I have to confess that this plant is more of a native neighbor, despite it also being known as Atlantic camas. It’s natural distribution hugs the Atlantic coast line from Florida north to Baltimore but then it extends north into Ontario, bypassing New England. I got some bulbs of this Lily family member from Prairie Moon Nursery, and put those in the soil last fall. The leaves appeared about a month ago and now white (with a blueish hue) flowers are appearing from the bottom. It looks great in a woodland setting. It likes rich, acidic soils, but can tolerate other soils too if there is enough water.
The bulbs are edible and were once a major food source for some Native American tribes and early European Settlers, but they are very hard to distinguish (at least until the flowers appear) from mountain death camas bulbs which are quite deadly when consumed. But don’t let this worry you as I would file this plant under “too pretty to eat”.
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