KEELED GARLIC

Allium carinatum

Onion & Garlic Family [Alliaceae]

month8jul month8july month8aug

status
statusZneophyte
flower
flower8pink
morph
morph8actino
petals
petalsZ6
stem
stem8round

9th Aug 2012, Grange over Sands, Cumbrian Coast. Photo: © RWD
At 60cm tall Keeled Garlic is shorter than Crow Garlic (at ~80cm tall but can be up to 120cm). The flowers usually droop because they are on long stalks, longer than those of the similar Crow Garlic.


9th Aug 2012, Grange over Sands, Cumbrian Coast. Photo: © RWD
The flowers are bright-pink and bell-shaped, never fully opening. Like those of Crow Garlic the stamens protrude well beyond the petals (but un-like the similar Field Garlic (Allium oleraceum) or Sand Leek (Allium scorodoprasum)). The two paper-like bracts that once enclosed the bulbils hang down and are very long (the ones in the photos seem a bit short for some reason).


9th Aug 2012, Grange over Sands, Cumbrian Coast. Photo: © RWD
The flowers are quite a bit larger than those of Crow Garlic (4-6mm as opposed to 2-4mm), open slightly wider and many more flowers have stamens that are protruding (and by a considerable margin).


9th Aug 2012, Grange over Sands, Cumbrian Coast. Photo: © RWD
The flowers are purplish pink.


9th Aug 2012, Grange over Sands, Cumbrian Coast. Photo: © RWD
Un-like Crow Garlic the petals do not have a longitudinal darker band, but the petals do have a slightly darker mid-rib, and the ends of the petals are more rounded (rather than coming to a concave point)


Some similarities to : Rosy Garlic (Allium roseum) and to Crow Garlic (Allium vineale. Un-like the similarly coloured Rosy Garlic the flowers are smaller at 4-6mm (rather than 10-12mm) and do not open as far. Also Rosy Garlic does not have stamens that protrude (whereas both Keeled Garlic and the similar Crow Garlic do). The flowers are on longer pedicels (stalks) than are those of Crow Garlic, hence the flowers of Keeled Garlic flop over much more than the more upright flowers of Crow Garlic.

Slight resemblance to : Sand Leek (Allium scorodoprasum) but these flowers are pale to dark-purple and do not have protruding stamens.

The head can consists of bulbils alone, flowers alone, or both together. It is the leaves which are keeled (V-shaped) hence the common name.


  Allium carinatum  ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ Alliaceae  

Distribution
 family8Onion & Garlic family8Alliaceae
 BSBI maps
genus8Allium
Allium
(Onions)

KEELED GARLIC

Allium carinatum

Onion & Garlic Family [Alliaceae]