Allium ursinum umbel of six to 20 white flowers only, lacking the bulbils produced by some other "Allium" species such as "Allium vineale" (crow garlic) and "Allium oleraceum" (field garlic). It flowers in the British Isles from April to June, starting before deciduous trees leaf in the spring. The flower stem is triangular in cross-section and the leaves are broadly lanceolate similar to those of the lily of the valley ("Convallaria majalis"). It is native to temperate regions of Europe, from Britain east to the Caucasus. It is common in much of the lowland British Isles with the exception of the far
Dactylorhiza majalis subsp. traunsteinerioides consider it to be the subspecies "Dactylorhiza majalis" subsp. "traunsteineri". The narrow lower leaves of "D. majalis" subsp. "traunsteineriodes" distinguish it from other "Dactylorhiza" taxa found in Britain and Ireland with the exception of "D. majalis" subsp. "ebudensis" (syn. "D. ebudensis"). The latter is found only on North Uist in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland and has heavily spotted stem leaves and a less trilobed labellum, with a shorter central lobe, although genetic studies published in 2011 suggest that it is not distinct from "D. majalis" subsp. "traunsteineriodes". Plants found in Britain and Ireland and identified as "Dactylorhiza traunsteineri" or