Ornithogalum divergens is a species of monocotyledonous plant in the asparagus family (Asparagaceae).
This species has not been reported on the Maltese islands for several decades and eventually, it was considered as extinct and reported so in the red data book. The author (Mr. Stephen Mifsud) has encountered this species on 2nd April 2006 in a garigue near il-Bosk, an area close to Buskett Gardens, Rabat.
It is about a 10–25 cm tall perennial plant with a spherical underground onion, the secondary bulbs are developed, usually 15-60 of them, which, however, do not form narrower secondary leaves as in the crested grebe. The leaves are only in the ground rosette, sessile, about 5-8 of one onion. The blades are narrowly linear, flat to grooved, with a distinct white stripe in the middle, up to 6 mm wide.
The flowers are in inflorescences, which is a crest, which most often contains 4-10 flowers, the bracts at the base of the flower stalks are shorter, the flower stalks are most often slightly sloping. The petals are 6, loose, about 20 mm long and about 7 mm wide.
They are white on top, on the outside they have a wide green stripe in the middle, the outer white stripe on the edge of the reverse is usually wider than 1 mm.
The petals at the apex are severed to dullly rounded, pointed in the middle. There are 6 bars, the threads are without teeth. The gyneceum is composed of 3 fruiting bodies, the testicles usually have regularly spaced edges, not converged by 2. The fruit is a capsule, the lower capsules contain 1-15 seeds.
This plant might be poisonous
