Yampah

Yampah (Perideridia spp.) is the West's own wild carrot — a slender, grass-like member of the carrot family, nearly invisible until its lacy white flower umbels appear — prized above almost all others for its sweet, nutty roots.^2, 4

Edible & Medicinal Uses

Yampah's small tuberous roots are a celebrated native food: crisp and juicy raw, with a texture and taste like a water chestnut, and sweet and nutty like a sweet potato once boiled, steamed, sauteed, or fried. They dry well for storage and later rehydration. The young leaves are edible, and the seeds make a caraway-like seasoning (yampah is a close cousin of caraway). Roots are a good source of potassium, vitamin C, and protein, and act as a carminative (easing digestion) — though raw roots in quantity are mildly laxative, so cooking is the usual way.^1, 4

Ornamental Qualities

Airy and refined, Yampah rises 1–3 ft with thread-fine leaves that mimic the surrounding grass, then floats delicate white flower umbels above the meadow in early-to-mid summer — a magnet for small pollinators. It naturalizes gracefully in a meadow or sunny border among Common Camas and native bunchgrasses.¹

Environment & Culture

Ecology: Native to moist open meadows and hillsides across the West, Yampah is a slow-growing, long-lived perennial that mingles unseen among grasses until it blooms. Its flowers feed many small native bees and beneficial insects.^1, 2

Culture: Yampah is one of the most important wild roots of the West — a staple for the Klamath and Modoc (who call it ayepaws or gaash), the Straits Salish, Blackfoot, Paiute, Cheyenne, and others — harvested in spring, cleaned on-site so the rootlets return to the soil, and the plots tended by re-seeding and weeding. We offer it with respect for that living knowledge and invite support for Indigenous-led restoration through our Charitable Giving page.⁴

In the Kitchen

Eat the little roots raw for a sweet, water-chestnut crunch, or boil, steam, or saute them into a sweet, nutty side much like new potatoes or sweet potato. Dry a batch for winter. Crush the ripe seeds as a caraway-style spice for breads and stews. (Growing and harvest details are on the Planting Guide tab.)

Attributes

• Native Range: Across the West; moist open meadows and hillsides¹
• USDA Zones: ~5–9³
• Light: Full sun¹
• Water: Moist in spring, drier in summer¹
• Soil: Adaptable; many soils and drainages¹
• Habit: Slender grass-like perennial, 1–3 ft; white umbels²
• Edible: Roots (raw or cooked), young leaves, caraway-like seeds⁴

References

1. Mount Pisgah Arboretum; Cultivariable, Perideridia.
2. Pojar, J. & MacKinnon, A., Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast, 2014.
3. USDA PLANTS Database, Perideridia oregana / gairdneri.
4. Kuhnlein & Turner, Traditional Plant Foods; Klamath-Modoc ethnobotany.

Pot Sizing Guide