How to Grow and Care for Camassia (Wild Hyacinth)

How to Grow and Care for Camassia (Wild Hyacinth) Camassia spp.

The comeliest members of the asparagus family, Asparagaceae, camas aka wild hyacinths (Camassia spp.), look more like lilies than any vegetable I’ve ever known.

If you examine the leaves, the family resemblance becomes a little clearer. Arising from an underground bulb, the leaves are long, slender, and strap-shaped in appearance

Before they open, the flowers look a little bit like the spear of an asparagus.

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The taxonomic debate over where to classify this beautiful bulb has been long and tiring. The genus was previously classified in the Liliaceae or lily family, and after DNA sequencing, it was reclassified as part of the Asparagaceae family.

There are six species in the Camassia genus, and they hail primarily from the western region of North America, all the way from northwestern Canada to southern California and Texas. One species, C. scilloides,is native to the eastern half of the United States.

These different species are often referred to by the same common names which include camas, camas lily, Indian hyacinth, quamash, and wild hyacinth.

Tolerant of clay soils, partial shade, and hardy in USDA Zones 3 to 8, these bulbs generally perform best in organically-rich, evenly moist soils.

The tall flower spike that makes them such a sought-after garden plant is lined with delicate, six-petalled blooms, each sporting long, yellow-tipped stamens.

Whether you’re searching for pink, white, or blue flowers, or even variegated foliage, there are a number of different cultivars to choose from!

Read on to find out more about growing this late-spring