ABSTRACT
The genus Allium is comprised of approximately 500 species. 4 , 12 , 21 , 28 , 29 , 32 Their indigenous range covers almost the entire northern hemisphere and it extends from western Europe and northern Africa across Asia to the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of North America. Very few species originate in the Southern Hemisphere. With few exceptions, they are found in temperate regions that have distinct seasons. This accounts for the periodicity in their growth and development cycles. At present, alliums are classified in the Liliaceae family, 9 , 18 , 21 but they have been placed in the Amaryllidaceae family. 4
