Balsamroot

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Arrow-leaved balsamroot (Balsamorhiza sagittata) is a perennial in the Asteracaea (sunflower) family.    It has a long, woody taproot and a branched base.  The basal stems are glandular and slightly hairy.  the basal eaves are triangular (arrow-leaved) at the ends of long stems.    They start with a silvery color and turn green as they mature.    Fine hairs  cover the leaf surfaces.   

The flower heads have large ray and disk yellow flowers blooming in the spring.   

 After blooming achenes (single seeds) form, which are dispersed in summer.   In dry and hot summers, the leaves and stems turn brown, and wither. 

All parts of the plant are edible and have been consumed by wildlife, and have traditionally been used by First Nations people across a wide area.    We can spot balsamroot in flower at lower elevations, middle elevations, in the grasslands, in sunny glades, and on open ridges in the Interior.      

For those of us get out to hike and explore the hills in spring, the arrival of the balsamroot feels like a spring celebration.

Northern Bedstraw

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Northern bedstraw (Galium boreale) is a perennial which grows from creeping rhizomes, with squarish stems in clusters.   Narrow lanceolate veined and pointed leaves in groups of 4 are on evenly-spaced whorls around the stems.   Small white flowers emerge in panicles at the tops of the stems.   Each flower has 4 pointed white sections “folded-back”  around a fused “tube”.  Stems with … Continue reading →

Mid-September Nature Hikes

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Mild weather means lots of continued hiking and paddling on trails and routes in the Interior.    Habitats vary from dry lower elevations to high forest areas.   With such widespread drought, many flowering plants turned more quickly to seeding/fruiting and some later-blooming species seemed less robust.    A few plants continued their flowering cycle as usual, weathering the heat and … Continue reading →

Desert Yellow Fleabane

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Desert yellow fleabane (Erigeron linearis) is a perennial with a thick base and a branching base.   It is sometimes called fine-leaved daisy or linear-leaved daisy.   Straight stems range from short to 30 cm tall.    Leaves are mostly basal, linear, often close to the stems, and hairy.   Terminal flowers are ray-and-disk pattern with bright yellow petals from a involucre bracts.  … Continue reading →

Trailside, in Early September

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As the summer heat and smoke dissipated at the end of August, drought conditions carried on, with dry vegetation, shrinking lakes, dried-up wet zones, and wildflowers going to seed.    A few late-flowering species could still be spotted (curlycup gumweed, white prairie aster, sweet clover, and others), but the usual summer annual weeds also seemed to take over disturbed areas.  … Continue reading →

Showy Jacob’s-Ladder

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Showy Jacob’s-ladder (Polemonium pulcherrimum sp.) is a perennial herb growing from a taproot and a branched stem.  Clustered leaves are mostly basal and hairy.    The leaves are pinnately compound (featherlike in leaflets).    If handle leaves we will not a “skunky” odor.     The common name arises from the ladder-like shape of the leaves, a Biblical reference. Clusters of … Continue reading →

Trailside in the Forests in Mid-August

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In the middle part of August, each day was an outing in a kayak or on a trail, and quite often both.     Shared here are a few images taken while hiking at Clearwater Lake (cedar hemlock forest), at Stake Lake (Douglas fir, pine, and spruce forests), and mid-elevation mixed forests near McQueen and Isobel Lakes – oak fern, western … Continue reading →

Western Spring Beauty

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Western spring beauty (Claytonia lanceolata) is a perennial that grows from a corm.    Several short stems (some underground) will have a few fleshy basal lanceolate leaves.  Whitish-pinkish flowers with deep pink veins emerge in spring with 2 sepals and 5 petals each in clusters.   After flowering, capsules with seeds develop in late spring and the leaves die back in … Continue reading →

Trailside, on Hot and Smoky Days in Early August

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Early August had smoky, hot, and dry conditions in the southern Interior of BC.   Forest fire smoke blanketed large areas and I used smoke forecast services to go where the smoke was less hazardous.    Often the hikes were shorter, planned for times and areas of tolerable conditions.    The grasslands and forests were very dry and seemed susceptible to … Continue reading →

Showy Milkweed

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Milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) is an upright perennial which grows from rhizomes, 0.5 to 1 m in height with a stout stem.    The plant is hairy on the stems and leaves.     The central stem is somewhat hollow, but with a milky juice inside.    The leaves are mostly lanceolate with a point and have a central lighter-colored vein.    … Continue reading →