''Calochortus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the lily family. The group includes

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

, perennial and

bulb In botany, a bulb is structurally a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs duri ...

ous species, all native to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

(primarily the Western United States).Flora of North America, Vol. 26 Page 119 ''Calochortus'' Pursh, Fl. Amer. Sept. 1: 240. 1814.
/ref> The genus ''Calochortus'' includes mariposas (or mariposa lilies) with open wedge-shaped petals, globe lilies and fairy lanterns with globe-shaped flowers, and cat's ears and star tulips with erect pointed petals. The word ''Calochortus'' is derived from Greek and means "beautiful grass".

Description

''Calochortus'' flowers have six tepals. Unlike most other Liliaceae, ''Calochortus'' tepals are in two series that differ in size and color. The outer three are generally narrower and more sepal-like, while the inner three are larger, usually with bright marks at the base. They may be described as

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s. The flowers are borne on a stem that arises from a bulb, generally in the spring or early summer. Flowers can be white, yellow, pink, purple, bluish, or streaked. The insides of the petals are often very 'hairy'. These hairs, along with the nectaries, are often used in distinguishing species from each other. ;Species Calochortus gunnisonii gunnisonii crop

Calochortus gunnisonii, Teller County, CO

*''

Calochortus albus ''Calochortus albus''Baldwin, B. G., D. H. Goldman, D. J. Keil, R. Patterson, T. J. Rosatti, and D. H. Wilken, editors. 2012. "The Jepson Manual: vascular plants of California", second edition. University of California press, Berkeley. . pp 1380 ...

'' white globelily - CA, Baja California *''

Calochortus amabilis ''Calochortus amabilis''Baldwin, B. G., D. H. Goldman, D. J. Keil, R. Patterson, T. J. Rosatti, and D. H. Wilken, editors. 2012. "The Jepson Manual: vascular plants of California", second edition. University of California press, Berkeley. pp 138 ...

'' short lily - CA *''

Calochortus ambiguus ''Calochortus ambiguus'', the Arizona mariposa lily or doubting mariposa lily, is a perennial plant in the lily family (liliaceae) that grows at higher elevations of the Sonoran Desert regions of Arizona, western New Mexico, southern Utah, and So ...

'' doubting mariposa lily - UT AZ NM

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...

*'' Calochortus amoenus'' purple globelily - CA *''

Calochortus apiculatus ''Calochortus apiculatus'' is a North American species of flowering plants in the lily family. Distribution ''Calochortus apiculatus'' is native to western Canada ( Alberta and British Columbia) and the northwestern United States. Most of the ...

'' pointedtip mariposa lily - British Columbia, Alberta, WA OR ID MT WY *'' Calochortus argillosus'' - CA *''

Calochortus aureus ''Calochortus aureus'' is a North American species of flowering plants in the lily family. It is native to the southwestern United States (Arizona, southern Utah, northwestern New Mexico and southwestern Colorado). n ''Calochortus aureus'' is a ...

'' golden mariposa lily - UT CO AZ NM *''

Calochortus balsensis ''Calochortus balsensis'' is a Mexican species of flowering plants in the lily family. It is native to the States of Guerrero and Oaxaca in the southwestern part of the country.Oaxaca, Guerrero *''

Calochortus barbatus ''Calochortus barbatus'' is a species of mariposa lilies in the lily family. It is endemic to Mexico. Distribution The bulb is widespread across much of montane Mexico, from Chihuahua in the northeast to Oaxaca in the southeast. It is found ...

'' yellow globe lily - from

Chihuahua Chihuahua may refer to: Places *Chihuahua (state), a Mexican state **Chihuahua (dog), a breed of dog named after the state **Chihuahua cheese, a type of cheese originating in the state **Chihuahua City, the capital city of the state **Chihuahua Mun ...

to Oaxaca *''

Calochortus bruneaunis ''Calochortus bruneaunis'' is a species of flowering plant in the lily family, and is known by the common name Bruneau mariposa lily. Distribution The plant is native to the Great Basin and adjacent regions in the Western United States, from ea ...

'' Bruneau mariposa lily - CA OR NV UT ID MT *''

Calochortus catalinae ''Calochortus catalinae'' is a species of Calochortus, mariposa lily known by the common name Santa Catalina mariposa lily.

