Conioselinum scopulorum, July 20, 2021
Common & scientific name
Hemlock parsley, Conioselinum scopulorum
Family
Parsley, Apiaceae
Location
Lower Lost Man, 10,500’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
The sheath on the single stem leave (midway up the plant—see photos) is the defining feature of this uncommon, water-loving parsley. PRESUME it’s poisonous owing to its name, but can’t find info one way or the other???
C. scopulorum, Linkins Lake, 12,000’, July 22, 2021
Eucephalus engelmannii, July 20, 2021
Common & scientific name
Engelmann’s aster, Eucephalus engelmannii
Family
Sunflower, Asteraceae
Location
Roadside, 8,400’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
The “Aster” genus continues to shrink! This late-blooming, woods-loving aster is the tallest of all, up to five feet, with rather scraggly white, widely-spaced “petals” (ray florets).
Apocynum androsaemifolium, July 15, 2021
Common & scientific name
Spreading dogbane, Apocynum androsaemifolium
Family
Dogbane, Apocynaceae
Location
Difficult Trail, 8,300’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
A bane to dogs and other animals owing to its toxic, milky sap, it nevertheless has delightful, bell-shaped, white & pink-striped flowers on large, attractive plants.
Pyrola picta, July 15, 2021
P. picta leaves/plants, July 15, 2021
Common & scientific name
White-veined wintergreen, Pyrola picta
Family
Heath, Ericaceae
Location
NOT DISCLOSED TO PROTECT THIS RARE PLANT
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
This coniferous forest-dweller, unmistakeable owing to its white-veined leaves, has been formally recorded in only a handful of counties in Colorado (one of which is NOT Pitkin County, despite the photo here to the contrary), and is deemed “rare” by the Colorado Native Plant Society & Heritage Program. Interestingly, it is widespread to the west, including in the Sierras and the Cascades; it doesn’t seem to require a particular geologic substrate (volcanic or granitic soil will do; and there is ample, seemingly suitable (i.e., similar) habitat in Colorado. So why it is rare here is a bit of a mystery. Enjoy the mystery and the beauty of this shy forest-dweller!
Rudbeckia laciniata var. ampla, July 15, 2021
R. laciniata var. ampla, July 20, 2021
Common & scientific name
Cutleaf coneflower, Rudbeckia laciniata var. ampla
Family
Sunflower, Asteraceae
Location
Difficult Campground, 8,200’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
This tall sunflower likes wet places, including the wetlands on the way to Difficult Campground. It grows throughout the US, and can reportedly grow up to 10-feet tall! I see this plant in the wetter Marble area more often than Indy Pass.
Galium boreale, July 15, 2021
Common & scientific name
Northern bedstraw, Galium boreale
Family
Madder, Rubiaceae
Location
Difficult Campground, 8,200’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
This common (but rather uncommon on the Pass) plant is all about fours: it has whorls of four leaves around its square stem, and its clusters of white flowers have four petals. Its name refers to a different species of Galium that was used as bedstraw.
G. boreale, July 20, 2021
Lepidium ramosissimum, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Many-branched pepperweed, Lepidium ramosissimum
Family
Mustard, Brassicaceae
Location
Roadside, 9,500’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
Likes disturbed soil (like roadsides), and I’ve never noticed it until this year, when it had gone to seed. Apparently its flowers are so rudimentary, or altogether absent, that it’s easy to overlook; at least, that is, until its hundreds of round siiques make their appearance.
Chimaphila umbellata, July 15, 2021
Common & scientific name
Pippisewa, Chimaphila umbellata
Family
Heath, Ericaceae
Location
Difficult Trail, 8,400’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
This delightful deep forest dweller is, according to Janis Huggins, author of the incomparable Wild at Heart, indicative of a healthy forest. If beauty is an indication of health—and I think it is—she is correct!
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C. umbellata, July 15, 2021
Rubus parviflorus, July 20, 2021
R. parviflorus, July 15, 2021
Common & scientific name
Thimbleberry, Rubus parviflorus
Family
Rose, Rosaceae
Location
Difficult Trail, 8,300’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
This rather sad-looking bloom represents the last of the flowers, before it drops its petals and becomes a berry. And just as I denigrate the fruit of its cousin, Woods rose, as “mealy,” I am here to defend to the death the thimbleberry, often accused of same. When the berry of this lovely shrub is discretely chosen—it should be bright red, plump, and soft—it is hands down, in this writer’s opinion, our tastiest berry, a perfect blend of sweet and tart, and readily available trailside to boot: look for it in late July & early August.
Hieraceum albiflorum, July 15, 2021
Common & scientific name
White hawkweed, Hieraceum albiflorum
Family
Sunflower, Asteraceae
Location
Difficult Trail, 8,400’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
Another dandelion-like flower (ray florets only), but white, rather spindly, and considered a “weedy” species in some places, as it readily recolonizes disturbed ground (e.g., post-fire or logging). On the Pass it occurs infrequently on dry, open soil.
