E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Veratrum viride Aiton
green false-hellebore (corn lily; green false hellebore)
Melanthiaceae
(Previously in Liliaceae)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

© Bob Thacker  Email the photographer   (Photo ID #85627)

E-Flora BC Static Map
Distribution of Veratrum viride
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SUBTAXA PRESENT IN BC
Veratrum viride var. eschscholzianum

Species Information

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General:
Perennial herb from a short, stout rhizome; flowering stems robust, erect, 0.7-2 m tall, often clustered, unbranched, leafy and short-hairy to woolly throughout or smooth in lower half.
Leaves:
Stem leaves numerous, broadly egg-shaped to oblong-elliptic, 10-35 cm long, 5-15 cm wide, becoming smaller and narrower towards the inflorescence, prominently ribbed (accordion-pleated), smooth above, densely hairy beneath, unstalked or nearly so, clasping at the base, the margins entire; basal leaves lacking.
Flowers:
Inflorescence a branched terminal cluster, the branches elongate, narrow, densely hairy, and at least the lower drooping, of numerous, stalked flowers, the stalks 2-3 (5) mm long, turning up as the flowers open; flowers pale green or yellow-green, with dark green centres, star-shaped, of 6 similar, distinct tepals, the tepals narrowly lanceolate to oblong-elliptic, 6-13 mm long, somewhat woolly-hairy on the outside, the margins minutely toothed to fringed; stamens 6; pistil 1, 3-chambered.
Fruits:
Capsules, barrel-shaped, 3-lobed, erect, 1.5-3 cm long, mostly smooth; seeds numerous, flat, broadly winged, 8-10 mm long.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Moist to wet meadows, streambanks, swamps, thickets and open forests from the lowland to alpine zones; common throughout all but NE BC, especially southward; N to AK, YT and NT, E to AB and S to WY, ID and CA, also disjunct in PQ, Labr, NB and NS and the E U.S. (ME and NY south to GA and AL).

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Veratrum viride

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information
Value / Class

Minimum

Average

Maximum

Elevation (metres) 0 1336 2640
Slope Gradient (%) 0 22 230
Aspect (degrees)
[0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]
0 34 360
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR)
[0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic;
8 - hydric]
0 4 8
Modal Nutrient Regime
Class
C
Number of field plots
 species was recorded in:
5815
Modal BEC Zone Class
ESSF
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in: AT(36), BAFA(40), BWBS(9), CDF(1), CMA(7), CWH(616), ESSF(3238), ICH(442), IDF(11), IMA(15), MH(381), MS(105), SBPS(7), SBS(519), SWB(20)

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Synonyms and Alternate Names

Veratrum eschscholtzianum (Schult. & Schult. f.) Rydb. ex A. Heller
Veratrum eschscholtzii A. Gray
Veratrum eschscholtzii var. incriminatum B. Boivin
Veratrum viride subsp. eschscholtzii (A. Gray) A. Löve & D. Löve
Veratrum viride var. eschscholtzii (A. Gray) Breitung

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Additional Photo Sources

General References