Flora of Oregon

Herbs perennial; from corms.

Leaves 1–6, basal, linear, glabrous, C-shaped in cross section, entire.

Inflorescences umbellate; scapes solitary, slender, straight; bracts present.

Flowers perianth with 6 tepals, perianth tubes cylinder-, bell- or funnel-shaped, 3 outer tepals narrower than 3 inner tepals; stamens 3, opposite and attached to the 3 inner tepals; staminodia (sterile stamens) 3, opposite outer tepals; ovary superior; style 1, stigma lobes 3, distinct, reflexed.

Fruits capsules, ovoid.

Seeds round to oblong, black.

Western North America. 14–17 species; 4 species treated in Flora.

In the past, Brodiaea, Dichelostemma, and Triteleia have been treated as a single genus. Although the morphological and molecular evidence to split the larger, encompassing genus into three smaller units is only weakly compelling, we do so here for the sake of uniformity with other recent floristic works. Species and subspecific delimitation within Brodiaea is often based on slight differences in staminode morphology. More basic study is needed to determine if many of the described taxa merit scientific recognition. Brodiaea minor and B. nana have each been collected once in Oregon (2007 and 2001 respectively). Whether these small populations remain is unknown.

Flora of North America

as described under Brodiaea

Two schools of thought have existed regarding generic limits within the complex of species recognized under Brodiaea, Triteleia, and Dichelostemma: a single large genus (Brodiaea s.l.) with three subgenera (S. Watson 1879; W. L. Jepson 1923-1925; P. A. Munz 1959), or three separate genera (E. L. Greene 1886; R. F. Hoover 1939; G. Keator 1967, 1989, 1993; T. F. Niehaus 1971, 1980). Recent molecular, anatomical, and developmental evidence supports neither of these views. Bloomeria is related to Triteleia, and Brodiaea is closely related to Dichelostemma, with the only hexandrous species, D. capitatum, being sister to the rest of the three-staminate Brodiaea/Dichelostemma clade (R. Y. Berg 1978, 1996; J. C. Pires 2000). This recent evidence also suggests that the sections presently established within Brodiaea are in need of revision; thus a sectional classification is not utilized in this treatment (R. F. Hoover 1939b; T. F. Niehaus 1971; J. C. Pires 2000).Polyploidy and ecological specialization to serpentine and other unique substrates is common in Brodiaea, resulting in several rare and endangered species. Eleven of the fourteen species are restricted to California, where the flowering date is highly dependent on the amount of moisture in the early spring. Several species are exceedingly variable. Corms of some species were eaten by native Americans.Among the most important diagnostic characters within Brodiaea are features of the androecium, particularly the size and shape of the staminodia and apical filament appendages. These characters are easily seen with a hand lens in the field. When collecting flowering specimens, one should make a point of mounting a few dissected flowers in a manner that displays these critical characters.