Checker Lily (Fritillaria affinis)

Mount Pisgah Arboretum near Eugene, OR, 4/2018.

Russ Jolley (Wildflowers of the Columbia Gorge) refers to these as  “Chocolate Lilies” but other sources reserve that nickname for Fritillaria camschatcensis, found mostly in northern Washington and Alaska.  Another similar chocolate-colored fritillaria found in our region is the Fritillaria atropurpurea, more common east of the Cascades.  This one is sometimes goes by the latin lanceolata.Also known as “rice root,”  due to its rice-like bulbs that were once eaten by coastal tribes.  Said to taste like bitter rice.

Rowena Plateau, Tom McCall Preserve, Columbia Gorge, OR, 4/2013.

Mount Pisgah Arboretum near Eugene, OR, 4/2018.

Mount Pisgah Arboretum near Eugene, OR, 4/2018.

Leavenworth Ski Hill, WA, 5/2017.