Wildflower Walks

Clarkia
Clarkia pulchella

Description: Rose to lavender petals with three lobes and white four-lobed stigma grow from stem 6 to 20 inches tall with narrow leaves. Found in dry, disturbed ground in valleys and on hills. Blooms late May to July. (Peterson Field Guides – Rocky Mountain Wildflowers, by John J. Craighead, Frank C. Craighead Jr. and [...]

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Packer Meadows, June 2007
The camas bloom has arrived at Packer Meadows, just off of U.S. Highway 12 at Lolo Pass. Here’s Tuesday morning’s report from the Lolo Pass Visitor Center hot line, (208) 942-1234:
“Some camas in Packer Meadows are blooming, and give them by the end of the week and they will be in full [...]

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The bitterroots are out along the ridge trail at Waterworks Hill. Here’s a video of the trail:

Justin Grigg

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Bitterroot
Lewisia redivia

Description:White to pinkish flower 1 to 2 inches across with 12 to 18 elliptical petals, 6 to 8 petal-like sepals, and many stamens on a 1- to 3-inch stem. Fleshy leaves rise from the roots and wither before flowering. Found in the rocky, dry soil of valleys, foothills and mountains. Blooms from late April [...]

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Mountain lady’s slipper is making its annual appearance in the Pattee Canyon Recreation Area.
This is one of my favorite wildflowers due solely to its interesting shape, with its brownish-purple sepals and twisted lateral petals, its bulbous white lip petal, and its spotted yellow stamens and pistils.
Look for lady’s slipper along trails 302 and 302.3 near the Crazy [...]

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Meadow death camas
Zigadenus venenosus

Description: Whitish flowers one-quarter-inch wide with distinctive, darker gland at the base of each of six petal-like parts clustered atop a slender stem 1 to 2 feet tall with grasslike leaves. Found in dry soil of plains, sagebrush hills and grassy slopes. Blooms June to August. (Wildflowers of Montana, by Donald Anthony [...]

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The Lolo Pass Visitor Center, just off U.S. Highway 12 on the Montana-Idaho border, reports on its message line that the Packer Meadows camas bloom is running a bit behind this year.
As of Wednesday morning, there was an inch of snow on the ground. “The camas are about two weeks late and probably will not [...]

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The bitterroots recently began blooming on Missoula’s Waterworks Hill, but cool, wet and sometimes snowy weather since last weekend likely put a damper on the process. Hopefully, the warm-and-sunny forecast for the coming weekend will prompt the annual show of pink petals.
In the meantime, check out the collection of bitterroot-related knickknackson display at the Ravalli County [...]

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Wild lily-of-the-valley
Smilacina stellata

Description: Six-pointed star-shaped white flowers one-quarter inch across growing from end of 1- to 2-foot stem with slender, folded leaves. Found in wet soil in open and shaded areas along streams and on mountains. Blooms May to July. (Peterson Field Guides – Rocky Mountain Wildflowers, by John J. Craighead, Frank C. Craighead Jr. [...]

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Due to a National Trails Day project this weekend on Waterworks Hill, the main trail up the ridge will be closed from the radio tower to the summit from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. through Saturday.
Crews with heavy equipment will be dumping boulders in the area that will be used to line the trail in [...]

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