Blooms: April-June
Habit: herb
Duration: perennial
Origin: Native
Conservation Status: Abundant; of no concern.

Distribution: Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; British Columbia south to California, east to Montana and Utah.
Habitat: Open, moist areas, often where dry by late spring, at low to mid-elevations in the mountains.

Species Description:

General: Scapose perennial from a deep-seated bulb, the scape 2-7 dm. tall.
Leaves: Leaves several, all basal, 8-20 mm. broad, considerably shorter than the scape.
Flowers: Inflorescence a raceme, many-flowered, 5-30 cm. long; pedicels 10-20 mm. long, spreading, arched or ascending in flower, incurved-erect in fruit; flowers pale to deep blue or violet, somewhat irregular; tepals 6, distinct, 15-35 mm. long and 2-8 mm. broad, narrowed at base, lowest segment curved outward and downward away from the others, all withering separately and exposing the ovary; stamens 6, anthers yellow or blue, style slender, stigmas 3.
Fruit: Capsule ovoid, 3-celled, 1-2.5 cm. long.

Subspecies & Varieties:

Camassia quamash (Pursh) Greene

Treated in Flora of the PNW as:

PNW Herbaria Specimens: View list of Camassia quamash specimens in the Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria database.

WTU Herbarium Specimens: View list of Camassia quamash specimens in the WTU Herbarium database.

Washington Flora Checklist: Camassia quamash treatment.

E-Flora BC: Camassia quamash atlas page.

CalPhotos: Camassia quamash images.

USDA Plants Database: Camassia quamash.