'' Santa Catalina mariposa lily — (''threatened by development'') CA * ''

Calochortus cernuus ''Calochortus cernuus'' is a rare Mexican species of plants in the lily family. It is found only in the hills surrounding the community of Tepoztlán in the State of Morelos south of Mexico City, northeast of Cuernavaca. Description ''Calocho ...

'' -

Morelos Morelos (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Morelos ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Morelos), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 36 municipalities and its capital city is Cuer ...

* ''Calochortus ciscoensis'' - UT *''Calochortus clavatus'' clubhair mariposa lily - CA **''Calochortus clavatus var. avius'' -rare, **''Calochortus clavatus var. gracilis'' **''Calochortus clavatus ssp. clavatus'' **''Calochortus clavatus ssp. pallidus'' **''Calochortus clavatus ssp. recurvifolius'' — rare *''Calochortus coeruleus'' beavertail grass - CA *''Calochortus concolor'' goldenbowl mariposa lily - CA, Baja California *''Calochortus coxii'' Cox's mariposa lily - OR *''Calochortus dunnii'' Dunn's mariposa lily — rare - CA, Baja California *''Calochortus elegans'' northwestern mariposa lily; star tulip - CA OR WA ID MT **''Calochortus elegans var. elegans'' elegant mariposa lily **''Calochortus elegans ''var.'' nanus'' **''Calochortus elegans ''var.'' oreophilus'' elegant mariposa lily **''Calochortus elegans ''var.'' selwayensis'' Selway mariposa lily *''Calochortus eurycarpus'' white mariposa lily - OR WA NV ID MT WY *''Calochortus excavatus'' Inyo mariposa lily — (''threatened by groundwater development'') - CA *''Calochortus exilis'' - Hidalgo (state), Hidalgo *''Calochortus fimbriatus'' late-blooming mariposa lily — rare - CA *''Calochortus flexuosus'' winding mariposa lily - CA NV UT CO AZ NM Baja California,

* ''Calochortus foliosus'' - Michoacán * Calochortus fuscus - Mexico *''Calochortus greenei'' Green's mariposa lily — rare - CA OR *''Calochortus ghiesbreghtii'' - Mexico, Guatemala *''Calochortus gunnisonii'' Gunnison's mariposa lily - ID MT WY South Dakota, SD Nebraska, NE CO UT AZ NM **''Calochortus gunnisonii'' var. ''gunnisonii'' **''Calochortus gunnisonii'' var. ''perpulcher'' *''Calochortus hartwegii'' - Aguascalientes, Nayarit, Jalisco *''Calochortus howellii'' Howell's mariposa lily - OR *†''Calochortus indecorus'' Sexton Mountain mariposa lily - OR - extinct *''Calochortus invenustus'' plain mariposa lily - CA NV *''Calochortus kennedyi'' desert mariposa lily - CA NV AZ

**''Calochortus kennedyi'' var.'' kennedyi'' **''Calochortus kennedyi'' var.'' munzii'' *''Calochortus leichtlinii'' smokey mariposa - CA NV OR *''Calochortus longibarbatus'' longbeard mariposa lily - CA OR WA **''Calochortus longibarbatus'' var.'' longibarbatus'' — (''threatened by grazing'') **''Calochortus longibarbatus'' var.'' peckii'' *''Calochortus luteus'' yellow mariposa lily - CA *''Calochortus lyallii'' Lyall's mariposa lily - WA, British Columbia *''Calochortus macrocarpus'' sagebrush mariposa lily - CA NV OR WA ID MT, British Columbia **''Calochortus macrocarpus'' var.'' macrocarpus'' **''Calochortus macrocarpus'' var.'' maculosus'' Nez Perce mariposa lily *''Calochortus marcellae'' - Nuevo León, Coahuila, Tamaulipas *''Calochortus mendozae'' - Querétaro, San Luis Potosí *''Calochortus minimus'' Sierran mariposa lily - CA *†''Calochortus monanthus'' Shasta River mariposa lily — CA (''presumed extinct'') *''Calochortus monophyllus'' yellow startulip - CA OR *''Calochortus nigrescens'' - Oaxaca *''Calochortus nitidus'' broadfruit mariposa lily - WA OR ID *''Calochortus nudus'' naked mariposa lily - CA OR *''Calochortus nuttallii'' sego lily, (''state flower of Utah'') - North Dakota, ND South Dakota, SD Nebraska, NE MT ID CO UT NV AZ NM *''Calochortus obispoensis'' San Luis mariposa lily - CA *''Calochortus palmeri'' Palmer's mariposa lily - CA **Calochortus palmeri var. munzii Munz's mariposa lily **Calochortus palmeri var. palmeri — rare *''Calochortus panamintensis'' Panamint Mountain mariposa lily — rare ca NV *''Calochortus persistens'' Siskiyou mariposa lily — rare - CA OR *''Calochortus plummerae'' Plummer's mariposa lily — rare - CA *''Calochortus pringlei'' -

