Brodiaea jolonensis
A bulbous geophyte in the Asparagaceae native to the southern California coast and northern Baja California, it bears a 15 cm tall inflorescence of blue-purple flowers with six curving tepals and a center of three fertile stamens ringed by three sterile staminodes.
Common Names
Chaparral Brodiaea, Jolon Brodiaea
Summary
Chaparral Brodiaea is a bulb-forming perennial herb native to the coast and coastal mountain ranges of southern California and northern Baja California, with a bulbous growth habit and an open inflorescence bearing blue-violet blossoms; distinctive features include a purple ovary in fresh material, hooded staminodes, short filaments, and very long scapes commonly 20 cm or more, up to about 29 cm, with flowers arranged on six curved tepals and a center of three fertile stamens surrounded by three sterile staminodes.
Habitat includes chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and grassland, and the plant is suitable for landscape use in native California plantings; best grown in clay, sand, or sandy loam soils, and it is good in containers and can serve as a lawn substitute in appropriate settings.
Lifecycle
Perennial
Height
0-12 inches
Spread
0-1 feet
Soil Type
Loam and sandy loam soils
Bloom Color
Blue-purple to violet
Bloom Time
Spring (April–June)
Seasons of Interest
Spring and Summer
Propagation Methods
Cormlets via subterranean corms (asexual vegetative propagation)
Attracts Wildlife
Attracts beetles
Taxonomy
- Taxonomic Rank
- Species
- Author
- Eastw.
- Publication
- Leafl. W. Bot. 2: 111 (1938)
Superior Taxa
- Kingdom
- Plantae
- Subkingdom
- Pteridobiotina
- Phylum
- Angiosperms
- Order
- Asparagales
- Family
- Asparagaceae
- Genus
- Brodiaea