Camas

There are many beautiful wildflowers in the Lily Family (Liliaceae); however not all of them are friendly. A day or so ago I encountered two different species of camas that, while they are quite different in outward appearance, they grow from bulbs that are nearly identical. There is a potential problem with that because while one has always been one of the most important “root” foods for the indigenous people of this region, the other one is poisonous and can be deadly.

Common camas, also called small camas or blue camas (Camassia quamash), was (and to some extent continues to be) a very important and prized food. Long ago it was so cherished that Indian wars were fought over select camas meadows and no other food item was more widely traded.

Meadow Death Camas (Zigadenus venenosus) bulbs and leaves contain an alkaloid, zigadenine, that is poisonous to humans and grazing animals.

There are Camas, and there are Camas…

Common Camas or Blue Camas ~ Cammassia quamash

The bulbs of the Blue Camas, which are starchy, nutritious and have a high sugar content were an important food source for the indigenous tribes in the west and northwest parts of the U.S. and Canada. Many Indian wars were fought for the collecting rights to cherished camas meadows, and as the explorers (including Lewis & Clark and Discovery), trappers and early settlers arrived they also depended on the Camas bulbs for some of their sustenance. “Camas Prairie” is a well known place name in an area close to where I live and also in an area in eastern Idaho as well as other areas across the west.

The other Camas however, is deadly.

Meadow Death Camas ~ Zigadenus venenosus is, as the name implies, extremely toxic and can cause death in people and cattle or other animals that graze on them and a big problem is that its bulb is nearly identical in looks to the bulb of the Blue Camas. I hate to think about just how it was discovered that they were deadly toxic to humans!

In the last few days…

Many, many years ago, someone driving along Highway 200 tossed out the core of a pear and the seeds took root. The little tree was too close to the highway and the highway crews cut it down year after year. And each year at least a little part remained on the side furthest from the road. This year there is a branch that has formed what may be a new trunk, far enough from the roadway that it might survive. It has grown to about 8 feet high and is just covered with the most beautiful blossoms.

Pear blossoms

More species of wildflowers have also begun to bloom, some very early, I think, but surely very welcome!

Meadow death-camas ~ Zigadenus venenosus

Field Chickweed ~ Cerastium arvense

Slender Hawksbeard ~ Crepis atrabarba

Peak Saxifrage – Micranthes nidifica

Field Pussytoes ~ Antennaria neglecta

Upland Larkspur ~ Delphinium nuttallianum

May wildflowers

After the late arrival of warm weather, the wildflowers in this part of Western Montana have been hurrying to catch up with spring. Here are more that have started blooming in May:

Miner’s Lettuce, Claytonia perfoliata

Unknown

Western Blue Clematis, Clematis occidentalis

Heart-leaf Arnica , Arnica cordifolia

Fairy Slipper, Calypso Orchid , Calypso bulbosa

Falsebox, Mountain Boxwood, Oregon Boxwood, Paxistma myrsinites

Blue-eyed Mary, Collinsia parviflora

Yellow Wood Violet, Viola glabella

Arrow-leaved Balsamroot, Balsamorhiza sagittata

Arrow-leaved Balsamroot, Balsamorhiza sagittata

Serviceberry, Saskatoon, Amelanchier alnifolia

Antelope Bitterbrush, Antelope-brush, Purshia tridentata

Antelope Bitterbrush, Antelope-brush, Purshia tridentata

Sticky Purple Geranium, Sticky Geranium, Geranium viscosissimum

Woolly Groundsel, Packera cana

Ground Ivy, Glechoma hederacea

Largeflower Triteleia, Triteleia grandiflora

Meadow Death Camas, Common Death Camas, Zigadenus venenosus

Small-flowered Woodland-star, Small-flowered Prairie-star, Lithophragma parviflorum

Holly-leaf Oregon-grape, Shining Oregongrape, Tall Oregongrape, Berberis aquifolium

Unknown shrub

Common Hawkweed, Hieracium lachenalii

Two-lobe Larkspur, Upland Larkspur, Delphinium nuttallianum

Three whites and a purple

With the exception of the Larkspur, the last flowers I observed blooming in April were white.

Saskatoon, Serviceberry, Amelanchier alnifolia

Saskatoon, Serviceberry, Amelanchier alnifolia

Upland Larkspur, Delphinium nuttallianum

Upland Larkspur, Delphinium nuttallianum

Meadow Death-camas, Zigadenus venenosus

Meadow Death-camas, Zigadenus venenosus

Wild Strawberry, Fragaria virginiana

Wild Strawberry, Fragaria virginiana

Wild Strawberry, Fragaria virginiana

Camas

Common Camas or Blue Camas ~ Camassia quamash

Meadow Death Camas ~ Zigadenus venenosus

Common or Blue Camas was an important food source for Indian tribes in the west and many Indian wars were fought over collecting rights to certain camas meadows.

Meadow Death Camas is a highly poisonous perennial herb. Serious losses can occur to stock grazing in meadows where it is common. Several Indian tribes used the mashed bulbs as arrow poison.

The problem is that the bulbs of the two species are visually nearly identical. I don’t like to think about how the early Indians learned which was edible and which was lethal, but they did and therefore harvested the bulbs of the Blue Camas only while it was in bloom.