Uvularia grandiflora - (image 1 of 6)
Taxonomy
Family: Liliaceae
Habitat
Rich, often calcareous and sloping woodlands.
Associates
Distribution
ME and southern Quebec west to MN and SD, south to CT, VA, northern GA, AL, and OK.
Morphology
Perennial to 1 m from slender rhizomes. Stems forked above the middle, usually with 1 leaf below the fork, 4-8 on the sterile branch and several leaves and 1-4 flowers on the fertile one. Leaves perfoliate, broadly oval to oblong, to 12 cm, often finely puberulent below. Flowers nodding; tepals 6, deep yellow, elongate and twisted, 2.5-5 cm, much exceeding the style, acute or acuminate, glabrous; stamens equaling or exceeding the stigmas. Fruit an obovoid, 3-lobed capsule, usually less than 10 mm long; seeds subglobose.
Notes
Flowers April to May
Wetland indicator: Upland
The shoots of this species are edible if boiled, though it is not usually abundant enough to justify collecting.
References
Gleason, Henry A. and A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. Second Ed.
The New York Botanical Garden. Bronx, NY
Peterson, L. A. 1977. A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants: Eastern and central North America.
Houghton Mifflin Company. New York, NY
Swink, F. and G. Wilhelm. 1994. Plants of the Chicago Region.
Indiana Academy of Science. The Morton Arboretum. Lisle, Illinois.
|
Michael Hough © 2009 |