| Classification |
| Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order Type: Basal Angiosperms-Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family Latin Name: Alliaceae
Family Common Name: Onion Family
Genera: Allium |
Defining Features: Their sap
smells like onion or garlic and it is mildly antiseptic.
Defining Morphology: Floral
Features: Flowers are showy, bisexual and actinomorphic on contracted helicoids
cymes inflorescence. Ovaries are superior with axile Placentation. Fruit
and Seed Features: Monocotyledon. Fruit a loculicidal capsule. Seeds are
globose to angular. Vegetative Features: Habit as perennial herbs mostly
from bulbs with contractile roots. Leaves are often 2-ranked, simple, and
entire with parallel venation. Leaves are sheathing at base and stipules
are lacking. Stem is reduced.
Distribution: Mostly semi-arid
of temperate to tropical regions.
Economic Use: As the source
of the familiar vegetables (onions, garlic and leeks) as well as cultivated
for garden and indoor ornamentals. Several species are used medicinally.
Number of Genera Globally:
13
Number of Species Globally: 645
