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what plant was she talking about?

19 years ago

I was walking in the woods the other day with an herbalist who pointed out some small yellow flowers (maybe 1" across) growing about 6" high, that she referred to as amaryllis. They didn't look anything like the garden amaryllis that I'm familiar with. She asked if I had any and when I told her that my amaryllis were a lot bigger she looked at me like I was crazy. I wasn't able to get close enough to these wild plants to see if they had the same form.

I've done a Google search on 'amaryllis' and haven't turned up anything that looked like them. Any idea what they might have been?

Tia!

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Comments (2)

razorback33
19 years ago
I believe she was referring to the plant as a member of the Amaryllis Family (Amaryllidaceae), which includes about 14 Genera, including the common Daffodil & Jonquil (Narcissus).
Other common yellow-flowered members of the Family are Zephyranthes citrina, Sternbergia lutea, Lycoris aurea, and Nerine humilis, but most are fall flowering and none of these are native to Texas.
Another possibility could be Habranthus tubispathus, a/k/a Habranthus texanus, which usually prefers wetlands, but can be found in upland habitats.
Rb

Here is a link that might be useful: Plants Profile - Habranthus tubispathus (texanus)
treelover
Original Author
19 years ago
Must have been the Habranthus, then, since it was mid March and right in the center of Texas. They were at the side of a creek, too. Wish I'd gotten close enough to get a good look.

Thank you for the information. -- Carol
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