Calochortus Species, Long Haired Star Tulip, Longbeard Mariposa Lily

Calochortus longebarbatus var. longebarbatus is a bulb of alpine meadows and cold dry steppes. There are three populations,...Read More all threatened by grazing and erosion: in eastern and south-central Washington south to the Hood River Valley in Oregon; in Klamath and Jackson Counties in southern Oregon; and in Shasta County, California. According to Callahan, the plants require a clay soil with a bit of moisture year-round.

There is one good variety, the sterile triploid known as var. peckii, endemic to the coldest part of Oregon: Big Summit Prairie in the Ochoco Mts.

C. longebarbatus belongs to Section I, Calochortus, Subsection 4. Nitidi (Flowers campanulate, suberect to erect; petals obovate, cuneate [triangular-lanceolate and clawed in C. lyallii]; bulbs with membranous tunics.) (Callahan, "The Genus Calochortus" in "Bulbs of North America", Timber Press, 2001)

C. longebarbatus has tulip-shaped flowers from light pink through lavender to a darkish purple like that of some individuals of C. splendens. Pictures I've seen on the web seem to indicate that the reddish blotch above the gland is variable. The type often produces bulblets at the axil of the basal leaf.

Callahan states that this species has a reputation of being hard to grow in most gardens. I will add a rating and more culture info as I kill it.

The Latin "longe-" is pretty easy to figure out, and "barbatus" is an adjective meaning "bearded, provided with tufts of long weak hairs." (Stearn, 3rd ed.) This refers to the rows of dendritic white hairs around the nectary of the flower.