Allium ursinum

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Allium ursinum
387 Allium ursinum.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Subfamily: Allioideae
Genus: Allium
Subgenus: A. subg. Amerallium
Species:
A. ursinum
Binomial name
Allium ursinum
L.
Synonyms [1]
Species synonymy
Wild garlic in Hampshire, UK. Photo of Allium Ursinum, wild garlic, north-west Hampshire, UK, May 2014.jpg
Wild garlic in Hampshire, UK.

Allium ursinum, known as wild garlic, ramsons, cowleekes, cows's leek, cowleek, buckrams, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic, bear leek, Eurasian wild garlic or bear's garlic, is a bulbous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family Amaryllidaceae. It is native to Europe and Asia, where it grows in moist woodland. [2] It is a wild relative of onion and garlic, all belonging to the same genus, Allium . There are two recognized subspecies: A. ursinum subsp. ursinum and A. ursinum subsp. ucrainicum. [3]

Contents

Etymology

The Latin specific name ursinum translates to 'bear' and refers to the supposed fondness of the brown bear for the bulbs; folk tales describe the bears consuming them after awakening from hibernation. [3] Another theory is that the "ursinum" may refer to Ursa Major, as A. ursinum was perhaps one of the most northerly distributed Allium species known to the ancient Greeks, [3] though this hypothesis is disputed. [4] Common names for the plant in many languages also make reference to bears. [5]

Cows love to eat them, hence the modern vernacular name of cows's leek. [6] In Devon, dairy farmers have occasionally had the milk of their herds rejected because of the garlic flavour imparted to it by the cows having grazed upon the plant. [6]

Ramsons is from the Saxon word hramsa, meaning "garlic". There is evidence it has been used in English cuisine since Celtic Britons over 1,500 years ago. [7]

Early healers among the Celts, Gaels, Teutonic tribes and ancient Romans were familiar with the wild herb and called it herba salutaris, meaning 'healing herb'. [7]

Description

Illustration from Otto Wilhelm Thome's book Flora von Deutschland, Osterreich und der Schweiz, 1885 Illustration Allium ursinum1.jpg
Illustration from Otto Wilhelm Thomé's book Flora von Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz, 1885

Allium ursinum is a bulbous, perennial herbaceous monocot, that reproduces primarily by seed. The narrow bulbs are formed from a single leaf base [8] and produce bright green entire, elliptical leaves up to 25 cm (9.8 in) long x 7 cm (2.8 in) wide with a petiole up to 20 cm (7.9 in) long. [8] The inflorescence is an umbel of six to 20 white flowers, lacking the bulbils produced by some other Allium species such as Allium vineale (crow garlic) and Allium oleraceum (field garlic). [9] [8] :394 [10] :902 The flowers are star-like with six white tepals, about 16–20 mm (0.63–0.79 in) in diameter, with stamens shorter than the perianth. [8]

It flowers in the British Isles from April to June, [8] :394 starting before deciduous trees leaf in the spring. The flower stem is triangular in cross-section and the leaves are broadly lanceolate, similar to those of the toxic lily of the valley ( Convallaria majalis ). [3]

Distribution

It is native to temperate regions of Europe, from Ireland east to the Caucasus.[ citation needed ] It is common in much of the lowlands of the British Isles with the exception of the far north of Scotland, Orkney and Shetland. [11] The ursinum subspecies is found in western and central Europe, while the ucrainicum subspecies is found in the east and southeast. [3]

Herbal remedy

Allium ursinum has been credited with many medicinal qualities and is a popular homeopathic ingredient. It is often used for treating cardiovascular, respiratory, and digestive problems, as well as for the sterilisation of wounds. [12]

Various minerals are found in much higher amounts in Allium ursinum than in clove garlic. It is sometimes called the "magnesium king" of plants because of the high levels of this mineral found in the leaves.[ citation needed ]

Habitat

A. ursinum completely covers the forest floor in early May. From the forest of Riis Skov in Denmark. Riis Skov (maj) 05.JPG
A. ursinum completely covers the forest floor in early May. From the forest of Riis Skov in Denmark.

