JMcCombie

Sicilian Honey Garlic

Untouched color-colour photograph by J. McCombie.
Allium siculum, also known as Sicilian honey lily, Sicilian honey garlic, or Mediterranean bells, is a p...
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Untouched color-colour photograph by J. McCombie.
Allium siculum, also known as Sicilian honey lily, Sicilian honey garlic, or Mediterranean bells, is a perennial, ornamental, bulbous plant in the genus Allium used in gardening. It is a member of a small subgenus Nectaroscordum of Allium, which consists of only this species and Allium tripedale. It is sometimes referred to by the names Allium nectaroscordum, Nectaroscordum siculum Ucria, A. dioscorides auct., or A. meliophilum Juz.
Allium siculum is native to Asia Minor, southern France, and Sicily (hence the trivial names), growing in damp, shady woods. It has showy clusters of gracefully drooping bell-shaped blossoms produced in May to early June sitting atop a tall green stem, to 1.2 m in height. The florets (blossoms), suspended on long drooping pedicels (stems), are cream colored with a maroon streak down each petal, have white flared tips, and are tinted green at the base. The blossoms are followed by decorative, erect seed pods in late summer. The blue-gray foliage is instantly recognizable, being triangular in cross-section and strongly twisting along the length of the ascending leaves, as if sculpted of wrought iron. A penetrating, skunky odor is released when the plant is cut.
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