Keever's Onion
Allium cuthbertii
Found in longleaf pine sandhills, other dry sandy areas. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 59%
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Dry to average

At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial, from a bulb
- Leaves
- Deciduous
Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Bloom
Height and bloom: NC species account not read yet.
Spread: no source found yet.
This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.
Recorded in 12 Alabama counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Dry, deep-sand ridges with longleaf pine and turkey oak, kept open by fire.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 13 animals.
- American CrowCorvus brachyrhynchos
- Bank SwallowRiparia riparia
- Chimney SwiftChaetura pelagica
- Common NighthawkChordeiles minor
- Dark-eyed JuncoJunco hyemalis
- Eastern KingbirdTyrannus tyrannus
- Eurasian Collared-doveStreptopelia decaocto
- European StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Great Horned OwlBubo virginianus
- Northern FlickerColaptes auratus
- Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- Turkey VultureCathartes aura
Who uses this plant?
17CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Allium
- Agrotis gladiariaSwordsman Dart, Clay-Backed Cut-Worm
- Agrotis ipsilonIpsilon Dart, Black Cutworm, Greasy Cutworm
- Agrotis malefidaRascal Dart, Pale-Sided Cut-Worm, Shagreened Cut-Worm
- Anicla infectaGreen Cutworm Moth
- Archips argyrospilaFruit-Tree Leafroller Moth
- Ascia monusteGreat Southern White
- Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
- Elasmopalpus lignosellaLesser Cornstalk Borer
- Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
- Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
Show all 17
- Mythimna unipunctaArmyworm Moth, White Speck
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera latifasciaOrange-Striped Armyworm, Velvet Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
- Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
20BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Allium
Individual names are not available yet.
Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Allium
- Alectoris chukarChukar
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Alliaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 7a–11b
- Flower color
- Pink, purple or white
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Flower color · “Pink, purple or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Hardiness · “Zones 7a–11b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Perennial, from a bulb” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil · “Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Allium cuthbertii
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | Not available |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G2 |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Alabama Plant Atlas
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications














