Allium neapolitanum is a member of the vast Allium family, with around 1000 species. It produces round bulbs up to 2 cm across. The scape is up to 25 cm tall, round in cross-section but sometimes with wings toward the bottom. The inflorescence is an umbel of up to 25 white flowers with yellow anthers.

 

Allium neapolitanum was named by the Italian botanist Domenico Cirillo, who was born in Grumo Nevano, near Naples, Italy. He first published the name "Allium neapolitanum" in his work "Plantarum Rariorum Regni Neapolitani" in 1788. This publication documented rare and previously undescribed plant species found in the Neapolitan region of Italy.

 

Common names include Neapolitan garlic, Naples garlic, false garlic, flowering onion, Naples onion, and Star-of-Bethlehem.

 

Its native range extends across the Mediterranean Region from Portugal to the Levant. The species is cultivated as an ornamental and has become naturalized in many areas, including Australia, New Zealand, and parts of the United States.

 

Leaves are delicious in salads; they start off being sweet and then develop a fairly strong garlic-like flavor. The bulbs are rather small but have a very nice mild garlic flavor. Sliced up, they make a delicious addition to salads and can also be used as a vegetable or as a flavoring in cooked foods. They are harvested in mid-summer once the plant dies down and will store for 6 months or more. The flowers are excellent in salads, making them look attractive as well as adding a strong onion flavor.