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

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

Description

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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

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  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.)".