Prosartes hookeri
Encyclopedia
Prosartes hookeri, formerly Disporum hookeri, is a species of flowering plant in the Liliaceae
known by the common names drops of gold and Hooker's fairy bells.
to Montana
, where it usually grows in shady, damp areas, such as forest understory. A typical west coast habitat is in forest floors of California oak woodland
s, where common understory flora associates may include Coastal woodfern, Dryopteris arguta
; Maidenhair fern, Adiantum jordanii
and False Solomon's seal, Maianthemum racemosum
.
. Its narrow, fuzzy stems bear wide, oval-shaped, pointed leaves up to 15 centimeters long and hairless to hairy, often with hairs along the edges and on the veins underneath. The inflorescence
at the tips of branches produce one to three drooping, hanging flowers which may be hidden in the cover of the large leaves. The flower is bell-shaped with six white to green veiny tepal
s and six protruding stamen
s with large anthers. The fruit is an orange to bright red berry
just under a centimeter wide.
Liliaceae
The Liliaceae, or the lily family, is a family of monocotyledons in the order Liliales. Plants in this family have linear leaves, mostly with parallel veins but with several having net venation , and flower arranged in threes. Several have bulbs, while others have rhizomes...
known by the common names drops of gold and Hooker's fairy bells.
Occurrence
It is native to western North America from western Canada to CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
to Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, where it usually grows in shady, damp areas, such as forest understory. A typical west coast habitat is in forest floors of California oak woodland
California oak woodland
California oak woodland is a plant community found throughout the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion of California in the United States and northwestern Baja California in Mexico...
s, where common understory flora associates may include Coastal woodfern, Dryopteris arguta
Dryopteris arguta
Dryopteris arguta, with the common name coastal woodfern, is a species of wood fern. It is native to the west coast of North America, where it grows in oak woodlands and shady low elevation slopes in Southern California and north.-Description:...
; Maidenhair fern, Adiantum jordanii
Adiantum jordanii
Adiantum jordanii is a perennial species of maidenhair fern known by the common name California maidenhair.It is native to California and Baja California. A...
and False Solomon's seal, Maianthemum racemosum
Maianthemum racemosum
Maianthemum racemosum is a species of flowering plant, native to North America....
.
Morphology
It is an erect, few-branched perennial herb growing up to a meter tall from a rhizomeRhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
. Its narrow, fuzzy stems bear wide, oval-shaped, pointed leaves up to 15 centimeters long and hairless to hairy, often with hairs along the edges and on the veins underneath. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
at the tips of branches produce one to three drooping, hanging flowers which may be hidden in the cover of the large leaves. The flower is bell-shaped with six white to green veiny tepal
Tepal
Tepals are elements of the perianth, or outer part of a flower, which include the petals or sepals. The term tepal is more often applied specifically when all segments of the perianth are of similar shape and color, or undifferentiated, which is called perigone...
s and six protruding stamen
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s with large anthers. The fruit is an orange to bright red berry
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
just under a centimeter wide.