Asparagaceae / Camassia spp. / Blue Camas

If there is one thing that our spring wildflowers here in the Sierra Nevada have in common, it’s their unbelievable aesthetics. Sometimes I feel like we are picking a new favorite flower weekly!

A common inhabitant of our spring meadows, Camassia are beautiful in photos and absolutely stunning in person. Someone really knew what they were doing when they developed this color scheme!

Inflorescence (flower clusters) are a long raceme of a dozen or more flowers which range up to about an inch across. These range from blue/purple to nearly white and have 6 elliptic tepals. Fruit is a triangular, 3-part capsule containing many seeds.

Shoots are smooth and glaucous (powdery); unbranched and without any leaves. Leaves are all basal (at the bottom) and in the form of long, linear tough, slightly fleshy blades. Like the stems, these are glaucous.

These all arise from a spherical to 0.5-1.5” teardrop-shaped bulb with layered, white flesh and covered by a darkened skin (similar to an onion).  

Like many of our bulb-bearing wildflowers, these are and have been tended and cultivated by indigenous groups within their range. The bulbs are an excellent source of carbohydrates but need a prolonged bake or steam to break their undigestible inulin into fructose. After this extensive processing, they become sweet and delicious. Shoots and greens are eaten raw or cooked in the spring.  

Due to habitat destruction and human encroachment, these plants are becoming more and more impacted. Whether or not you choose to harvest these (in most cases we do not recommend), please consider tending to these important plants. If gone to seed, you can collect from the center of the stand and relocate to the edges. You can also take time to weed invasive plants from their areas.