Short description of Allium triquetrum, Three-Cornered Garlic

A spring-flowering bulb with white flowers. Leaves resemble those of bluebells after flowering.

Impact summary: Allium triquetrum, Three-Cornered Garlic

It has no serious ecological or economic impact, although it can displace native species where invasive in some regions.

Habitat summary: Allium triquetrum, Three-Cornered Garlic

Usually found on roadside verges.

Overview table

Environment	Terrestrial
Species status	Non-Native
Native range	Southwestern Europe, Southeastern Europe, Northern Africa, West Tropical Africa, Canary Is., Madeira
Functional type	Land plant
Status in England	Non-Native
Status in Scotland	Non-Native
Status in Wales	Non-Native
Location of first record	v.c.113 (Guernsey)
Date of first record	1847

Origin

Native to the Mediterranean region.

First Record

First recorded as established in the wild in Guernesy in 1859.

Pathway and Method

It is a common garden plant which escapes when garden waste is dumped on roadsides or more rarely through deliberate planting in wild locations.

Species Status

In GB it is listed on Schedule 9 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act, which makes it an offence to deliberately introduce it. However, it is a popular plant that is widely naturalised on waysides and road verges, where it has the potential to displace native species where invasive.

Dispersal Mechanisms

It is introduced to new locations by accidental or deliberate introduction, and it spreads vegetatively in clumps. Seeds are dispersed by ants or carried along roadsides in the slipstreams of vehicles or possibly as a result of mowing.

Reproduction

Division of clumps allows for reproduction over short distances, while seed dispersal allows for longer-distance spread.

Known Predators/Herbivores

It is considered vulnerable to slug damage, especially in drier areas of the country. It is also vulnerable to mildew.

Resistant Stages

Seeds are largely resistant to herbivory.

Habitat Occupied in GB

Gardens, road verges, coastal grassland, waste ground and, occasionally, arable field edges.

Widely scattered in populated areas as far north as southern Scotland; naturalised mainly in coastal areas and the very south-west.

Environmental Impact

Although it can become abundant, ecosystem impact is likely to be minimal in most areas as it usually occurs on roadside verges of little botanical interest. However, in some areas (e.g. Southwest England, Channel Islands) it can become highly invasive in species-rich roadside and grassland vegetation, displacing native species that are regionally or even nationally important.

Health and Social Impact

None known.

Economic Impact

None known. In Tasmania it is considered likely to taint milk, but cattle are said to avoid it.

Identification

Biology, ecology, spread, vectors

French, C.N., Murphy, R.J. & Atkinson, M.G.C. (1999) Flora of Cornwall. Wheal Seton Press, Camborne.

http:www.bioinfo.org.ukhtmlt47503.htm

Management and impact

http:www.guernsey.net~cdavidbotanyfilesallium%20triquetrum

http:www.weeds.asn.auweedstxtsthree_crngar.htm

General

Preston, C.D., Pearman, D.A. & Dines, T.D. (Eds.) (2002) New Atlas of the British and Irish flora. Oxford: Oxford University Press.