Illustration by Gerald Rapp & Cullen Inc./Laszlo Kubinyi
Camas (Small Camas, Swamp Sego)
Camassia quamash
June 23, 1806, on the Weippe Prairie, Idaho.
Light to deep blue-violet, star-shaped flowers in a raceme; several narrow, grasslike leaves grow mostly near the base. Height: 12-20 in (30-50 cm).
Moist meadows.
Southern British Columbia to northern California; east to northern Utah, Wyoming, and Montana.
This species is sometimes so frequent as to color entire meadows blue-violet. Indians pit-roasted the bland bulbs with other leaves, and also boiled them, which yielded a good syrup.
