This article is about the genus of plants; for the ancient Greek gods, see Twelve Olympians.

Dodecatheon is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants with basal clumps of leaves, with nodding flowers. The stamens are thrust out with the sepals bent back. The flowers are pollinated by bees, which grab hold of the petals, and gather pollen by vibrating the flowers by buzzing their wings ('buzz pollination'). The vibration releases pollen from the anthers.

The genus is largely confined to North America, but also extending a short distance into northeastern Siberia. Common names include Shooting Star, American Cowslip, Mosquito Bills, and Sailor-caps.

There are 14 species:

• Dodecatheon alpinum. California.
• Dodecatheon clevelandii. California.
• Dodecatheon conjugans. Wyoming to Oregon.
• Dodecatheon cruciatum. Western US.
• Dodecatheon cusickii. Western US.
• Dodecatheon dentatum. Washington to Idaho.
• Dodecatheon frigidum. Alaska, northeast Siberia.
• Dodecatheon hendersonii. Western US.
• Dodecatheon integrifolium. British Columbia.
• Dodecatheon jeffreyi. California.
• Dodecatheon meadia. Eastern US.
• Dodecatheon poeticum. Washington, Oregon.
• Dodecatheon pulchellum. Western US, northwest Mexico; naturalized in eastern US.
• Dodecatheon redolens. Southwestern US.

Cultivation

Dodecatheon needs good drainage. Many species need a dry summer period. For Dodecatheon, plants germinated from seed may take 3-5 years to produce flowers. For some Dodecatheon, with frequent light fertilization and moisture, dormancy may be delayed, and flowering time may be decreased to 1-2 years. Another technique to speed flowering is to place them in a cooler after dormancy, then bring them to a shadehouse in midsummer. The flower needs buzz pollination to pollinate.

Dodecatheon can be grown by division in winter.

References

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• Treatment from the Jepson Manual
• ITIS 23943
• Cullina, William, and Cullina, Bill (2000) "The New England Wild Flower Society Guide to Growing and Propagating Wildflowers of the United States and Canada", Houghton Mifflin Company, ISBN 0395966094.
• Oregon Flora Project

Primulaceae