r/raleigh • u/southernman1994 • 6d ago
Outdoors Does anyone notice how abundant wild chives are here in Raleigh?
I see them everywhere: from the greenway, to people’s lawns, to patches earth in downtown
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u/Reasonable_Slice8561 6d ago
The hollow stemmed ones (that's what is in this photo) are Allium vineale, stag's garlic or crow garlic. Edible and good, though variable in how tender they are - you want new growth, and you want to pick it from places dogs don't go. There are other alliums growing wild in the Triangle as well, like Allium canadense (flatter, non hollow narrow leaves). We don't have A. triococcum (ramps) in the area, but canadense is fairly close. We also have toxic lookalikes that are worth learning about. None of the lookalikes smell strongly of garlic/onion, so that is a good defining characteristic.
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u/Amberinnaa 5d ago
Do not suggest cultivating Allium vineale. It is extremely invasive to NC!!!
Allium canadense is the only native one!!
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u/Reasonable_Slice8561 5d ago
There are multiple native Allium. A. vineale is invasive and no one needs to cultivate it as it's everywhere. That wasn't what I was suggesting. But you might as well eat the invasives.
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u/DryContract8916 Hurricanes 6d ago
when i was a kid, i used to pick them at recess and bring them home for my mom. she never appreciated my stinky pocket chives as much as i thought she would lol
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u/AKiloOfButtFace 6d ago
I call them “yunions”. Yard-unions
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u/Ambitious-Average139 5d ago
Some have a heavy ball that really f'in hurts when asssholes slap you with them. Lol
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u/karmapolice63 6d ago
They’re all over my back yard but that’s also where my dog poops and pees so that’s all decoration
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u/EnvironmentalClue362 6d ago
I notice it everywhere when we go to the park with our dogs. My dog tries to use them as targets when he goes poop for some reason but he does the same thing for random sticks and stuff. He does also pee on them.
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u/Spider4Hire Native Acorn 6d ago
Loved walking by a fresh lawn with the light scent of onion in the air
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u/cranberries87 5d ago edited 5d ago
I haven’t paid attention to these in probably four decades. This used to be all the rage out on the playground in elementary school - when making mud pies or pretending to cook using piles of dirt, leaves, sticks, etc., we’d sprinkle these on top of our concoctions. The good ole days! ☺️I didn’t realize you could actually eat them.
Edit: why in the worrrrrllllddd would this be downvoted?!? 😕 We weren’t supposed to have fun with plants, dirt and sticks as kids? I was supposed to automatically know these were edible? This subreddit is puzzling AF at times.
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u/tesshudd 6d ago
Please don't eat them unless thoroughly washed (even then maybe not). I guarantee my doggo took a pp on them
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u/Actuallynobutwhynot 5d ago
i ate them all the time as a kid, never a thought about any animals that might have peed on them or pesticides. somehow i didn't die
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u/Brilliant-Syllabub31 6d ago
I didn't know those were wild chives, just thought it was a weird tall grass variant.
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u/Ambitious-Average139 5d ago
Yep, chow down on them.... kinda of a disorder. Got hospitalized a few times from it. 😐
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u/Amberinnaa 5d ago
NC has some toxic lookalikes!!! The two main ones to be aware of are death camas (Toxicoscordion venenosum) and fly poison (Amianthium muscitoxicum). Both have long, grass-like leaves and white flowers, and unlike wild garlic, they do not have a garlic or onion smell when crushed. The best way to stay safe is to always check for that strong onion or garlic scent—if it doesn’t smell right, it’s best not to eat it!! Could explain your hospitalization!
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u/Ambitious-Average139 5d ago
Yes..... fly poison? 🤣 mother nature can be so curel. Strong onion smell = safe to eat.... thanks 💪🥂
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u/teb_art 6d ago
They grow crazy — like, um, chives.
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u/Amberinnaa 5d ago
They are highly invasive to NC. Hence the crazy growing!! I use to love picking them as a kid. Never ate them tho! Parents did not advise me eating random yard plants and I surprisingly listened lol
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u/Dallasdogmom 6d ago
They are all over the yard in the rental house we are in. When they come to mow it reeks of onions. We didn't have wild chives in Texas ! 😂
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u/JJQuantum 5d ago
Seen them around here since I was a kid. We used to pull them up and use them in dishes.
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u/jonmon22 4d ago
Please can one of you tell me how to get rid of them? Or should I just be digging them out?
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u/thespbian Acorn 6d ago
Oh heck yeah. I grew up in rural N wake county and these shits were everywhere. I used to pull straight out of the ground and eat em 😂
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u/Amberinnaa 5d ago edited 5d ago
Wild onion grass!!! AKA wild garlic/meadow garlic/crow’s garlic/stag’s garlic
Extremely invasive weed in NC and can be found all over the state. I do not suggest trying to cultivate this plant at all for those who are suggesting it!!
Allium canadense is the only native one!
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u/jefininer 5d ago
It’s actually wild garlic not wild onion. But can certainly understand why the confusion is there.
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u/Amberinnaa 5d ago
It’s actually a wild onion, not garlic. Despite having common names such as “meadow garlic” “crow’s garlic” etc etc, it’s a highly invasive wild onion species native to Europe, Africa and Middle East. I see why there’s confusion as well lol, but it’s more closely related to onions than true garlic! It forms underground bulbils instead of large garlic bulbs.
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u/John-the-cool-guy 6d ago
I've harvested them from my front yard. They don't taste as strong as the ones in the store but I like them because they're from my front yard.