Allium tuberosum is a rhizomatous, clump-forming perennial plant growing from a small, elongated bulb that is tough and fibrous. Unlike either onion or garlic, it has strap-shaped leaves with triangular bases, about 1.5 to 8 mm (1⁄16 to 5⁄16 in) wide. It produces many white flowers in a round cluster (umbel) on stalks 25 to 60 cm (10 to 24 in) tall. It grows in slowly expanding perennial clumps but also readily sprouts from seed. In warmer areas (USDA zone 8 and warmer), garlic chives may remain green all year round. In cold areas (USDA zones 7 to 4b), leaves and stalks completely die back to the ground and resprout from roots or rhizomes in the spring.
The flavor is more like garlic than chives.
Uses include as ornamental plants, including cut and dried flowers, culinary herbs, and traditional medicine. Garlic chives have been widely cultivated for centuries in East Asia for their culinary value. The flat leaves, the stalks, and immature, unopened flower buds are used for flavoring.
