Prairie Star
Lithophragma parviflorum
Prairie Star (Lithophragma parviflorum), also called Woodland Star, is a slender native perennial with leaves mostly near the base and open, narrow clusters of small white to pale pink flowers whose petals are cut into finger-like lobes. It blooms May and June, grows on prairies and in open forest, and reaches east to western South Dakota; National Park Service records list it at Wind Cave National Park and Devils Tower National Monument. Photographed in the Black Hills.
| Family | Saxifragaceae · Saxifrage |
|---|---|
| Status | Native perennial |
| Blooms | May and June |
| Height | 10–50 cm (4–20 in) |
| Where | Prairies, sagebrush and open forest at lower elevations |
| Also called | Woodland Star, Smallflower Woodland-star, Prairie Rockstar, Prairie Woodlandstar |
Roots, seeds & germination
Root: The roots bear tubers, and the underground stems carry many tiny bulblets shaped like grains of rice.
Seed: Seeds ripen in a three-chambered capsule and are released from late spring onward.
Germination: No pretreatment is recorded. Sow in late summer on the surface of well-drained soil and keep it moist. Plants take about two years to flower from seed.
How do you identify Prairie Star?
Look for a slender stem topped by an open, narrow cluster of star-like flowers about 1.5 cm across, each white to pale pink petal deeply cut into 3 finger-like lobes. The calyx (the cup below the petals) is cone-shaped and sits on a flower stalk no longer than itself. Bulbous Woodland Star, a rare plant in South Dakota, has a cup-shaped calyx on a stalk up to 3 to 4 times as long, petals usually cut into 5 lobes, and often small reddish-purple bulblets in the leaf joints.
When does it bloom?
May and June.
Where does it grow?
Prairies, sagebrush and open forest at lower elevations. Its range runs east to western Nebraska and western South Dakota.
Other flowers to compare
Sources: Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center: Lithophragma parviflorum; National Park Service, Devils Tower: Wildflowers; National Park Service, NPSpecies: Lithophragma parviflorum (lists Wind Cave among parks); Northwest Wildflowers: Which prairie star?; University of Washington propagation protocol: Lithophragma parviflorum; Wildflower Identification Website: Lithophragma parviflorum; Burke Herbarium, University of Washington: Lithophragma parviflorum; Burke Herbarium, University of Washington: Lithophragma glabrum (Bulbous Woodland Star); South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks: Rare plants of South Dakota.