Ozawa onion is a surprising little ornamental onion because it blooms in September and October after all the other onions are finished. The little floppy globes of red-violet flowers sit atop small clusters of thin, grassy leaves. The bulbs should be planted where they will not be shaded out by earlier-blooming plants. It is one of the last outdoor flowers to bloom at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

The related A. chinense may be a cultigen of thunbergii. It is widespread in cultivation and has escaped into the wild in China, Japan, and other Asian countries. In Japan, the common name is rakkyo, and it is commonly grown for pickles, which are usually labeled as pickled shallots.