South Africa

Zone
: 9 - tropics

Flowers
: tiny white flowers with green stripe typical of hyacinth family. Light citrus fragrance. Scores of flowers per inflorescence. Plants can bloom multiple times in a year. Twisting scape looks ragged before bloom is finished.

Foliage: large, long, floppy strap-like

Culture
: sun to part sun. Well-drained mesic soil. Drought tolerant but will lose leaves if stressed. Plant bulb on surface to observe "birth" of bulbils. Offshoots quickly overwhelm containers. Be prepared to divide, repot, and share.



wemoss.org 2008, Last Updated December 9, 2008