Dichelostemma pulchellum
| Dichelostemma pulchellum | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 5 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 2' |
| Width: | 0.3' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Dichelostemma pulchellum (common name: wild hyacinth)
Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a free-draining compost in a cold frame[1]. Sow stored seed in spring in a cold frame[2]. Seedlings are prone to damping off and so should be kept well ventilated[2]. Germinates in 1 - 3 months at 15°c[2]. If the seed is sown thinly enough, it can be grown on for its first year without transplanting and then the dormant bulbs can be planted 2/3 to a pot. Otherwise prick out the seedlings when large enough to handle, planting them 2/3 to a pot. Grow on the plants in a greenhouse for at least two years before planting out in late spring after the last expected frosts.
Division in autumn of offsets that have reached flowering size[3]. Dig up the clumps of bulbs and replant the larger ones into their permanent positions. It is best to pot up the smaller ones and grow them on for a year in a cold frame before planting them out.
Cultivation: Easily grown in a well-drained rich sandy loam[3], it likes plenty of moisture whilst in growth followed by a warm dry period in late summer to autumn in order to fully ripen its bulb[1]. Plants are susceptible to rot in wet soils[1].
This species is hardy to between -5 to -10°c, it may require protection in severe winters[4]. This can be done by applying a good organic mulch such as dry bracken in late autumn and removing it in early spring. Alternatively, you can cover the ground with a cloche or other device.
A very ornamental plant, it can flower in 2 years from seed.
Range: South-western N. America - California.
Habitat: Plains and hillsides[5] on dry open ridges and grassy meadows to 1800 metres[6].
Edibility: Corm - raw or cooked[7][8][9][10]. A sweet flavour[11], it may seem rather flat at first, but the taste quickly grows on one[12]. A slow baking develops the sweetness of the corm[12]. The corm can be dried and ground into a powder then used as a thickener in soups or mixed with cereal flours to make bread etc[13]. The corm is usually harvested in the spring[13].
Flowers - raw[13]. A nice decoration in the salad bowl[10].
Usage: The corms have been rubbed on metate into an adhesive and then spread on baskets to close the interstices and prevent small seeds falling through the gaps[13].
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Late Summer
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: D. capitatum. Brodiaea capitata. B. pulchella.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Bird, Alfred. Focus on Plants Volume 5. Thompson and Morgan, 1991.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Bulbs. Pan Books, 1989.
- ↑ Munz, David. A California Flora. University of California Press, 1959.
- ↑ Grey, Charles. Hardy Bulbs. Williams & Norgate, 1938.
- ↑ Douglas, James. Alternative Foods.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Yanovsky, Elias. Food Plants of the North American Indians Publication 237. US Department of Agriculture.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Saunders, Charles. Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover Publications, 1976.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.