Mission Bells
(Corallorhiza striata)
"Characterized as "one of the most variable of California's fritillaries", the changing taxonomic treatment of the plant over the years seems to reflect the complex range of color and patterns of the blossoms. The pendulous bells may range in color from dull green, to purple-brown, all flecked with yellow and cream. It remains "One of the oddest and most beautiful flowers of our rich woodlands…unrivaled in elegance, for every line of its contour is a study in grace."
Sources:Nora Harlow and Kristin Jakob,
Wild Lilies, Irises, and Grasses, 2004, and Mary Elizabeth Parsons,
The Wildflowers of California, 1897
