Heritage Oaks- a nice little oak savanna across 17th from the fair. The blue atop the grasses is camas.
In Salem, the state capitol is a number of camas fields, perhaps the most native of them is the two fields at the state fairgrounds. The Fairgrounds encompasses a large area bordered by 17th street, Silverton Road and Sunnyview. On Sunnyview, which bifurcates the south end of the fairgrounds overflow parking areas is a large camas field. These overflow lots are only used when the fair is in full swing and there is camas on both sides of the road.
Sunnyview field- a few Great camas in foreground, lots of common camas in background.
The biggest area is south of Sunnyview. The area appear to be mainly occupied by common camas (Camassia quamash). This type is smaller than the Great Camas (Camassia leichtlinii)and begins to grow earlier in the season. Their leaves begin in March and by the end of May most of the common camas are done blooming and turning their energy to seed pods.
Minto-Brown- Farm Field- The Great camas is only today 5/5/26 budding at the lower level- the bud cluster above is densely packed- this camas will continue to bud into June.
A recent visit to the field, this week and I was able to see all of the common camas in their last couple of rows of buds. Counting from the bottom, there are some 15 to 22 rows of buds in mature plants, with some rows single, and some double buds. younger plants tend to have less rows. The first blooms are always at the bottom and they only last a few days before they decline. The bloom cycle usually have 3-5 rows in blooms at any one time.
Heritage oaks- This great camas has about 20 rows of buds
Heritage oaks- on this Great Camas, the plant is about 4 ft high and there are about 22 rows of buds
Spotting a few Great camas, they are much larger and more robust plants than the common camas, and are just beginning or in the middle of their bloom they have up to 22 rows and begin at the bottom, but they are about 1 month behind the common camas in their annual cycle. Their height is also a big difference, with a few plants reaching nearly 5 feet in height. In the heritage oak grove on 17th, the common camas is done with their bloom cycle and they are almost all gone to seed, the green seed pods hidden by the tall green grasses. The Great camas here over-tops the grasses and at least one plant reached to my solar plexis, some of the tallest great camas I have ever seen.
Heritage oaks- Looking down into the grasses and we can see that common camas are already done with their bloom and going to seed.
Minto-Brown- a nice lighter baby blue camas
Colors of the common camas is mostly blue to purple. In the Sunnyview field variants of blue are most common but a few plants are deep purple. Rare, but present, are a few white to pink color blooms. Looking around and spending some time in any field we can easily find a few variants like this. I rarely see the same variant colors in the Great camas.
Minto-brown- Farm Field- a white true camas in the middle of its bloom cycle, about halfway.
The white variant is not at all the much heralded death camas (Toxicoscordion venenosum), but a true camas. Stories from tribes state that they would pull white death camas from fields when found so that that when the bulbs are harvested later they do not get confused as a true camas and eaten. Eating death camas bulbs can kill a person. The present rarity of any white camas, may be a caused by these stories. If people could not tell the plants apart and simply have been removing all white bloom camas, over time they would become quite rare.
Minto-Brown- Farm Field- Washed out light blue variant- very streaky
I have in the past seen white flowered camas stalks pulled from the ground and cast aside in fields, as if someone thought they were doing everyone a favor and destroying them, but this manner of “weeding” still leaves the bulb in the ground and really is only affecting true camas and not protecting anyone. It is important to learn your botany before destroying plants deemed toxic. “Death camas” is NOT a camas, the blooms are very different from a camas bloom, the only similarities are in the growth period and the appearance of their bulbs.
Sunnyview field- Background we can see common camas, much shorter and nearly done blooming, while great camas is in the foreground, later cycle, much more robust and taller. plant.
The state fairgrounds was chosen back in the 1860s and the majority of the fields surrounding the concourse area has never been developed. Because of this the camas field there may be the most native of all fields in Salem. The Bush Park fields are well tended by the city and there have been efforts to care for the oak groves and fields in the past, while the camas at Minto-Brown Park has been aided by volunteers who have spread camas in the various fields and former pastures.