Difference between revisions of "Toxicoscordion venenosum"

From Puget Prairie Plants
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===Description===
 
===Description===
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General: Glabrous perennial herb from an onion-like bulb, the simple stem 2-5 dm. tall.
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Native, perennial herb growing from a layered bulb with a raceme of white and cream flowers, 20 to 50 cm tall.<ref>Bowcutt, F., &
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Leaves: Leaves mostly basal, linear, keeled, 1-3 dm. long and 3-6 mm. broad; cauline leaves strongly reduced upward.
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Hamman, S. (2016). ''Vascular Plants of the South Sound Prairies''. Olympia:
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Flowers: Inflorescence a raceme (but sometimes the raceme branched at the base) up to 1.5 dm. long, the flowers all perfect; perianth white to cream-colored, bell-shaped; tepals 6, slightly unequal, the outer 4.5-5 mm. long, short-clawed, the inner about 0.5 mm. longer with a narrower, slightly longer claw; the gland at the base of each tepal yellowish-green, broader than long; stamens 6, about equal to the tepals; styles 3, distinct, 2-3 mm. long.
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The Evergreen State College Press. p. 120.</ref> Stems simple,<ref name=":1">WTU Herbarium, Burke Museum,
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Fruit: Capsule 8-15 mm. long.<ref name=":1">WTU Herbarium, Burke Museum,
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& University of Washington. Retrieved from <nowiki>https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Toxicoscordion%20venenosum%20var.%20venenosum</nowiki></ref> glabrous.<ref>Jepson Herbarium Online Flora. Retrieved from https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=108033</ref> Leaves basally concentrated, linear, keeled, to 30 cm long; reduced cauline leaves above.<ref name=":1" /> Flowers perfect, perianth subrotate, tepals 6, often short-clawed; stamens 6, longer or equal to the tepals; pistil with 3 styles, ovary superior, 3-locular,<ref name=":0" /> becoming a capsule, 8-15 mm long.<ref name=":1" />
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& University of Washington. Retrieved from <nowiki>https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Toxicoscordion%20venenosum%20var.%20venenosum</nowiki></ref>
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===Bloom Period===
 
===Bloom Period===
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illustrated manual''. Seattle: University of Washington Press''</ref>
 
illustrated manual''. Seattle: University of Washington Press''</ref>
 
===Habitat===
 
===Habitat===
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Coastal bluffs and prairies, grassy hillsides, and moister areas of shrub-steppe and open pine woodlands<ref name=":0" />
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Coastal bluffs and prairies, grassy hillsides, and moist areas of shrub-steppe and open pine woodlands<ref name=":0" />
 
===Uses ===
 
===Uses ===
  

Latest revision as of 13:45, 30 June 2021

  • Scientific Name: Toxicoscordion venenosum var. venenosum
  • Family: Melanthiaceae
  • Common Names: death camas, meadow death camas, common death camas, deadly zigadenus.
  • Synonyms and Misapplications: Zigadenus venenosus
  • Codon: TOXVEN
Toxicoscordion venenosum. Photo Ben Legler 2004, also featured on Main Page

Taxonomy

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Subkingdom: Viridiplantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Spermatophytina
Class: Liliopsida
Subclass: Lilidae
Order: Liales
Family: Melanthiaceae
Genus: Toxicoscordion Rydb.
Species: Toxicoscordion venenosum (S. Watson) Rydb.
Synonyms
  • Zigadenus venenosus

[1]

Description

Native, perennial herb growing from a layered bulb with a raceme of white and cream flowers, 20 to 50 cm tall.[2] Stems simple,[3] glabrous.[4] Leaves basally concentrated, linear, keeled, to 30 cm long; reduced cauline leaves above.[3] Flowers perfect, perianth subrotate, tepals 6, often short-clawed; stamens 6, longer or equal to the tepals; pistil with 3 styles, ovary superior, 3-locular,[5] becoming a capsule, 8-15 mm long.[3]

Bloom Period

April-July[3]

Distribution

British Columbia to Baja California, east to the Dakotas; var. venenosum more common west of the Cascades in Washington, var. graminaeum common in Eastern WA.[5]

Habitat

Coastal bluffs and prairies, grassy hillsides, and moist areas of shrub-steppe and open pine woodlands[5]

Uses

Medicinal Uses

Traditionally used as a violent emetic, sometimes mixed with blue flag; poultice of mashed roots applied to rheumatism, boils, bruises, sprains, sore legs, burns, swellings, rattlesnake bites, and broken bones to speed healing; mashed roots sometimes used as an arrow poison.[6]

Photo Gallery

  • In fruit. Photo Ben Legler

  • Photo Ben Legler

  • Seedling, courtesy of CNLM

References

  1. ↑ Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved from https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=522732#null
  2. ↑ Bowcutt, F., & Hamman, S. (2016). Vascular Plants of the South Sound Prairies. Olympia: The Evergreen State College Press. p. 120.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 WTU Herbarium, Burke Museum, & University of Washington. Retrieved from https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Toxicoscordion%20venenosum%20var.%20venenosum
  4. ↑ Jepson Herbarium Online Flora. Retrieved from https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=108033
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Hitchcock, C. L., Cronquist, A., Giblin, D., & Legler, B. et al. (2018). Flora of the Pacific Northwest: an illustrated manual. Seattle: University of Washington Press
  6. ↑ Native American Ethnobotany Database. Retrieved from http://naeb.brit.org/
Retrieved from "http://wikis.evergreen.edu/pugetprairieplants/index.php?title=Toxicoscordion_venenosum&oldid=5222"

The Evergreen State College