Bitterroots in the Garden
Bitterroot (Lewisia redviva) is a perennial with a thick taproot and a woody base. First leaves appear in early spring then wither. By the third week in May, pinkish white showy flowers emerge on short stems, often in gravelly, dry soil. After flowering the plant appears to die down (summer deciduous). It has a dormant period in the hot, dry summer and may reappear at the end of summer or early fall. We travel to the Ashcroft to Spences Bridge area in May to hike to several spots where the bitterroot is in bloom.
All photos by the author. Click an image for a lightbox view.
We have transplanted the roots to the home garden successfully, but some precautions are noted here:
- Dig out as much of the root as possible.
- After being transported it go dormant.
- Pot it or transplant it, but avoid wet areas and make sure it has a summer dormancy period.
- Although it is winter hardy, it must be in rocky, gravelly soil which drains well.
We have varietals of Lewisia cotyledon in our garden. It is native to southern Oregon and northern California. To ensure it meets the dormancy requirement, we dig it up after it withers and put it in a pot in gravelly soil and we rarely water it. We transplant it back to the garden in the fall. We could leave it in the garden, but we would need a spot outside of the watering zones, but that would be out of sight. Some images from this year’s bloom are shared here.
When we were on a hiking trip through the dry lands in the interior of Washington State, we hiked up a trail above Swakane Canyon, north of Wenatchee. We came upon Tweedy’s lewisia (Lewisia tweedyi) in flower.
We also spotted Lewisia redviva in a dry and rocky canyon farther east, but it was this one that impressed us more.