Urginea maritima is herbaceous perennial native to the Mediterranean that grows from a large bulb forming a basal rosette of fleshy, straplike leaves in the winter (in the southwest US) into . The leaves are a blue/green color and will emerge in late fall (November) through early Spring (April) in the Northern Hemisphere (2). The leaf length is typically between 12 and 18 inches long and the width is usually around 4 inches ( 2). The plant (with inflorescence) grows 4 to 7 feet tall and the bulbs can reach 8 inches and around 2 pounds in weight (5,6).  Flowers on this plant form on a tall spike that emerges from the center of the vegetative rosette and can be purple (lavender), red ( burgundy), or white (3). The  flowers have 6 petals arranged as a star-shaped corolla ,  (2). Sea onion flowers  bloom in July through November in the Northern Hemisphere (3).

Urginea maritima is a native of Mediterranean coastal regions including Southern Europe, Western Asia, and Northern Africa (1). The plant was first described as Urginea maritima by a British botanist by the name of John Gilbert Baker. Recently the plant has been reclassified and placed into the genus Drimia ultimately called Drimia maritima (2). The word Urginea originated from Beni Urgin which is a tribal name in Algeria where a member of the genus is native. The word Drimia in Greek means “acrid” or “pungent”, acrid and pungent due to the plant's irritating sap that it produces. Common names of this plant include Sea Onion, Red Squill and White Squill (2)

The red squill plant is best grown in sunny warm conditions or under trees where it can get adequate winter sunlight exposure (3). Specifically the bulbs are active in the winter but dormant during the summer months therefore more water should be implemented during the winter months compared to summer (7). The bulbs can be grown both in the soil or as an ornamental in a pot (8). Soils conditions should be well drained sandy soils, conversely the bulbs can be planted in heavier soils if planted on a slope (2). Plant the bulbs with only the top one inch exposed outside of the soil and space each plant around 18-24 inches apart to allow adequate growth of individual clumps (2).

Urginea maritima has been said to be used by humans in a number of different ways since 1500 BC. The white bulb has been used for medicinal purposes, specifically used to treat croup in small babies (2). The red bulb has also been used to create an insecticide used for rodents due to its organic compounds of ( scilliroside) cardiac glycoside (1). The organic compound cardiac glycoside helps stimulate the heart as well as acting as diuretic in mild doses while acting poisonous in high doses. The most abundant and functioning compound in the plant is scillirosides, this compound is toxic (1). The Red Squill is a low level toxic if consumed by large mammals such as humans. Symptoms of toxicity include stomach pain, diarrhea, vomiting and nausea. More specifically the juice contained in the bulbs of the plant can cause blisters if contact of skin is made (1).