When the camas was in bloom, the Me-Schal traveled down to the meadows and encamped along side other Nisqually to dig up the bulbs. They had to wait for the camas to bloom to tell them which bulbs were safe and which were toxic. If the bloom was white, it meant the camas was poison. A lavender bloom signaled a safe bulb to pound down and process to eat or store back home for later use.