Bluedicks
Bluedicks
Dichelostemma capitiatum
(Photo by Robert Payne)
Side view
This was the flower that first got me interested in figuring out what
was what. I used to see them all the time on my runs in Santa Teresa
park. A tight blue cluster of six-petalled flowers on a long
stem. Using the "match-the-picture" method, I eventually
learned their name, which was easy to remember as I often ran with
Dick Brundle at the time. I first knew them as
Brodiaea pulchella, after James Brodie, an early Scotch
botanist. They occur in most of the same places as
Elegant Brodiaea and some people
knew them as Common Brodiaea. But guess what? They are no
longer classified as Brodiaea. They
are now listed as
Dichelostema pulchellum. The very similar but taller,
Ookow
(Dichelostema congestum), was moved at the same time.
Like many similar flowers they have an edible bulb, which can be
eaten raw, boiled, or roasted. The bulbs were know as Indian
onions. In fact, the swamp onion is actually very similar, apart
from its reddish color. The black seeds pop upon roasting, like popcorn.
They
were eaten in a mix called pinole, similar to trail mix.
You can find them growing in all our
open grassy areas between Feb. and May. If you are lucky, you may
even see the pure-white variety (Whitedicks?), which I have seen
most often along Uvas road, south of Calero Reservoir.
