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meadow death camas, poison camas

lily family

Habit Plants 20–70 cm tall. Herbs perennial; from bulbs or rhizomes.
Bulbs

not clumped, tunicate, widely ovate, 10–30 × 8–20 mm; outer layer brown.

Stems

glabrous.

underground or erect, scapose or leafy.

Leaves

12–50 cm × 2–10 mm.

1–many;

basal; cauline, or both, alternate, subopposite, or whorled, linear to ovate or square-shaped;

petioles short or absent.

Inflorescences

generally racemes, occasionally panicles, 10–50-flowered, 2–20 × 2–5 cm;

branches less than 33% length of entire inflorescence; at 10–60° from main axis when fruiting;

bracts 5–25 mm long, white to green;

pedicels 3–25 mm.

solitary; panicles; racemes, or umbels.

Flowers

bisexual, campanulate 5–10 mm in diameter;

tepals ovate to obtuse, 2–6 × 1–3 mm; outer and inner tepals clawed, persistent in fruit;

gland greenish yellow.

radially symmetrical; erect or pendent;

perianth segments 6; distinct; in 2 petal-like whorls;

stamens 3 or 6;

ovary superior;

style 1;

stigmas entire or 3-lobed.

Fruits

cylindrical 8–14 × 4–5 mm.

capsules or berries.

Seeds

flat or angled.

2n

=22.

Toxicoscordion venenosum

Liliaceae

Distribution
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Moist meadows to dry rocky hillsides. Flowering Apr–Jul. 0–2600m. All ecoregions except Est. CA, ID, NV, WA; north to British Columbia, east to UT. Native.

Cosmopolitan. 15 genera; 9 genera treated in Flora.

Due to taxonomic changes proposed by Stevens (2001), most genera formerly contained within Liliaceae have been placed in other families, most notably Amaryllidaceae and Asparagaceae.

Source Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 314
Tamra Prior
Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 290
Sibling taxa
T. exaltatum, T. fremontii, T. micranthum, T. paniculatum, T. venenosum
Synonyms Toxicoscordion venenosum var. gramineum, Zigadenus venenosus, Toxicoscordion venenosum var. venenosum, Zigadenus venenosus var. gramineus, Zigadenus venenosus var. venenosus, Zygadenus venenosus, Zygadenus venenosus var. venenosus
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