''Erythronium californicum'', the California fawn lily, is a species of flowering plant in the family Liliaceae, endemic to moist woodland habitats in the mountains of

Northern California Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...

Description

It is an

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 ...

hardy Hardy may refer to: People * Hardy (surname) * Hardy (given name) * Hardy (singer), American singer-songwriter Places Antarctica * Mount Hardy, Enderby Land * Hardy Cove, Greenwich Island * Hardy Rocks, Biscoe Islands Australia * Hardy, Sout ...

perennial growing from a pointed

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 ...

3 to 6 cm wide and producing two basal leaves which are sometimes spotted with brown. The reddish-green stalks grow up to tall and each bears one to three nodding, slightly scented flowers in spring. The flower has yellowish-white tepals 2 to 4 cm long, sometimes with red or brown banding or striping toward the bases. The

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, anthers, and stigma are whitish in color. The cultivars 'Brocklamont Inheritance' and 'White Beauty' have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

References

External links

Jepson Manual Treatment — ''Erythronium californicum''''Erythronium californicum'' — Photo gallery
californicum Endemic flora of California Flora of the Klamath Mountains Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Plants described in 1904 {{Liliales-stub