For all interested in Pregnant Onions:
Let me introduce you to Ornithoglaeum longibracteatum, or as many people call it, a Pregnant Onion or False Sea Onion. This interesting plant is not a true onion and is poisonous to eat. Some people have developed a skin rash from handling the plant. The pregnant onion is from the Hyacinthaceae family and is found in many countries such as South Africa, the Mediterranean area, Central and Eastern Europe and Western Asia. And anywhere else it has been introduced as a house plant.
The Pregnant Onion asexual production of bulbils is what makes this plant so interesting. The bulbils are formed under the skin of the large onion like bulb and as the skin dries the bulbils drop to the ground where they take root. It can also be grow from seeds that are collected after the plant flowers and the seed pods are allowed to dry on the plant.
It grows well in Zones 9A – 10 B outdoors, either in the ground or in pots. Also makes for an interesting houseplant if you have the room. Leaves have been known to get up to 4 feet long with a flower stem up to 6 feet long. It is an evergreen plant the requires average watering and can tolerate even less water, as in some climates it will live off the water in the bulb for long periods of no water. The Pregnant Onion prefers sun to partial shade.