It grows in deciduous woodlands with moist soils, preferring slightly acidic conditions. In the British Isles, colonies are frequently associated with bluebells ( Hyacinthoides non-scripta ), especially in ancient woodland. It is considered to be an ancient woodland indicator species. [13]

Culinary uses

All parts of the Allium ursinum plant are edible and have culinary uses, including the flower, which can be used to garnish salads.

The leaves of the Allium ursinum are the most popular part to be used in food. Leaves can be used in raw salads and carry a very subtle garlicky flavour similar to that of garlic chives. When picked the leaves bruise, making them smell even stronger. When cooked the flavour of the leaves becomes softer and sweeter.[ citation needed ]

The leaf is often chopped and used to replace garlic and other herbs in many recipes. The bulb can be used in a similar way to clove garlic.

Popular dishes using the plant include pesto, soups, pasta, cheese, scones and Devonnaise.[ citation needed ]

Edibility

All parts of A. ursinum are edible. The leaves can be used as salad, herb, [14] boiled as a vegetable, [15] in soup, or as an ingredient for a sauce that may be a substitute for pesto in lieu of basil. Leaves are also often used to make garlic butter. [16] In Russia the stems are preserved by salting and eaten as a salad. A variety of Cornish Yarg cheese has a rind coated in wild garlic leaves. [17] The leaves can be pickled in the same way as Allium ochotense known as mountain garlic in Korea. [18] The bulbs can be used similarly to garlic cloves, and the flowers are also edible. Parts of the plant can be used for preparing Van herbed cheese, a speciality of the Van province in Turkey.[ citation needed ]

The leaves are also used as fodder. Cows that have fed on ramsons give milk that tastes slightly of garlic, and butter made from this milk used to be very popular in 19th-century Switzerland.[ citation needed ]

The first evidence of the human use of A. ursinum comes from the Mesolithic settlement of Barkær (Denmark), where an impression of a leaf has been found. In the Swiss Neolithic settlement of Thayngen-Weier (Cortaillod culture), a high concentration of pollen from A. ursinum was found in the settlement layer, interpreted by some as evidence for use of the plant as fodder. [19]

Similarity to poisonous plants

Allium ursinum (left) and Arum maculatum (right) growing side by side in a woodland Allium ursinum, Arum maculatum.jpg
Allium ursinum (left) and Arum maculatum (right) growing side by side in a woodland

Plants that may be mistaken for A. ursinum include lily of the valley, Colchicum autumnale , Arum maculatum , and Veratrum viride or Veratrum album , [20] all of which are poisonous. In Europe, where ramsons are popularly harvested from the wild, people are regularly poisoned after mistakenly picking lily of the valley or Colchicum autumnale. [21]

Grinding the leaves between the fingers and checking for a garlic-like smell can be helpful, but if the smell remains on the hands, one can mistake a subsequent poisonous plant for a safe one. [21] When the leaves of A. ursinum and Arum maculatum first sprout, they look similar, but unfolded Arum maculatum leaves have irregular edges and many deep veins, while ramsons leaves are convex with a single main vein. The leaves of lily of the valley are in pairs, dull green, and come from a single reddish-purple stem, while the leaves of A. ursinum each have their own stem, are shiny when new, and are bright green. [22] :320

Ecology

As its name suggests, A. ursinum is an important food for brown bears. [23] The plant is also a favourite of wild boar.[ citation needed ]

A. ursinum is the primary larval host plant for a specialised hoverfly, ramsons hoverfly (Portevinia maculata). [24]

The flowers are pollinated by bees. [25]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Chives, scientific name Allium schoenoprasum, is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae that produces edible leaves and flowers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garlic</span> Species of edible plant

