Prosartes is a genus of North American plants that has been considered a section of the Asian genus Disporum. It is now considered by the Flora of North America and the new Flora of China to justify generic status based on cellular, chemical and morphological differences that are not readily visible to the naked eye. Once considered to be in the Liliaceae family, it was moved to Uvulariaceae by Dahlgren but is now considered by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group II to be in an expanded Colchicaceae family. You also see it sometimes included in the Convallariaceae family. Plants grow from rhizomes with fibrous roots and flowers are in a cluster and nodding, known by the common name of Fairybell. The fruits are a berry, either yellow or red.
Prosartes hookeri, syn. Disporum hookeri, has creamy white bell shaped flowers and is found in shady woods away from the coast in western North America.
Prosartes lanuginosa has greenish yellow flowers and is from eastern North America.
Prosartes maculata is from eastern North America and has pale straw colored berries.
Prosartes trachycarpa has reddish orange to bright red berries.
Prosartes smithii, syn. Disporum smithii, syn. Prosartes menziesii, syn Uvularia smithii is found in moist shady forests near the coast from central California north to British Columbia. It has creamy white bells that hang under the leaves and therefore are not easy to see followed by the berries that eventually turns from green to large orange red. Photos by Bob Rutemoeller including the underside showing the early stages of the berries. I planned to photograph the ripe berries on my plants and should have done it when I noticed them as they are now gone, no doubt eaten by wildlife of some sort.
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