Chocolate Lily
- Fritillaria biflora var. biflora

Chocolate Lily is one of the more uncommon lilies in our mountains, probably due to its affinity for heavy clay soil. Its nodding brown flowers bloom from February to June. The flowers are about 2-3 inches in diameter, with 3 petals and 3 sepals of the same appearance together forming a bell shape. Closer examination reveals green and purple lines on the undersides of the petals and sepals along with 6 stamens and 1 pistil inside of the bell flower. The fruit that remains after flowering is in the shape of a capsule. The lance-shaped leaves are up to 5 inches long and form a whorl at the base, with some additional leaves making an appearance along the stem. The plant is glabrous, i.e. lacking hairs. Each year the plant sprouts anew from a bulb. If you want to add this plant to your garden be prepared for a 4-5 year wait for the plant to reach maturity and produce flowers.

The genus name Fritillaria means "dicebox" refering to the shape of the capsule and/or the appearance of part of the flower. Biflora is a bit of a misnomer as there are frequently more than 2 flowers on a stem (commonly there are 1-4 flowers per stem but sometimes up to 20 flowers). There are a number of other species within the Fritillaria genus which resemble our biflora var. biflora and share the same common name(s). These are largely found north of here along the Pacific coast, all the way up to Alaska and along the Aleutian Islands. Fritillaria biflora var. biflora is the only Fritillaria species known of in the Santa Monica Mountains.

In an ideal setting, Chocolate Lilies can be found in large numbers - sometimes more than a thousand! Typically, you’ll encounter just one or two. This was the first flower I set out to find after hearing its intriguing name. Discovering it for the first time sparked my desire to learn about - and seek out—many other plants you’ll find featured in our archives. I hope it inspires you in the same way.

Contributed by Liz Baumann, Updated by George Sherman