Garlic is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus Allium. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Welsh onion, and Chinese onion. It is native to Central Asia, South Asia and northeastern Iran and has long been used as a seasoning worldwide, with a history of several thousand years of human consumption and use. It was known to ancient Egyptians and has been used as both a food flavoring and a traditional medicine. China produced 73% of the world's supply of garlic in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scallion</span> Edible vegetable of various species in the genus Allium

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<i>Allium oleraceum</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae

Allium oleraceum, the field garlic, is a Eurasian species of wild onion. It is a bulbous perennial that grows wild in dry places, reaching 30 centimetres (12 in) in height. It reproduces by seed, bulbs and by the production of small bulblets in the flower head. Unlike A. vineale, it is very rare with A. oleraceum to find flower-heads containing bulbils only. In addition, the spathe in A. oleraceum is in two parts.

<i>Allium tricoccum</i> Species of wild onion

Allium tricoccum is a bulbous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family Amaryllidaceae. It is a North American species of wild onion or garlic found in eastern North America. Many of the common English names for this plant are also used for other Allium species, particularly the similar Allium ursinum, which is native to Eurasia. An edible plant, Allium tricoccum is used in a variety of North American and indigenous cuisines, and has also been used by Native Americans in traditional medicine. A French rendering (chicagou) of a Native American name for this plant is the namesake of the American city of Chicago.

<i>Colchicum autumnale</i> Species of flowering plant

Colchicum autumnale, commonly known as autumn crocus, meadow saffron, naked boys or naked ladies, is a toxic autumn-blooming flowering plant that resembles the true crocuses, but is a member of the plant family Colchicaceae, unlike the true crocuses, which belong to the family Iridaceae. It is called "naked boys/ladies" because the flowers emerge from the ground long before the leaves appear. Despite the vernacular name of "meadow saffron", this plant is not the source of saffron, which is obtained from the saffron crocus, Crocus sativus – and that plant, too, is sometimes called "autumn crocus".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elephant garlic</span> Subspecies of flowering plant

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<i>Allium vineale</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Arum maculatum</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Allium scorodoprasum</i> Species of flowering plant

The sand leek, also known as rocambole and Korean pickled-peel garlic, is a Eurasian species of wild onion with a native range extending across much of Europe, Middle East, and Korea. The species should not be confused with rocambole garlic, which is A. sativum var. ophioscorodon.

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<i>Allium cernuum</i> Species of flowering plant

Allium cernuum, known as nodding onion or lady's leek, is a perennial plant in the genus Allium. It grows in open areas in North America.

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<i>Puccinia sessilis</i> Species of fungus

Puccinia sessilis is a fungal species and plant pathogen, which is also known as arum rust or ramsons rust. It commonly infects Arum maculatum and Allium ursinum causing yellow to orange circular patches on leaves. On the underside of the leaves, it produces raised orange aecia commonly covered in spores. It is common in Eurasia in the spring.

<i>Allium paradoxum</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae

Allium paradoxum, the few-flowered garlic or few-flowered leek, is an Asian species of wild onion in the Amaryllis family. It is native to mountainous regions of Iran, Caucasus, and Turkmenistan and invasive in Europe.

<i>Allium ochotense</i> Species of plant

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<i>Allium</i> Genus of flowering plants in the family Amaryllidaceae

Allium is a genus of monocotyledonous flowering plants with hundreds of species, including the cultivated onion, garlic, scallion, shallot, leek, and chives. It is one of about 57 genera of flowering plants with more than 500 species. It is by far the largest genus in the Amaryllidaceae, and also in the Alliaceae in classification systems in which that family is recognized as separate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leek</span> Vegetable in the onion family

A leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of Allium ampeloprasum, the broadleaf wild leek. The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a stem or stalk. The genus Allium also contains the onion, garlic, shallot, scallion, chives, and Chinese onion. Three closely related vegetables, elephant garlic, kurrat and Persian leek or tareh, are also cultivars of A. ampeloprasum, although different in their uses as food.

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