Draba uniflora, July 16, 2022
Common & scientific names
One-flowered cinquefoil, Potentilla uniflora
Family
Rose, Rosaceae
Location
Mountain Boy, 12,600’
Fun, weird, helpful, or little known facts
This exclusively alpine potentillas three-parted leaves white/hairy above and even more so below, and its flowers look large in comparison to its leaves. There is substantial confusion/flux around a number of potentillas, including this one—should it be included in P. nivea, for example?— and they do tend to hybridize. But for now most experts seem to agree this cinquefoil is properly classified. And to this observer, it appears quite distinct from the taller, more common, and differently-leaved P. nivea (whose leaves are distinctly greener on top).