flowers

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Chamerion (Epilobium) angustifolium “Fireweed” Onagraceae

Great Burn, Lolo National Forest, MT
July 10, 2015
Robert Niese

 

Unlike its name suggests, Fireweed is hardly a weed! One of the PNW’s most abundant wildflowers, Fireweed holds an important role in nearly every native culture. Its young shoots and leaves are a delicacy to some, and medicinally important to others. Many peoples used fibers torn from its shoots to make rope, and, still today, folks throughout the northern hemisphere use its fluffy seeds as a natural stuffing for pillows.

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Rudbeckia occidentalis “Western Coneflower” Asteraceae

Great Burn, Lolo National Forest, MT
July 10, 2015
Robert Niese

While most coneflowers that are grown in gardens tend to have showy, petal-like ray flowers, these PNW endemics have only disc flowers. The Western Coneflower is an uncommon resident of moist meadows and valleys in the Northwest and has a very scattered distribution throughout our region. When you do stumble across a population of them, however, they tend to be in great abundance. During our weekend of backpacking in the Bitterroots, these flowers were only just beginning to bloom, and I suspect that most will be done blooming within the week.

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Cornus canadensis “Canadian Bunchberry” Cornaceae

Weir Hot Springs, Clearwater National Forest, ID
June 8, 2015
Robert Niese

Bunchberry is another member of the genus Cornus, but unlike its shrubby cousins, C. sericea and C. nuttallii, this species rarely grows more than a few inches from the ground. And unlike C. sericea, bunchberry flowers are minute, inconspicuous, and subtended by large, white bracts which are often mistaken for petals. It shares this type of inflorescence with the Pacific Dogwood, C. nuttallii. The fruits of the bunchberry, while not particularly tasty, are high in pectin and are often added to jams and puddings.

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Cornus sericea “Red Osier Dogwood” Cornaceae

Weir Hot Springs, Clearwater National Forest, ID
June 8, 2015
Robert Niese

Red Osier Dogwood, so named for its beautiful red bark, is a common riparian and moist forest species throughout the PNW. Our region is home to three members of the genus Cornus and they couldn’t look any less alike! While C. sericea grows in a large shrubby form, it’s close cousin C. canadensis only grows a single stem a few centimeters off the ground. And C. nuttallii grows as a tree with large, white, showy “flowers.” In the fall and winter, Red Osier Dogwood’s white berries attract grouse and other birds, but are largely unpalatable to humans. Its bark, however, is often used in kinnikinnick and tobacco smoking mixtures.

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Cornus sericea “Red Osier Dogwood” Cornaceae

Weir Hot Springs, Clearwater National Forest, ID
June 8, 2015
Robert Niese

Red Osier Dogwood, so named for its beautiful red bark, is a common riparian and moist forest species throughout the PNW. Our region is home to three members of the genus Cornus and they couldn’t look any less alike! While C. sericea grows in a large shrubby form, it’s close cousin C. canadensis only grows a single stem a few centimeters off the ground. And C. nuttallii grows as a tree with large, white, showy “flowers.” In the fall and winter, Red Osier Dogwood’s white berries attract grouse and other birds, but are largely unpalatable to humans. Its bark, however, is often used in kinnikinnick and tobacco smoking mixtures.

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Lonicera involucrata “Twinberry” Caprifoliaceae

Beachside State Park, OR
June 11, 2015
Robert Niese

Twinberry is a common coastal shrub in the PNW. It tends to produce flowers in pairs that are regularly defended by Rufous Hummingbirds. These flowers usually develop into a pair of inedible berries. Many coastal native peoples held taboos against eating these berries. Some said that they were the food of monsters and the dead. Others believed that you would be unable to speak after consuming them. Instead the berries were often used as a hair dye and to prevent graying.

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Asarum caudatum “Wild Ginger” Aristolochiaceae

Weir Hot Springs, Clearwater National Forest, ID
June 8, 2015
Robert Niese

The leaves of Asarum caudatum (a PNW endemic) smell like ginger when you rub them, but apparently contain carcinogens and may or may not be good in your tea. Their flowers grow on the ground beneath the leaves and are pollinated by beetles, flies, and even rodents. Pollinated flowers produce seeds with a fatty elaiosomes that are collected by ants and subsequently planted in the colony. 

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Rhamnus purshiana “Cascara” Rhamnaceae

Weir Hot Springs, Clearwater National Forest ID
June 8, 2015
Robert Niese

Cascara is a Pacific Northwest endemic famous for the laxative properties of its bark. In fact, the bark of this species is in such high demand that the plant has been eradicated from some parts of its range. Regardless of its medicinal uses, Cascara is one of my favorite PNW trees because of its unmistakable, heavily veined leaves and its adorable, teensy-tiny flowers! These are only a few millimeters across!

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Halictus sp. “Sweat Bee” Halictidae on
Geranium viscosissimum “Sticky Geranium” Geraniaceae

Drinking Horse Mountain, Bozeman, MT
June 3, 2015
Robert Niese

Sticky Geranium, as its name would suggest, is covered in tiny glandular hairs that are quite sticky to the touch. Some have suggested that these sticky glands are capable of capturing and digesting small orgnanisms, making the plant slightly carnivorous. It grows in meadows, Ponderosa Pinelands, and at the edge of sagebrush-steppe habitats throughout the PNW. 

/ RobNiese / Leave a comment

Prunus virginiana “Chokecherry” Rosaceae

Drinking Horse Mountain, Bozeman, MT
June 3, 2015
Robert Niese

Chokecherry is a native species of cherry that is abundant on the drier, east-facing mountain slopes of the PNW. It was a staple food for many tribes in our area and is still regularly harvested by many native peoples. Each small fruit has a pit in the center (like a cherry) which can make its preparation difficult. Check out Abe Lloyd’s blog for details and recipes for things like Chokecherry fruit-leather, jam, and wine.