Wild Onion

What it looks like

Flat, solid leaves with a strong onion smell when crushed. It sends up clusters of pink or white flowers, and unlike its cousin wild garlic, it has no small bulblets forming at the top of the plant.

Often mistaken for: Wild garlic (which has round, hollow leaves and small bulblets, unlike wild onion's flat, solid leaves)

When it shows up in the Triangle

Shows up as green shoots from fall through spring while your lawn is dormant, then flowers in late spring or summer.

Where you’ll see it

Grows in bermuda, centipede, St. Augustine, zoysia, fescue, and bluegrass lawns.

What you can do

• Keep your lawn thick and healthy - dense turf is your best defense against it spreading
• Mow at the proper height for your grass type to encourage strong turf competition
• Dig up small patches by hand, making sure to remove the underground bulb
• Avoid letting it flower and go to seed if you're pulling it manually
• Be patient - this weed usually takes more than one season to fully knock back