Triteleia hyacintha
| Triteleia hyacintha | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 4 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 2' |
| Width: | 0.3' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Late Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Triteleia hyacintha (common name: hyacinth brodiaea)
Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Alternatively, the seed can be sown in spring in a cold frame. Germination usually takes place within 1 - 3 months at 15°c. Sow the seed thinly so that there is no need to prick them out and grow the seedlings on in the pot for their first year. Give an occasional liquid feed to ensure that they do not become mineral deficient. Seedlings are prone to damping off so be careful not to overwater them and keep them well ventilated. When they become dormant, pot up the small bulbs placing about 3 in each pot. Grow them on in the greenhouse for another year or two until the bulbs are about 20mm in diameter and then plant them out into their permanent positions when they are dormant in the autumn.
Division of flowering size bulbs in autumn. Dig up the clumps of bulbs, replanting the larger ones direct into their permanent positions. It is best to pot up the smaller ones and grow them on in a greenhouse for a year before planting them out when they are dormant in early autumn.
Cultivation: Requires a rich well-drained sandy loam[1]. Likes plenty of moisture whilst in growth followed by a warm dry period in late summer and autumn[2]. Succeeds outdoors in a very sheltered warm position, otherwise it is best grown in a bulb frame[3].
There are two basic forms of this species, a large white-flowered form grows wild in wet places whilst a smaller form is found on drier slopes[3].
The hardiness zone has been given as 4, this is somewhat questionable, the plant is liable to be much less hardy[K].
Range: South-western N. America - British Columbia and south to California.
Habitat: Grassy, often rocky open flats to mid-montane meadows[4], also found in wet places, meadows and slopes to 1800 metres[3].
Edibility: Bulb - raw or cooked[5][6][7][8]. Rich in starch, the bulb can be used like potatoes[8]. An emergency food, it is only used when all else fails[9].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: Brodiaea hyacinthina. Hesperoscordum hyacinthinum.
Links
References
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Bulbs. Pan Books, 1989.
- ↑ Hitchcock, Leo. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press, 1955.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Yanovsky, Elias. Food Plants of the North American Indians Publication 237. US Department of Agriculture.
- ↑ Davis, Ray and Frank Craighead. A Field Guide to Rocky Mountain Wildflowers. The Riverside Press, 1963.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.