| Lomatium cous | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Apiales |
| Family: | Apiaceae |
| Genus: | Lomatium |
| Species: | L. cous
|
| Binomial name | |
| Lomatium cous (S.Watson) J.M.Coult. & Rose
| |
Lomatium cous (cous biscuitroot)[1] is a perennial herb of the family Apiaceae. The root is prized as a food by the tribes of the southern plateau of the Pacific Northwest. Meriwether Lewis collected a specimen in 1806 while on his expedition.[2]
It is called x̣áwš in the Sahaptin language, and qáamsit (when fresh) and qáaws (when peeled and dried) in the Nez Perce language.
It is called shappelell by the Chinooks: "... and a kind of bisquit, which the natives make of roots called by them shappelell."—Meriwether Lewis, Friday, January 9, 1806. From The Definitive Journals of Lewis & Clark, Down the Columbia to Fort Clatsop. Volume 6 of the Nebraska Edition. Gary E. Moulton, Editor. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, 1990.
References[edit]
- ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Lomatium cous". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ Schiemann, Donald Anthony. Wildflowers of Montana, page 174. Mountain Press Publishing Company, Missoula, 2005.