''Brodiaea coronaria'' is the type species of '' Brodiaea'' and also known by the

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...

s harvest brodiaea and crown brodiaea. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to northern California, where it grows in mountains and grasslands.

Description

''Brodiaea coronaria'' is a perennial herb growing from a corm and producing an erect inflorescence with a few basal leaves. The inflorescence is up to about tall and bears lilylike flowers on an array of pedicels. Each flower is a tube several centimeters long opening into a bell-shaped corolla of six bright purple lobes each up to long. In the center are three

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s and whitish sterile stamens known as

staminode In botany, a staminode is an often rudimentary, sterile or abortive stamen, which means that it does not produce pollen.Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; ''A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Derivation and Accent''; Published by Gerald Duckworth & Co. ...

Taxonomy

Nomenclature

The history of the scientific name of this species is somewhat tangled. The plant was first collected by Archibald Menzies during the Vancouver Expedition, and published as ''Hookera coronaria'' by Richard Salisbury in '' Paradisus Londinensis'' early in 1808. However, Salisbury had fallen out with fellow botanist James Edward Smith. Smith first published a moss genus, '' Hookeria'', and then published a description of Salisbury's ''Hookera coronaria'' as ''Brodiaea grandiflora''. If it was Smith's intention to replace Salisbury's name, as has been suggested, it was partly successful, since although Salisbury's ''Hookera coronaria'' has priority over Smith's ''Brodiaea grandiflora'', names as similar as ''Hookera'' and ''Hookeria'' are considered to be confusing and a formal proposal to conserve the names ''Brodiaea'' and ''Hookeria'' over the name ''Hookera'' was accepted. However, Salisbury's epithet ''coronaria'' still stands since Smith's ''Brodiaea grandiflora'' is now considered to have been an illegitimate name when published. In 1917, after the Kew Rule had vanished from botanical nomenclature,

Willis Jepson Willis Linn Jepson (August 19, 1867 – November 7, 1946) was an early California botanist, conservationist, and writer. Career Born at Little Oak Ranch near Vacaville, California, Jepson became interested in botany as a boy and explore ...

formally published the combination ''Brodiaea coronaria'', now accepted as the botanical name for this species.

Synonyms

Synonyms, in full or in part, include: * ''Hookera coronaria'' Salisb. (

basionym In the scientific name of organisms, basionym or basyonym means the original name on which a new name is based; the author citation of the new name should include the authors of the basionym in parentheses. The term "basionym" is used in both botan ...

) * ''Hookera grandiflora'' (Sm.) Kuntze * ''Brodiaea grandiflora'' Sm. * ''Hookera rosea'' Greene * ''Brodiaea rosea'' (Greene) Baker

Subspecies

There are two subspecies of this plant: *''Brodiaea coronaria'' subsp. ''coronaria'' – crown brodiaea *''Brodiaea coronaria'' subsp. ''rosea'' – Indian Valley brodiaea; a rare pink-flowered subspecies endemic to a small region in the Inner North California Coast Ranges (Tehama, Glenn, and Lake Counties) in northwestern California.

Uses

Native Americans and early European settlers of the continent harvested the small bulbs for food. They are edible raw, with a nutty or celery-like taste.

References

External links

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Jepson Manual Treatment — ''Brodiaea coronaria''CalFlora Database: ''Brodiaea coronaria'' (harvest brodiaea, crown brodiaea, early harvest brodiaea)USDA Plants Profile for Brodiaea coronaria (crown brodiaea)''Brodiaea coronaria'' - U.C. Photos gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4972994 coronaria Flora of British Columbia Flora of California Flora of Oregon Flora of Washington (state) Flora of the Cascade Range Flora of the Klamath Mountains Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Plants described in 1808 Flora without expected TNC conservation status