Lewis's Mock-orange
Philadelphus lewisii
Collected by Meriwether Lewis during the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
Lewis's Mock Orange is a deciduous, early summer-flowering shrub whose arching branches bear racemes of 5-11 cup-shaped, pure white flowers in profusion and finely toothed, bright green foliage.
Meriwether Lewis first collected specimens of this showy plant on the Kooskoosky River (Clearwater River, Idaho) in 1806, and the botanist Frederick Pursh later named this Philadelphus species after the explorer.
It is native from British Columbia to California and was being cultivated in the Eastern United States by 1823. Also known as syringa, this mock-orange is the state flower of Idaho.
- Peggy Cornett, n.d.