The photo at right shows beargrass in bloom from Old Man's Pass in the Giford Pinchot NF.........June 25, 1994.
1. The grass-like leaves are thin, stiff, pointed and up to 3 feet long. A large basal clump is most noticeable, but smaller cauline or stem leaves (grasslike too) are found on the flower stem.
2. One cluster of small, six tepaled flowers is borne atop each 3-4 foot stem.
3. The 6 tepals (sepals and petals) are similar in shape and are about one qyarter inch long. Bloom time is May through July.
4. This plant spreads via underground rhizomes.
5. The plant dies after blooming, but new plants formed by rhizomatous growth will flower after several years development. Unfortunately this species rarely blooms in captivity (and generaly doesn't survive well in captivity), so please don't dig up plants from the wild for use in the garden.
Bear grass can be found in clear cuts, forest openings and in dry open forests in the mountains.
Bear-grass is found from British Columbia south into California, and east to the Rocky Mountains. It may be found near sea level in the Olympic Forest to 7000 feet in the Rockies..
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