Allium Carolinianum

Allium carolinianum is a high-mountain onion from the Himalayas and Central Asia, producing rounded, many-flowered umbels in shades of white, pink, red or purplish rose above broad, flat leaves. The compact bulbs and sturdy stems are adapted to exposed stony slopes at elevations of roughly 3,000–5,000 metres, giving the plant excellent cold tolerance but a strong preference for drainage. Its clean globes and variable colouring make it a rewarding species for a sunny alpine bed or trough. In its native range the aromatic leaves and bulbs have also long been gathered as a seasonal mountain food.