dramatic

Showing 1–12 of 32 results

  • Abies lasiocarpa / subalpine fir

    • narrow, tall, sharply tipped trees
    • cones purple and erect; disintegrate in the fall
    • needles flattened, soft and blunt tipped, brushed upward
    • needles sessile - no petioles or pegs
    • leaf (needle) scars round

  • Aquilegia coerulea / Colorado blue columbine

    • blue to white to pink or yellow tinged
    • long spurs (tails) as long as the petals are large
    • blooms late spring and July (stragglers in August)

  • Balsamorhiza sagittata / arrowleaf balsamroot

    • large, bright yellow, sunflower-like blossoms in early spring
    • very large, more or less triangular basal leaves
    • leaves appear silvery, or grey-green due to leaf hairs
    • on open, fairly dry hillsides and ridges, often with sagebrush

  • Calochortus nuttallii / sego lily

    • 3 large white petals
    • purple spots that border yellow glands
    • tangle of hairs (a "beard") at the base of the petals
    • but... very variable arrangement of spots, hairs etc.
    • rocky, exposed sites

  • Calypso bulbosa / eastern fairy-slipper

    • pink/magenta/mauve/purple orchid
    • lighter lower lip highlighted with purple veins; star-like petals and sepals
    • pointy bract behind flower
    • single oval, wrinkled leaf at ground level
    • about 6 inches tall

  • Castilleja covilleana / Rocky Mountain paintbrush

    • clearly, one of the "Indian paintbrushes"
    • early bloomer in the spring, even when quite short
    • bright red, orange (sometimes yellow) bracts
    • bracts and leaves have 3-7 deep lobes with long, soft hairs
    • often grows in clusters

  • Castilleja linariifolia / Wyoming Indian paintbrush

    • generally taller than most paintbrushes (up to 3 feet)
    • very thin leaves, seldom lobed, seldom hairy
    • red inflorescence bracts, may be lobed
    • flowers extend well beyond bracts
    • calyx is red and shorter than the corolla which is greenish yellow
    • rocky areas with sagebrush and conifer forests

  • Chamerion angustifolium / fireweed

    • bright pink flowers on tall inflorescence (raceme)
    • flowers mature from bottom to top
    • four petals
    • spiral leaf arrangement - lance-shaped leaves have smooth edges
    • pod-like seed capsule releases seeds to the wind

  • Cirsium vulgare / bull thistle

    • very nasty spines all over, including stems
    • purple flower head over pear/egg-shaped narrow, spiny bracts
    • fruits are thistle-downy
    • disturbed areas, but also forest gaps, stream sides and seeps

  • Corallorhiza maculata / spotted coralroot

    • short, brown/red leafless flowering stalk, often in clumps
    • intricate all brown/red-ish flowers except for a white lower lip, with reddish spots
    • in conifer or aspen forest understory

  • Erigeron speciosus / aspen fleabane

    • prolific purple-ish flowers with many "petals" and a yellow center
    • forest openings and edges, meadows
    • late blooming - a "fall aster"

  • Erythranthe guttata / seep monkeyflower

    • yellow flowers with red spots in clumps of 5 or more
    • flowers large for the plant, but otherwise "normal" size
    • two "lips" - lower lip larger than upper, each with 2 petals
    • found in wetlands of all kinds

Showing 1–12 of 32 results