Zigadenus fremontii

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Common Star Lily
Star Lily (Zigadenus)
Star Lily (Zigadenus)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Liliales
Family: Melanthiaceae
Genus: Zigadenus
Species: Z. fremontii
Binomial name
Zigadenus fremontii
(Torrey) S. Watson

Zigadenus fremontii, known as the common star lily, Fremont's deathcamas or star zigadene, is an attractive wildflower found on grassy or woody slopes, or rocky outcrops, in many lower-lying regions of California, southern Oregon, and northern Baja California. Like other deathcamases, Z. fremontii grows from a more or less spherical bulb, which in this species has a diameter of 20–35 mm. Its leaves can reach up to half a metre in length, but are normally more like half that. They grow from the base of the plant. Flowers, which can be seen from March to June, grow in clusters. They have six petals (strictly, three petals and three very similar sepals), arranged symmetrically, giving rise to the name star-lily. Each flower is 1–4 cm across.

It has been proposed to move this and a number of other deathcamases to genus Toxicoscordion, but there is not yet a consensus among taxonomists that this should be done.

[edit] Gallery

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Languages