Kopsiopsis hookeri is a species of parasitic plant in the family Orobanchaceae known as Vancouver groundcone, small groundcone or poque.[1][2][3][4][5]

Vancouver groundcone
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Orobanchaceae
Genus: Kopsiopsis
Species:
K. hookeri
Binomial name
Kopsiopsis hookeri
(Walp.) Govaerts

Distribution edit

It is native to western North America from British Columbia to northern California, where it grows in wooded areas.

Description edit

It is a parasite of salal bushes, which it parasitizes by penetrating them with haustoria to tap nutrients. The groundcone is visible aboveground as a purplish, brown, or yellowish cone-shaped inflorescence 3 to 6 cm (1.2 to 2.4 in) long. Pale-colored flowers emerge from between the overlapping bracts. Coastal aboriginal groups ate the potato-like stembase of Ground Cones raw, though usually as a snack and not in any quantity.[6]

Formerly considered Boschniakia hookeri, some taxonomists now place it in the genus Kopsiopsis on the basis of phylogenetic evidence.[2]

References edit

  1. ^ "Kopsiopsis (Beck) Beck". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanical Gardens Kew. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  2. ^ a b Yu, Wen-Bin (2013-01-29). "Nomenclatural clarifications for names in Boschniakia, Kopsiopsis and Xylanche (Orobanchaceae)". Phytotaxa. 77 (3): 40–42. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.77.3.1. ISSN 1179-3163.
  3. ^ "The PLANTS Database". National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA. 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
  4. ^ Jepson Manual Treatment
  5. ^ Nancy J. Turner (1995). Food plants of coastal First Peoples. Royal British Columbia Museum Handbook. UBC Press. ISBN 0-7748-0533-1.
  6. ^ "Groundcone (Boschniakia SPP.)".