365Caws is now in its 14th year of publication, and was originally intended to end after 365 days. It has sometimes been difficult for me to find new material, particularly during the winter months, but now as I enter my own twilight years, I cannot guarantee that I will be able to provide daily posts. It is my hope that along the way I may have inspired someone to a greater curiosity about the natural world. If so, I can rest, content in the knowledge that my work here has been done.
Sunday, June 11, 2017
Tapertip Onion, Allium Acuminatum
Day 241: Any day I "collect" a new plant is a good day, regardless of whether or not it's particularly rare. Consequently, a trip to the dry side of the state necessitated a minimum of one "botany break" along the way. The stop was occasioned by a yellow composite I had never photographed successfully (my camera really doesn't like yellow), a plant whose common name had been instilled in my mind since childhood as "Wapato," but quite inaccurately so. In fact, it was a Balsamroot, and my photos of it were no improvement on earlier ones, but the site proved fruitful nevertheless when it provided an even more interesting specimen for my catalogue. I recognized it as Hooker's Onion, aka Tapertip Onion (Allium acuminatum) and confirmed the identification when I got home. The flowers often appear in shades of pink, vivid to pale, and are distinguished by their unusual shape. The inner three petals are smaller than the outer ones. By the time the plant blooms, its slender basal leaves will have disappeared, leaving only a slim stalk topped by a terminal umbel.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Ha! I just found a tapertip two days ago. Beautiful blossom. Mine was pink. I was told by a neighbor that she saw the chocolate lily here as well but I don't think so. The guide says it grows only up your way. She also lives in WA so I think she may be confused, or someone planted one here.
ReplyDelete