Common Name: False Garlic

General Information

Nothoscordum gracile is a perennial plant, producing a rosette of spear-shaped leaves about 45cm tall from an underground bulb[].
The bulb is sometimes gathered from the wild and used as a substitute for garlic. The plant is sometimes grown as a food crop and also as an ornamental[, ].
Nothoscordum gracile is highly invasive and difficult to control. Plants produce 20 - 50 bulblets each year - these get detached from the mother plant and spread through soil translocation or plowing in farms. The plant also produces up to 2,000 seeds annually with a high level of viability. It has the ability to invade cultivated fields and open areas along roadsides and gardens and it is very tricky to remove this species from the invaded area due to its gregarious perennation by numerous bulblets and seeds. The plant has become an established weed in many countries outside its native range, from the temperate zone to the tropics[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

, ,

Range

South America - Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia; through central America to southern Mexico.

Habitat

Sandy roadsides, woods and cultivated ground in southeastern N. America[]. Roadsides, waste places, disturbed lands, landscaped areas, gardens, etc.

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Bulb
Height	0.45 m
Pollinators	Insects
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Prefers a light sandy soil in a sunny position[].
This species reproduces freely when in good growing conditions and has become a weed in some gardens[, ].
The flowers open in the late afternoon and have a rich, sweet lily-like perfume[].

Edible Uses

Bulb - raw or cooked. The leaves and bulbs are used like garlic (Allium sativum)[, ]. The bulb is used as a spice[, , , ]. The bulb is about 15mm in diameter[].

Medicinal

Fragrant false garlic is a rich source of alkaloids, carbohydrates, flavonoids, glycosides, steroids and tannins, many elements which are useful in the treatment of many diseases[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as ripe in a cold frame[]. Spring sown seed germinates freely[]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in spring.
Division of offsets after the leaves die down in summer. Larger bulbs can be replanted immediately into their permanent positions. It is best to pot up the smaller bulbs and grow them on for a year before planting them out when dormant in late summer.