| Erigenia | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Apiales |
| Family: | Apiaceae |
| Subfamily: | Apioideae |
| Tribe: | Erigenieae Rydb. |
| Genus: | Erigenia Nutt. |
| Species: | E. bulbosa |
| Binomial name | |
| Erigenia bulbosa | |
Erigenia bulbosa, also known asharbinger of spring orpepper and salt,[2] is a floweringperennial plant in the familyApiaceae.E. bulbosa is theonly species in thegenusErigenia and tribeErigenieae.[3] This plant is known as harbinger of spring because it is one of the earliest blooming native wildflowers of richforests in the mid-latitudeUnited States. Throughout most of its range it blooms from late February through early April.[4]
It is a smallspring ephemeral reaching only 5–15 cm tall when in flower, and slightly larger afterwards. Each spherical bulb gives rise to a single purplish stem, which terminates in anumbel. The flowers have whitepetals and large dark-reddishanthers. The teardrop shaped petals are 3-4 millimeters long, widely spaced and do not touch each other. As is characteristic of the carrot family, the leaves of this plant are sheathed at the base and pinnately divided into many small sections.[5]
Harbinger of spring is an occasional plant in rich hardwood forests of easternNorth America. It is found as far north as centralNew York and southernWisconsin, west to the westernOzarks, and south to centralAlabama.[6] It is also found in extreme southernOntario.[citation needed]
Its typical associates include spring beauty (Claytonia virginica) and cut-leaf tooth wort (Cardamine laciniata). All of these early spring blooming plants are pollinated bysolitary bees, and to a lesser extent,flies andhoney bees.E. bulbosa has a small daily accumulation of nectar per flower (7–38 μg sugar/flower), but the presence of numerous, closely arranged, simultaneously blooming flowers in the umbel may increase the overall nectar incentive for the pollinators.[7] The nectar produced byE. bulbosa only contains the sugarfructose.[8]
Erigenia bulbosa does not form vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal associations with fungi, in contrast to most plants.[9]
These plants are protected inNew York[10] andWisconsin[11] as stateendangered plants.
The bulb is edible both cooked and raw.[12] TheCherokee were known to chew this plant as medicine for toothaches; it is unknown what parts of plant they chewed.[13] This plant is sometimes used in nativewildflower gardens throughout its range.[citation needed]