, Puebla, Jalisco, Oaxaca *''Calochortus pulchellus'' Mount Diablo globelily - CA *''Calochortus raichei'' Cedars mariposa lily - CA *''Calochortus simulans'' San Luis Obispo mariposa lily - CA *''Calochortus spatulatus'' - Mexico *''Calochortus splendens'' splendid mariposa lily - CA, Baja California *''Calochortus striatus'' alkali mariposa lily - CA NV *''Calochortus subalpinus'' subalpine mariposa lily, Cascade mariposa lily, cat's ear lily - WA OR *''Calochortus superbus'' superb mariposa - CA *''Calochortus syntrophus'' Callahan's mariposa lily - CA *''Calochortus tiburonensis'' Tiburon mariposa - CA *''Calochortus tolmiei'' Tolmie's star-tulip, hairy pussy ears - CA OR WA *''Calochortus umbellatus'' Oakland mariposa lily - CA *''Calochortus umpquaensis'' Umpqua mariposa lily - OR *''Calochortus uniflorus'' mariposa 'Cupido' - CA OR * ''Calochortus venustulus'' - Mexico *''Calochortus venustus'' butterfly mariposa, white mariposa - CA *''Calochortus vestae'' Vesta's mariposa, Coast Range mariposa - CA *''Calochortus weedii'' Weed's mariposa - CA, Baja Calilfornia *''Calochortus westonii'' Shirley Meadow star-tulip, Weston's mariposa - CA

Distribution and habitat

The genus ''Calochortus'' includes approximately 70 species distributed from southwestern British Columbia, through California and Mexico, to northern Guatemala and eastwards to New Mexico, Nebraska and the Dakotas. ''Calochortus'' is the most widely dispersed genus of Liliaceae on the North American Pacific Coast.Dale, Nancy; ''Flowering Plants of the Santa Monica Mountains'', Capra Press, 1986; pg. 28 Of these, 28 species are endemic (ecology), endemic to California. In 1998, T.B. Patterson conducted a phylogenetic analysis of the genus, dividing it into seven main clades. The study indicated highly localized speciation, so that different clades were strongly linked to specific habitats, as follows: *Mariposas: dry grasslands, open chaparral, semideserts *Star-tulips: wet meadows *Cat's ears: montane woodlands *Fairy lanterns: oak woodlands, closed forests.

Uses

;Culinary The bulbs of many species were eaten by Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Native Americans. These bulbs were eaten raw or gathered in the fall and boiled, and the flower buds when young and fresh. They were eaten by the Mormon settlers between 1853 and 1858 when famine threatened new immigrants in the Great Salt Lake Valley, due to crop failures. Native Americans called ''Calochortus'' "sego". They used it as food, in ceremonies and as a traditional medicinal plant. ;Cultivation Some ''Calochortus'' species are cultivated as ornamental plants by specialty nurseries and botanic gardens to sell.Telos Rare Bulbs Nursery database: ''Calochortus''
/ref> The bulbs are planted for their flowers, in traditional, native plant, and wildlife gardens; in rock gardens; and in potted container gardens for those needing unwatered Summer dormancy.

Notes

References

*
Treatment from the Jepson Manual (TJM93)
* Gerritsen, Mary E and Parsons, R. ''Calochortus. Mariposa Lilies and Their Relatives''. Timber Press, 2007.
Pacific Bulb Society

External links

* *
Calflora Database: ''Calochortus''
— ''all species native to California''.
photos by Mark Egger, Flickriver search for ''Calochortus''
many photos of many species
Jepson Manual (TJM93): Key to California ''Calochortus'' speciesGenus overview, Key to North American species

Gallery of Photos. US and Mexican Calochortus Species and Natural Hybrids
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1288804 Calochortus, Liliaceae genera Flora of the Western United States Flora of Mexico Flora of Western Canada Flora of California Taxa named by Frederick Traugott Pursh Garden plants of North America

Description

Distribution and habitat

Uses

See also

Notes

References

External links