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Uvularia is a genus of plants in the family Colchicaceae, close to the lily family (Liliaceae). They are commonly called Bellworts, Bellfowers or Merrybells. This unusual flower is found in April and May, often on wooded slopes or in ravines and it spreads by stolons^1][2][3] or stoloniferus rhizomes^[4]. The plants are usually 18 to 24 inches (45?60 cm) in height and bear one or two flowers which hang downward from the axils of the leaves.

Species

There are five species of Uvularia and all are exclusively native to North America. They grow from northern Florida to Canada west to Minnesota and south to Texas. These unobtrusive woodland plants are great for the woodland and shade garden, they require little work and are happy just left alone but are also easy to work with if you must move them.

Description

They have erect, simple or twice branched stems with leaves at the top of the stems that are alternate, or perfoliated. Flowers hang downward in Spring from the top of the plants. They form singularly or sometimes in pairs.

L Gene Sequence Data Plant Species Biology 13 (2-3), 129?146. doi:10.1111/j.1442-1984.1998.tb00254.x

^ Dennis Whigham, Anita Chapa (1999) Timing and intensity of herbivory: Its influence on the performance of clonal woodland herbs Plant Species Biology 14 (1), 29?37. doi:10.1046/j.1442-1984.1999.00004.x

^ Hiro shi Kudoh, Hiroyuki Shibaike, Hideki Takasu, Dennis F. Whigham, Shoichi Kawano (1999) Genet structure and determinants of clonal structure in a temperate deciduous woodland herb, Uvularia perfoliata Journal of Ecology 87 (2), 244?257. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2745.1999.00355.x

^ [Nutrient foraging in woodland herbs: a comparison of three species of Uvularia (Liliaceae) with contrasting belowground morphologies http://www.amjbot.org/cgi/content/full/88/6/1071?ck=nck]1 Dushyantha K. Wijesinghe2 and Dennis F. Whigham3 Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, P.O. Box 28, Edgewater, Maryland 21037 USA