As a subject of the US Forest Service’s Fire Effects study, it was learned that “White hawkweed is susceptible to high levels of human trampling. A study from western Montana revealed that white hawkweed has low (<10% increase) resilience in terms of short- and long-term recovery of relative cover after being trampled. Its resistance is listed as moderate (200 to 400 passes/year required to reduce frequency). It can tolerate light (75 to 100 passes/year) trampling and still recover.”
Please don’t trample the daisies!
Shepherdia canadensis, July 15, 2021
Common & scientific name
Canada buffaloberry or Soapberry, Shepherdia canadensis
Family
Oleaster, Elaeagnaceae
Location
Difficult Creek, 8,300’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
I’m showing this plant in fruit, as opposed to in bloom, because I missed bloom time, which is easy to do: the flowers are tiny, greenish, and somewhat hidden in the plant’s leaf axils. By contrast, their July/August red berries (those pictured here are a bit orange, as they’re early in development) are so bright as to be impossible to miss, and are favorites of grouse and black bears. They are also edible for humans: I tried one and found it pleasantly sweet, although every book says that that sweetness devolves into an unpleasant soapy flavor (hence its other common name, “soapberry”). Try for yourself, then cleanse the palate with a neighboring thimbleberry, if necessary!
Cirsium parryi, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Parry’s thistle, Cirsium parryi
Family
Sunflower, Asteraceae
Location
Roadside, 9,500’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
As I’ve said before, not all thistles are “bad”—i.e., non-native invasives—and indeed with a little time and attention paid can take on a certain charm (in addition to being pollinator favorites). This thistle is uncommon on the Pass, mostly at mid-elevation (montane), and has distinctly yellow flowers.
Holodiscus discolor, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Oceanspray, Holodiscus discolor
Family
Rose, Rosaceae
Location
Weller Curve, 9,400’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
This drought-tolerant, quickly growing shrub loves the Pass’s lower roadside areas. And if you guessed it was in the rose family, you are a better botanist than me!
Potentilla arguta, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Tall cinquefoil, Potentilla/Drymocallis arguta
Family
Rose, Rosaceae
Location
Roadside, 9,500’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
It’s white. Our only white potentilla, and therefore the easiest by far to identify! Now WHY it’s called “tall cinquefoil,” instead of “white,” and WHEN its genus will be decided once and for all, are outstanding questions.
Calochortus gunnisonii, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Sego lily, Calochortus gunnisonii
Family
Lily, Lilaceae
Location
Roadside, 9,400’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
Named after the mid-19th century surveyor and explorer, Captain JW Gunnison, whose expedition discovered this lovely lily for science (and for whom the town to the south is named), it’s hard to think of another wildflower that brings such delight, with its delicate, intricately designed inner cup. Look for it in aspen groves and open meadows on the Pass.
Urtica gracilis, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Stinging nettle, Urtica dioica
Family
Nettle, Urticaceae
Location
Roadside near Lincoln Creek turnoff, 9,700’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
A native plant found only occasionally on the Pass, usually at the base of rock cliffs or slopes where it can find water. The hollow, stinging hairs on its leaves and stems act like hypodermic needles, injecting histamine and other chemicals that produce a stinging sensation when touched. Use water to alleviate the sting!
Orthilla secunda, July 14, 2021
O. sedunda, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
One-sided wintergreen, Orthilia secunda
Family
Wintergreen/Heath, Pyrolaceae/Ericaceae
Location
Grottos, 9,700’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
The above two-family nomenclature reflects the current state of disagreement among botanists as to where this diminutive, dark- woods flower belongs. It is probably the Pass’s most common wintergreen, er, heath . . . .
Senecio eremophilus, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Cutleaf groundsel, Senecio eremophilus
Family
Sunflower, Asteraceae
Location
Weller Curve, 9,500
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
Owing to its tall size, much-branched and leafy appearance, and deeply cut leaves, this Senecio is easy to tell apart from its many cousins. It is rarely seen on the Pass, most commonly roadside.
Verbascum thapsus, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Woolly mullein, Verbascum thapsus
Family
Evening primrose, Onograceae
Location
Weller Curve, 9,500
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
I always thought this roadside weed was good for emergency toilet paper and that was about it.
Alas, the wonderfully rich and detailed USFS Fire Effects Information System taught me otherwise: “Common mullein was likely introduced to the eastern United States more than 230 years ago. Before the Revolutionary War, common mullein seeds were brought and cultivated by early settlers for the easy collection of fish. . . .
Given a seed source and a canopy opening, common mullein is a potential inhabitant of nearly any vegetation or community type. . . .
Self and cross pollination of common mullein flowers are both possible. If by the end of the day an open flower has not been visited by a pollinator, it is self pollinated ("delayed selfing”).”
Cool beans!
Senecio pudicus, July 14, 2021
Common & scientific name
Bashful ragwort, Senecio pudicus
Family
Sunflower, Asteraceae
Location
Roadside, 9,500’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
Rayless ragwort, grows up against rocks, heads droop “bashfully,” I guess!