Common Muilla :

Sea Muilla
Muilla maritima
NATIVE

Description (Jepson, PlantID.net)

Monocotyledon
- Monocots are a major lineage of flowering plants; see family for general characteristics
Brodiaea Family (Themidaceae)
Perennial herb
- Grows from a corm (short, solid, vertical underground stem)
Leaves
- 3-10 grasslike, linear, basal leaves
- May wither before the plant blooms
Flowers
- Inflorescence (flower arrangement) is an umbel (a spoke-like flower cluster with stalks radiating from a single point) at the end of a leafless stalk (scape), with individual flower stalks (pedicels) up to 2 in. long
  - Greenish white, star-shaped flowers with brownish colored midveins
  - Fused bracts (modified leaves) at base become papery with age
- Individual flowers have 3 petals and 3 sepals (outer flower parts), in 2 separate whorls, similar in appearance and collectively called tepals
- 6 prominent stamens (male flower parts) may be green, blue or purple
- Ovary superior (above the attachment of other flower parts)
Fruit is a capsule (a dry multi-chambered pod that splits open)
Height to 6 in.

Distribution

Native to California
- Grows in grasslands, woodlands, and coastal scrub in alkaline, granitic, or serpentine soils
- 50-54% of plants occur on ultramafic soils, e.g. serpentine; see ultramafic affinity rankings (Calflora per Safford and Miller 2020)
- See Serpentine Grassland for more about Edgewood’s serpentine soil and the unique communities it supports
- See Calflora for statewide observations of this plant
Outside California, grows in Baja California, Mexico
Grows at elevations to 7,500 ft.

Uses (San Mateo County Parks prohibits removal of any natural material)

Name Derivation

Muilla (moo-IL-a) – from the word “allium” spelled backwards, a humorous anagram referring to the plant’s superficial resemblance to onions, in the genus Allium
maritima (mar-IT-i-ma) – from the Latin for “coast”

Notes

Geophytes (e.g. plants growing from bulbs, corms, rhizomes, or enlarged taproots) are well adapted to survive fire, our Mediterranean climate’s long, dry summers, and extended droughts
- Above-ground growth dies back after flowering, while underground the plant survives with stored water and nutrients
Previously included in the Lily family

ID Tips

Although “muilla” is “allium” spelled backwards, implying the plant is onion-like, Muilla leaves do not smell like onion/garlic
Check out this CNPS video with Rupert Clayton, Triplet Lilies, Ookows, and Blue Dicks, for more ID tips

At Edgewood

Found in serpentine and non-serpentine grasslands
- See iNaturalist for observations of this plant
Flowers March – April

Specific References

Alexander, E.B. 2010, Oct. & 2011, Jan. Serpentine soils and why they limit plant survival and growth. Fremontia 38/39: 28-31.

Safford, H.D. 2010, Oct. & 2011, Jan. Serpentine endemism of the California flora. Fremontia 38/39: 32-39.

Safford, H.D. and J.E.D. Miller. 2020. An updated database of serpentine endemism in the California flora. Madroño 67(2): 85-104. BioOne Complete. PDF hosted by San Diego State University, San Diego, California.

General References

Calflora Database. 2014. Berkeley, California.

Calscape. 2018. California Native Plant Society.

Corelli, T. 2004. Flowering Plants of Edgewood Natural Preserve (2nd. ed.). Monocot Press, Half Moon Bay, California.

Elpel, T.J. 2013. Botany in a Day: The Patterns Method of Plant Identification. HOPS Press, Pony, Montana.

Harris, J.G. and M.W. Harris. 2013. Plant Identification Terminology: An Illustrated Glossary. Spring Lake Publishing, Spring Lake, Utah.

Keator, G. 2009. California Plant Families. University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, California.

Regents of the University of California. Jepson eFlora. Jepson Herbarium. University of California, Berkeley.