Fish food, toilet paper, and self-service all in one

Verbascum thapsus, July 24, 2023

Common & scientific name

Woolly mullein, Verbascum thapsus

Family

Evening primrose, Onograceae

Location

Roadside, 9,800’

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!

A cut above

Senecio eremophilus, July 24, 2023

Common & scientific name

Cutleaf groundsel, Senecio eremophilus

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Roadside, 9,700’

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.

July 24

Not a lawn dweller

Agoseris aurantiaca, July 22, 2023

Common & scientific name

Orange agoseris, Agoseris aurantiaca

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Lower Lost Man Trail, 10,600’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

There aren’t many true orange flowers in the wild, which may be the reason why this otherwise very dandelion-like flower grabs ones attention. Like dandelions, Orange agoseris is composed exclusively of ray flowers, and produces a similar seed head. Unlike dandelions, though, you will not see it lining the roadside or invading your lawn. It modestly limits itself, in sparing numbers, to dry meadows from the montane to the alpine on the Pass.

Circumboreal

Pyrola chlorantha, July 22, 2023

Common & scientific name

Green-flowered wintergreen, Pyrola chlorantha

Family

Wintergreen, Pyrolaceae

Location

Midway Trail, 11,000’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

This circumboreal wntergreen is much less common in our woods than P. asarifolia or Orthilla secunda. Grows in drier places, and its style is slightly curved.

Grandaddy thistle

Cirsium scopulorum, July 21, 2023

Upper Lost Man, 12,000’, August 26, 2023

Common & scientific name

Mountain thistle, Cirsium scopulorum

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Upper Lost Man, 12,500’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

These dramatic, native thistles have thorny edged leaves and flowers (disk florets only) cushioned by a downy mass of fine hair. This thistle’s leaves are very 3-D like, and its heavy, fuzzy heads nods noticeably.

July 21

Hoary, not hairy

Senecio wernerifolia, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Hoary groundsel, Packera wernerifolia

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Geissler, 12,900’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

A variable yellow senecio (not always “hoary,” as can be seen in the photo at left), but easy to identify in our area owing to its location (alpine), stature (short), reduced, bract-like stem leaves, and often (subtly) three-toothed leaves at the apex . Named after another genus not found in the US—not Mr. Werner!

July 21

Surprise!

Saxifraga cernua, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Nodding saxifrage, Saxifraga cernua

Family

Saxifrage, Saxifragaceae

Location

Geissler, 12,900’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

With its tall stature (compared to other, delicate, wet rock-hiding saxifrages), conspicuous red bulblets (by which it generally reproduces), and fuzzy/glandular kidney-shaped leaves that somehow, to me anyway, make me think “teddy bear,” this alpine saxifrage is utterly unique and hard to miss—if you are in the right place at the right time!

Above Ruby, 12,600’, August 4, 2023

Black hairs redux

Heiraceum triste, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Slender hawkweed, Hieracium triste

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Upper Lost Man, 12,000’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

This strange, spindly flower is notable largely for the silver and black hairs covering its flower head, which consists solely of ray flowers (“petals”). As with many sunflowers, after fertilization its flowers create a dandelion-like head of seed-carrying hairs that are disbursed by the wind.

Black hairs matter

Erigeron melanocephalus, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Blackhead daisy, Erigeron melanocephalus

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Upper Lost Man, 12,100’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

There’s no mistaking this daisy: the black hairs on the underside of its flower, covering the phyllaries, make this an easy ID in the field. Found in large numbers in the alpine, growing several inches tall with bright-white to very-pale lavender ray flowers. Another well-named flower!

Phyllaries

Wormskjold makes his mark

Veronica wormskjoldii, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Alpine speedwell, Veronica wormskjoldii

Family

Plantain, Plantaginaceae

Location

Upper Lost Man, 12,000’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

Common, variably-sized, delightful subalpine and alpine plant that frequently grows trailside near streams or wetlands. Named after Danish botanist, Morton Wormskjold. Hopefully he didn’t discover too many other plants.

An angelic carrot

Angelica grayi, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Gray’s angelica, Angelica grayi

Family

Parsley, Apiaceae

Location

Geisslerl, 12,900’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

This alpine carrot is unmistakeable, with its large umbel of greenish flowers and overall stocky demeanor. It is usually found high on the Pass near water in the company of many other flowers and grasses.

With Senecio fremontii, Green Mountain, 12,000’, August 2, 2023

Not a lemon

Oxyeria digyna, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Mountain sorrel, Oxyria digyna

Family

Buckwheat, Polygonaceae

Location

Geissler, 13,100’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

Heart-shaped leaves and red and green flowers then seeds make this charming alpine plant unmistakeable. The tart, lemony leaves are edible and have been enjoyed by humans and wildlife alike for millennia.

