Latin Name: Lomatium ambiguum
Common Name(s): Swale desert parsley
Family: Apiaceae
Size: up to two feet or so when blooming
Life Cycle: Perennial
Distribution: Northwestern United States up into British Columbia in meadows, open clearings in forests, rocky flats, and scrubland.
Light Requirements: Full sun
USDA Zone: Unknown
Drought Tolerance: Very high. If it ever gets too dry for the plant, the plant dies down to the roots and waits for rain to return.
Fire Risk: Probably very low, as this plant is well adapted to environments that burn regularly. Foliage dies to the ground by mid-summer.
Cultivation Notes
Swale desert parsley is a species in the biscuitroot genus that is extremely uncommon in most gardens. Rosettes of green to purple-tinged leaves send up sprays of yellowish flowers from April to June, attracting a myriad of beneficial insects. It prefers well drained soil, even thriving in rocky or sandy soils. It can deal with full, harsh sun or part shade. It is a good plant for droughty areas, pollinator gardens, and rock gardens.
Ecology
The attractive yellow flowers bloom throughout the spring (depending on region), sometimes are early as February. They are very attractive to pollinators, like most plants in the carrot family, particularly parasitic wasps, flies, and small bees. Some lepidopteran larvae also feed on the foliage, including some species of swallowtail.
Uses
Lomatium species have a wide variety of medical and edible uses and this one is no exception. The plant is completely edible, with leaves, roots, and seeds being edible. The seeds have that same biscuitroot scent and flavor that is something like parsley, cumin, and more. The seeds and the leaves can be eaten like a spice. The root of this species doesn’t seem to have been used as much as others but is almost certainly edible. As usual with Lomatium species: please do not harvest from the wild and instead grow it yourself.
Propagation
Lomatium species are best propagated by seed. Seeds for this species are not easy to find. Plant them in the fall so they can stratify over the winter and keep them well covered to protect them from the birds, which enjoy the large seeds. Germination is often erratic and the seeds aren’t particularly long lived, so make sure you have fresh seed and plant them the first fall you receive them.