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Egyptian Onion
(Allium cepa, of the variety bulbellifera)
No clue why it is called Egyptian Onion yet as none of my books mention it except Bailey who just mentions it as a name for bulbellifera.
This is a NOT native plant.
A native of Iran and thereabouts I believe. Allium cepa is the garden onion, the onion you see bags of at the store.The so-called Egyptian Onion is a variety of the Garden Onion and is more generally called a top onion. Instead of making flowers that produce seeds this onion produces little onion bulblets! I think it does produce some flowers too; you should check it to be sure. It has been cultivated for many centuries.
The onion is related to other plants that have been used for centuries if not millenia. These other plants such as garlic, leek, chives, shallots and welsh onions have been a mainstay of many a meal through the years. Simple meals traditionally were an onion and some bread, maybe some cheese.
The stalks eventually flop over and the little onions can take root. I think I have heard of this called the Walking Onion, as the plant will walk across your garden as each generation moves farther from the first plant. (There may be another onion called that but I can't find any of them in books at the moment.)
If we plant the bulblet next spring, each will be a nice plant that can be pulled and eaten at any time. If we leave them in the ground they will make a top of bulblets the next year.
This could be a math problem real easily!
The Wild Garlic makes little onions and flowers too, but the little onion bulblets are very tiny compared to these plump pink Egyptian Onion bulblets. Also, it takes its seed making more seriously.
to Chives to Wild Garlic
Study Pointers:
- Allium Awareness Week. There is no such thing but you can have a personal one! For one week try to find out how many times you eat or see Allium Family plants. Onions, garlic and chives are what you should keep an eye out for in your meals and at the grocery store. Check product's ingredient labels for hidden alliums! Garlic is in a ton of stuff.
- How many different varieties of onions are there for sale at the grocery store? Ask the produce manager where they come from (tell her/him you are doing a report). Which do they sell the most of? Which are the most expensive? Do they know why they are more expensive (harder to grow, or fewer grown so the farmer has to get more money for them)?
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