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Camas Flower Drum

The blue Camas (Camassia quamash) native to the Pacific Northwest is an important plant to many of the Coast Salish tribes. Camas bulbs were an integral food source as well as a trade item and sign of wealth. Similar in flavor and texture to a sweet potato, camas bulbs would be harvested, cooked, and eaten as is or mashed and made into cakes. Camas bulbs were also common gifts at potlatch ceremonies as a good camas bulb harvest would be seen as a sign of wealth and tribe prosperity. The places these flowers grew were often fought over and there were some tribes that had specific multi-generational stewards for their camas plots.