Slatsz' plant photo-biography: Fritillaria pudica, yellow bell, Liliaceae

April Bresgal is responsible for many of these photos
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Fritillaria pudica, yellow bell; Liliaceae, Lilly family, Monocot

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This is an experiment. It’s more a mnemonic for me than communication with you. You should probably skip down to more legible writing.

Looking, one by one, at the characteristics of monocots, the characteristics of the Liliaceae family and the characteristics of the Fritillaria genus that apply to Fritillaria pudica:

Monocots:

Flower parts multiples of 3, usually 3 or 6

Leaf veins parallel

Roots fibrous

No wood or bark

Liliaceae family [From Jepson Herbarium]

Perennial herb from membranous bulb or scaly rhizome.

Flower: 6 tepals, 2 petal-like whorls

Ovary: superior or +/- so

Fruit: capsule or berry

Fritillaria genus [From Jepson Herbarium] [Fritillaria - Latin: dice-box, from fruit shape]

+/- 100 species in northern temperate zone

Burke has 3 Fritillaria species in Washington State, 2 in Spokane County, F. pudica, yellow bell and F. affinis, chocolate lily. They are similar.

From a bulb

Stem: Erect, simple

Leaves: sessile [Leaves have no stems. F. pudica leaves clasp the flower-stalk.]

Inflorescence: raceme with leaf like bracts.

[Raceme? - Sources mention 2 and 3 flowers on a flower-stalk. I see only one. Slichter and the Carr brothers have photos of 2 and 3 flowers on a flower stalk.]

Flower: Nodding, bell or cup shape

Each perianth part with distinct glandular area in lower ½.

[I suppose the ‘glandular area’ is the nectary mentioned elsewhere.]

Anthers attached +/- near middle

Ovary +/- sessile [No stem on ovary? I suppose.]

Style +/- entire or 3 branched.

Fruit: capsule, loculicidal, 6 angled, 3 chambered

Seed: Many, 2 rows per chamber, flat, +/- brown.

Fratillaria pudica species [From Jepson Heabarium]

From bulb

[Montana Plant Life says it’s a bulb-like corm.]

Large bulb scales: 4-5

Small bulb scales: 85-125

Leaves: 2-8, alternate, linear to lanceolate.

[We seem to see both opposite and alternate leaves here. Jepson Herbarium is UC Berkley. They are observing California plants.]

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The Lewis and Clark expedition collected Fritillaria pudica May 8, 1806 along the Clearwater River in Idaho between Canyon Creek and Little Canyon Creek on their walk from The Pacific Ocean to St. Lewis.

The Okanogan-Colville tribe used the appearance of F. pudica flowers as a sign that spring had arrived. The Shuswap tribe used them in bouquets.

The plant is called [ˈsɨkni] in Sahaptin.

The bulbs of the plant were eaten fresh, they were cooked and they were dried for later use. They are best used in the autumn.

The raw bulb tastes like potatoes. When cooked it tastes like rice.

The seedpods can be eaten green or cooked. They are ‘bitter but flavorful’.

Dave’s garden says parts of the plant are dangerous if ingested. They are poisonous. But he doesn’t say what parts are poisonous.

Wikipedia says most fritillaries contain poisonous alkaloids. Some may be deadly in ingested in quantity. F. pudica is edible if prepared carefully.

Late snow doesn’t seem to affect F. pudica

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Fritillaria pudica appears above ground looking like a spike of rolled leaves.

The leaves unroll and a blossom bearing flower-stalk develops later.

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The leaves on a young plant seem to be basal, right at ground level. Leaves on mature plants are cauline [leaves on the stem above the ground] after the flower-stalk lengthens.

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The buds on the early plant are erect.

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The buds lower their heads and open into blossoms.

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The arrangement of three inner tepals and three outer tepals is evident, here.

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Jepson Herbarium says the perianth parts [tepals] of Fritillaria genus have “… a distinct glandular area in lower ½ …”

A different Jepson writer is responsible for Fritillaria pudica. He says “… nectary near perianth part base, elliptic to round, green;”

E-FLORA BC and Flora of North America also refer to a nectary near the base of the tepals.

I don’t have photographs that show the nectaries in good focus but see photos 310, 320 and 340. Maybe 2015 will provide something better.

Various sources mention diversity in F. pudica

Waxy looking tepals

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Dark stem, dark tepal bases

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Some plants in my photos have a pair of leaves, some three leaves and some four leaves. [Jepson says as many as 8.] [Paul Slichter, an Oregonian, says 2 or 3 leaves.]

The leaves look opposite or nearly opposite below and alternate above. I’ve read elsewhere that the length of the internode can relate to the pace of growth. Perhaps what seem to be opposite leaves rise from adjacent and nearly adjacent nodes. Perhaps a period of slow growth causes the apparently opposite lower leaves. Basal rosettes seem to result from adjacent or nearly adjacent nodes.

In most photos, the stem below the leaves is dark. It is green in one photo.

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Fritillaria pudica is not often clustered like other plants with bulbs. It seems somewhat solitary.

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This cluster seems to be an exception. However, the Burke Herbarium photo collection has several photos of clusters. Paul Slichter has one in his collection.

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My photos on-hand do not show the stamen and pistil adequately.

There are 6 stamen. The filament is attached near the middle of the anther.

There is one apparent style with a capitate [head shaped] stigma. The apparent single style is, presumably 3 fused styles as the fruit will have 3 cells.

Paul Slichter sees plants with the style and stigma longer than the stamen. In the following photos one style is longer. In the rest of the photos the stamen are longer.

No indication here that the filament is attached at the midpoint of the anther. One anther seems to be opening, shedding pollen.

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A clear view of what seems to be a capitate stigma surrounded by stamen at various stages of development. Green nectaries at the base of tepals, presumably.

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Both the stigma and the anthers look to be encrusted with pollen. Possible nectaries at base of tepals.

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In other flowers the three way structure would be a branched stigma. But it must be anthers, here. The stigma is a little hard to see. It is almost tucked under the anthers on the left side.

There is, out of focus, at the base of the tepals, a green area that must be the nectary.

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The sepals darken, dry and the stem rises to become erect.

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The capsule dries and splits exposing seeds.

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Northern Rockies Natural History Guide says “The erect stem that supports the fruit is two times or more the height of the plant in flower.” I don’t think that’s true of this plant. It has just straightened its neck.

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