Spring Star (Ipheion uniflorum)

OK, here is one of those plants that you might not see in your wildflower book. However it does meet the definition of a wildflower. See our windflower definition page. I have seen them pop up on my farm and I caught these the other day in Cedars of Lebanon Park. This is a VERY striking flower. It is one of my favorites. 

Ipheion uniflorum is a species of flowering plant, related to the onions, so is currently placed in the Allium subfamily (Allioideae) of the Amaryllidaceae. It is known by the common name spring star, or spring starflower. It was at one time transferred to the genus Tristagma, but recent research suggests that this was not correct. It is native to Argentina and surrounding countries, but can be found elsewhere, such as much of the southern half of North America, as an introduced species, possibly an escaped ornamental plant. This is a perennial herb growing from a bulb and producing flat, shiny, green, hairless, grasslike leaves up to 30 centimeters long. The foliage has an onionlike scent when crushed. The stem grows up to 20 centimeters tall and bears a solitary showy flower in spring. Each star-shaped flower has six pointed lobes up to 3 centimeters long in shades of very pale to deep purple-blue.