Yellow Star Grass

This small native perennial plant consists of a rosette of slender basal leaves and shorter flowering stems. The linear basal leaves are up to 1' tall and ½" across. They have scattered white hairs. The flowering stems are up to 8" tall, and have scattered white hairs as well. Each of these stems terminates in a rather loose umbel of two or more yellow flowers. A flower is about ¾" across and consists of 6 tepals that spread outward. In the center, a yellow pistil is surrounded by 6 stigmas with prominent yellow anthers. Each anther is shaped like an upside-down V. The blooming period occurs from mid-spring to early summer and lasts about a month. Sometimes there is a mild floral fragrance. Each seed capsule splits open irregularly, releasing several glossy black seeds that are covered with concentric rows of wart-like projections. The root system consists of small corms.