Mid May wildflowers

You know it will be a pleasant hike when it starts out like this:

Munson Creek

Oregon Grape ~ Berberis aquifolium

Howell’s Pussytoes ~ Antennaria howellii

A Dandelion was competing with some undergrowth for light and its stem was nearly two feet long.

Lemonweed, Western Gromwell ~ Lithospermum ruderale

This Pacific Trillium is about at the end of its blooming time and has turned pink.

Field Chickweed ~ Cerastium arvense

Heart-leaf Arnica ~ Arnica cordifolia

Arnica bud

And don’t forget the Fairyslippers…

More wildflowers are showing up just about every day now. It’s just a matter of getting out where they are!

Lemonweed ~ Lithospermum ruderale

Wild Strawberry ~ Fragaria virginiana

Heart-leaved Arnica ~ Arnica cordifolia

Early Blue Violet ~ Viola adunca

Fairyslipper, Calypso Orchid ~ Calypso bulbosa

Early May wildflowers.

In spite of a cold spring and below normal rainfall here in western Montana, the wildflowers are blooming, but about two weeks later than usual. This morning there was fresh snow on the mountainsides a thousand feet above the valley floor.

Western Gromwell, Lemonweed ~ Lithospermum ruderale

Western Serviceberry, Saskatoon ~ Amelanchier alnifolia

Field Pepperweed, Field Peppergrass or Pepperwort, Field Cress ~ Lepidium campestre

Fairy Slipper, Calypso orchid ~ Calypso bulbosa

Marsh Valerian, Northern Valerian ~ Valeriana dioica

Hooker Fairy-bells ~ Prosartes hookeri

Kinnikinnik ~ Arctostaphylos uva-ursi

Field Chickweed ~ Cerastium arvense

Arrowleaf Balsamroot ~ Balsamorhiza sagittata

Black Hawthorn ~ Crataegus douglasii

Holboell’s rockcress ~ Boechera pendulocarpa

Menzies’ fiddleneck ~ Amsinckia menziesii

Meadow death-camas ~ Toxicoscordion venenosum

Large-flowered Tritelia ~ Triteleia grandiflora

Arnica, Clematis, Gromwell

In May, the wildflower parade continues…

Heart-leaved Arnica, Heart-leaf leopard bane, Arnica cordifolia

Blue Clematis, Columbia clematis, Clematis occidentalis

Lemonweed, Western Gromwell, Western stoneseed, Lithospermum ruderale

Lemonweed

Lemonweed, Western Stoneseed, Columbian Puccoon, Western Gromwell ~ Lithospermum ruderale

Other early blooms

It has been dry and rather cold this spring in this region and the regular bloom times for wildflowers seems to be greatly disrupted. Some are scarce and I’m afraid some will not bloom at all this year. There is practically no moisture in the soil. Here are a few that I’ve seen in the past few days and their populations are very low.

~ Small-flowered Blue-Eyed Mary, Collinsia parviflora, figwort family ~

~ Wayside gromwell, Lemonweed, Lithospermum ruderale, borage family ~

~ Western stickseed, Lappula redowskii, borage family ~

~ Narrow-leaved Desert Parsley, Lomatium triternatum, Cous, carrot family ~

~ Mule-ears, Wyethia amplexicaulis, aster family ~
(In a few days, this will look like a medium-size sunflower)

~ Wild strawberry, Fragaria virginiana, rose family ~