This species is a member of the lily family but belongs to the genus that includes the onion and garlic. There are two or three, smooth and broad onion-scented leaves that are 8-10 inches long. The leaves are pointed at both ends and grow on long petioles. These leaves usually wither before the plant sends up a dome-shaped umbel of flowers on a naked stem. There are two papery bracts that enclose the flower cluster at first. These open and fold backwards as the flowers mature. The individual flowers are creamy-white and about ¼ inch long. Each is cup-shaped with 3 sepals and 3 petals of the same color. The cluster is about 1 ½ inches wide. The fruit is 3-lobed capsule that contains a few seeds.

The plant grows from a bulb that also has a strong onion odor. It can reach a height of 6-20 inches. It blooms from June to July and is found from Minnesota, southern Quebec, Nova Scotia south to Illinois and Maryland and south to Georgia in the mountains. It is found in most western Pennsylvania counties, but might often be mistaken for wild garlic (A. canadense), field garlic (A. vineale) or wild onion (A. stellatum), but all of these have reddish or pink flowers and narrower leaves. Normally wild leek is found in wooded areas. Other common names for this plant are ramps, spring onion, ramson and wood leek.

In the Smokey Mountains the plant is gathered in April for their annual Ramp Festival. The leaves and bulbs are used in salads and soup and are rich in vitamins. Native Americans used the juice from bulbs of the plant to treat stings. Oddly enough a Midwestern Indian trible named a location where this plant grew as “shika ‘ko” or “Skunk Place.” Europeans later settled this area and the name was Anglicized to “Chicago.”