A rare delight

Chionophila jamesii, July 21, 2023

Above Ruby, 12,600’, August 4. 2023

Common & scientific name

Snowlover, Chionophila jamesii

Family

Plantain, Plantaginaceae

Location

NOT DISCLOSED TO PROTECT THIS RARE PLANT

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

Classified as a rare plant of Colorado, the careful observer can find it with some regularity on the high peaks of Independence Pass. It stands 3” high, and its one-sided, cream-colored flowers are the opposite of showy. That being said, it is always a delight to find this snowlover, for three reasons: (1) it looks like no other wildflower, with a subtle, intricate beauty that requires a close-up viewing, (2) it is a rare plant, seen probably by 0.0001% of the world’s population, and you’re one of them!, and (3) if you’re finding it, you’re in the high alpine, which is the definition of delight.

Reindeer pollination

Campanula uniflora, July 21, 2023

Common & scientific name

Arctic bellflower, Campanula uniflora

Family

Harebell, Campanulaceae

Location

Geissler, 12,400’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

The following comes from a website called The Flora of Svalbard. Svalbard (in case you didn’t know, like I didn’t) is a Norwegian archipelago between mainland Norway and the North Pole. One of the world’s northernmost inhabited areas, it's known for its rugged, remote terrain of glaciers and frozen tundra sheltering polar bears, Svalbard reindeer and Arctic foxes. The Northern Lights are visible during winter, and summer brings the “midnight sun”—sunlight 24 hours a day.

What I found fascinating is how this other-worldly place’s treatment of this plant we enjoy in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado applies here equally:

“The plant flowers from mid July to mid August. Flowers potentially pollinated by insects but self pollination is probably common. We have no information on germination rate of seeds of the Svalbard populations; however, the plant must recruit regularly as populations of this relatively short-lived plant sustain in the same locations for a long time. . . . Local seed dispersal is facilitated by the stiff stems and the capsules with apical pores, resulting in ballistic dispersal during strong winds or when touched by animals (reindeer).”

Presumably elk, mountain goats, marmots & pika would perform the same role here!

There's gold in them thar hills

Saxifraga chrysantha, July 21, 2023

July 21

Common & scientific name

Golden saxifrage, Saxifraga chrysantha

Family

Saxifrage, Saxifragaceae

Location

Geissler, 12,900’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

A single yellow flower with orange dots at the base of its petals sits atop a 2”-3” red stem covered with gland-tipped hairs (as can be seen in this photo) arising from a sweet little rosette of succulent leaves. Yet another jewel of the alpine! It does not have the red runners of its close cousin, Saxifraga flagellaris.

July 21

On the straight and narrow

Senecio serra, July 19, 2023

Common & scientific name

Tall ragwort, Senecio serra

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Difficult campground, 8,100’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

Senecio serra’s long, narrow, serrated leaves distinguish it from the equally tall Senecio triangularis, whose leaves, you guessed it, are more triangle-shaped and have bigger teeth. The latter seems also to require more water, and is often seen in the company of bluebells, larkspur, and monkshood.

Is the end nigh?

Helimoerus grandiflora, July 19, 2023

Common & scientific name

Showy goldeneye, Heliomeris multiflora

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Roadside, 8,200’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

Grows from the foothills to the subalpine, and is most often seen roadside on the lower portion of Independence Pass. The penultimate sunflower (“helios” means “sun”), it is a favorite of bees, both sweat and bumble. It is considered a late summer flower—and is blooming in July! (Hint: don’t wait to see the flower show this summer—it will end early.)

July 19

Another fuzzy wuzzy

Erigeron elatior, July 19, 2023

Common & scientific name

Tall fleabane, Erigeron elatior

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Lower Lost Man, 10,500’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

Despite its common name, what sets this daisy apart is its extremely fuzzy, purple phyllaries (see photo below). Can be found in subalpine aspen forests and wet alpine areas.

July 19

Unleash the elephants!

Pedicularis groenlandica, July 19, 2023

Common & scientific name

Elephanthead, Pedicularis groenlandica

Family

Broomrape, Orobanchaceae

Location

Roadside, 10,700’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

Mother Nature at her most whimsical! Who could not love this faithful reproduction of an elephant’s head on a flower? Enjoy it for the next month in all high, wet places.

Oh, and FYI, this flower is NOT found in Greenland, its scientific name notwithstanding

Upper Lost Man, 12,100’, August 26, 2023

Mid-summer daisy

Erigeron coulteri, July 19, 2023

Common & scientific name

Coulter’s daisy, Erigeron coulteri

Family

Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location

Lower Lost Man, 10,500’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact

This is one of our most common later-summer daisies, blooming from the montane to the alpine in meadows and moist woodlands. It is of medium height (usually less than a foot), has bright white, very thin ray florets (petals), and has white and black hairs on the underside of its flowerhead (on its phyllaries—see photo below left). If you see a giant version of this, standing several feet tall, with fewer but wider petals, you are seeing Engelmann’s aster, another late-summer bloomer.