Tag Archives: nature hikes

Chocolate Lily

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Chocolate lily (Fritillaria affinis sp.) is a perennial lily which grows from a bulb in spring.   Many people call it checker lily.    Each year the plant produces bulblets which help with propagating the species.   An unbranched stem usually has a few whorled leaves which are linear to lanceolate-shaped.   Two to five bell-shaped flowers appear in spring.   The flower has a mottled look, with browns or purples flecked with yellows and greens.   Prominent yellowish stamens and a pistil extend from the nodding inflorescence.   The flowers have a bit of a rotten smell.

After flowering winged capsules form, and many seeds are dispersed in the summer.   We spot chocolate lilies in middle elevation meadows, glades, and open slopes in April and May in our area and into June in subalpine areas.

We have spotted yellowish varieties of chocolate lilies, still mottled in meadows close to the usual purplish-brown flowers.

All photos taken by the author while out hiking, embedded here in a Google Photos album (link).

 

 

Endemic Orchids of Kauai

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There are three native orchids on the Hawaiian islands, mostly found in higher areas in rain forests, and often in the trees.    They are rare and not easy to find.   There are many orchids featured in botanical gardens and show gardens from all over the world.    There are two orchids, though, that have become endemic/naturalized to the islands … Continue reading →

Blue-Eyed Grass

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Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium sp.) is a short, stiff perennial in the iris family.   Most of the ones spotted in our area are Idaho blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchrum idahoense sp.), but Mountain blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium montanum) is quite similar and may also be found in pockets in the Interior area.   They grow from fibrous roots to as much as 30 cm.    … Continue reading →