The sego lily was adopted as Utah’s state flower on March 18, 1911. Even earlier, it was depicted on Utah’s state flag, designed by Daughters of the American Revolution in 1903.
To early Spanish explorers, the bright white flowers swaying in the wind resembled butterflies. They called the plant mariposa. Earlier still, Native Americans ate the plant’s starchy walnut-sized bulbs.
The Disaster Blossom
Sego lilies saved many early Mormon pioneers from starvation. The most critical period was 1840-1851 when Utah was visited with a plague of crickets which devoured crops, forcing food rationing.
In October of 1853 Captain John W. Gunnison was guiding a party of botanist-explorers in the foothills of the Front Range near the little town of Deseret in Millard County, Utah. They were ambushed by a band of Indians on October 26. Gunnison was among those killed in the famous massacre.
The sego lily was given the scientific name Calochortus gunnisonii in Gunnison’s honor. Ironically, it also recalls the many Native Americans that were slaughtered by white soldiers and settlers.
The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism - 
