Camassia are bulbs that grow in moist open habitats. Most of the species are native to Northern America and four of them the Northwest. What family they belong in has been subject to revision. They have been considered in the Liliaceae family, the Scilloideae family, the Hyacinthaceae family and lately with DNA studies have been assigned to Agavaceae.
Camassia leichtlinii has two subspecies, the pale creamy-yellow type ssp leichtlinii and the dark violet-blue ssp suksdorfii. The type form (in the botanical sense) is in fact atypical in the everyday sense, having a narrow distribution around Roseburg, Oregon, while ssp suksdorfii is widespread in coastal areas around the Puget Sound and Strait of Georgia.
White (and pale blue) individuals of Camassia leichtlinii ssp suksdorfii are not uncommon; they are clearly and easily distinguishable from the creamy-yellow ssp._leichtlinii_, which is often erroneously described as white.
The photo shown is a seed-grown garden plant of ssp leichtlinii. Enthusiasts are warned that this form, like all other Camassias I have dealt with, is a pest in a favorable climate, almost as bad as bluebells (Endymion non-scriptus or whatever it's called these days). Every seed germinates and the bulbs bury themselves so deeply as to be very difficult to dig up. Fortunately, they do not form offsets, unlike the pestiferous bluebells. Photo by Rodger Whitlock. An additional photo, a close-up of the first opening flower was taken by Mary Sue Ittner
Camassia leichtlinii 'Semiplena' - sometimes seen under different variant names, the semi-double form Camassia leichlinii is interesting for its tall spires of cream-colored flowers, nearly a pale yellow color. (This form is clearly ssp suksdorfii.) The flowers are on talls wands up to 4' (120 cm) and are rather fleeting, lasting only a day or two, then moving on up the stem. At it peak, at early anthesis, it's fairly attractive, overall I think it's too tall, somewhat dull and inferior to the single flowered types, and no match for those with blue flowers. The plants go dry during anthesis, so need an underplanting of leafy perennials to conceal the drying growth. Photos by Mark McDonough.
Camassia quamash grows from British Columbia to northern California and inland to Montana, Wyoming, and Utah. This one was growing in a wet spot close to the ocean in Northern California. In the large patch all but one of the flowers were purple. In the midst was one white one. Photos by Bob Rutemoeller.
This photo shows a strain of C. quamash var. maxima, native to western Washington and Oregon; this very robust plant is grown by area gardeners under the name "Puget Blue," which is an informal designation, not a cultivar name. The flowers are about 1 inch (2.5 cm) across, and the stems as much as 30 inches (75 cm) tall. Photo by Jane McGary
Camassia scilloides grows in low meadows, prairies, seeps, and wet woods in the eastern United States. Common name: Wild hyacinth. Photo by Giorgio Pozzi May 2008
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