Olasi, Bolander's Yampah, Mountain False Caraway: Perideridia bolanderi ssp. bolanderi

Bolander's yampah as seen along Forest Road #16 in Logan Valley, Malheur National Forest.......July 13, 2010.

Also known as mountain false caraway and Olasi by the indigenous peoples, Bolander's yampah is a slender stemmed plant from 30-60 cm tall arising from a fleshy, spindle-shaped root. The leaves, including the blade and petiole ranges from 10-20 cm long and are divided ternately, then pinnately into fairly broad to very narrow, linear segments with the terminal segment the longest. The basal and lower leaf segments tend to be broadest while those higher on the plant tend to be much narrower (See photos below.). Two to three leaves are found on the stem, with the uppermost reduced to bracts.

The inflorescence is an umbel of 8-15 nearly equal rays measuring from 1.5-3 cm long. The umbel is subtended by one or two long, narrow bracts. Each of the umbellets (See photo above.) is also subtended at its base by several narrow, pointed, membranous-margined bracts about as long as the pedicels in fruit. The petals and calyx-lobes are white. The fruits are narrowly oblong and measure from 3-5 mm long (See photo below.).

Bolander's yampah may be found on moist to dry, rocky hillsides and ridges and in dry meadows or on poorly drained clay flats from the basins to about 1800 meters of elevation in the foothills, or occasionally up to 2800 meters in the mountains.

Bolander's yampah may be found from northeastern Oregon south to southeastern Oregon into northern California and east across northern Nevada to northwestern Utah and southern Idaho to western Wyoming. It may also be found across southern Oregon to the Siskiyou region.

These 5 photos show close-ups of the inflorescence and basal leaves of Bolander's yampah as seen on moist soils (where the snow has just melted) at Buckhorn Lookout on the western edge of the Imnaha Canyon in the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest........June 27, 2008.

Additional photos of Bolander's yampah as seen along Forest Road #16 in Logan Valley, Malheur National Forest.......July 13, 2010.

The photo above shows the oblong fruits of one umbellet of Olasi or Bolander's yampah as seen at Jackman Park (2350 m) on the Steens Mt of southeastern Oregon........August 3, 1995. The individual fruits measure from 3-5 mm long and have thin ribs on their surface as seen in the photo.

Bolander's yampah as seen along the South Loop Road about 2 miles uphill from the Rooster Comb, Steens Mountain, Harney County, Oregon.........July 9, 2014.

The photos above show various views of bolander's yampah as seen along the Hat Pt. Road near Granny View in the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area.......June 26, 2007. (Click on each photo to see a larger version.)

The photo above shows one umbellet of Olasi or Bolander's yampah as seen at Jackman Park (2350 m) on the Steens Mt of southeastern Oregon.......June 27, 2000. Note the several long, narrow bracts about as long as the pedicels which subtends the umbellet.

Bolander's yampah as observed on balds along Forest Road #39 south of the junction with Forest Road #3965, Hells Canyon National Recreation Area........June 11, 2018.

Bolander's yampah observed in bloom along FS Road #4015 just east of Deep Creek Forest Camp, North Warner Mountains, Fremont-Winema National Forest......June 30, 2019. Meadow larkspur (Delphinium depauperatum) can also be seen blooming in the picture at upper right.

What appears to be Bolander's yampah observed along Forest Road 3915 in a swale next to the cattle gate at the California border, Mount Bidwell Recreation Area, Fremont-Winema National Forest.......July 18, 2022.

The photo above shows two basal or lower stem leaves of Olasi or Bolander's yampah as seen at Jackman Park (2350 m) on the Steens Mt of southeastern Oregon.......June 27, 2000.

The photo above shows Olasi or Bolander's yampah as seen at Jackman Park (2350 m) on the Steens Mt of southeastern Oregon.........June 27, 2000. Note the wider leaflet segments on the basal leaves and the very narrow, long segments of the stem leaves.