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COLORADO WILD FLOWERS

MUSEUM PICTORIAL

ROBERTS

Copyright 1953, by Denver Museum of Natural History, Denver, Colorado

Lithographed in the United States of America by Bradford-Robinson Printing Company, Denver, Colorado

The original color films used for the plates on pages 15 and 26, were heretofore reproduced in different form in "American Wild Flowers"--Moldenke, published in 1949 by D. Van Nostrand Co., New York, with whose permission they are again reproduced here.

The pen and ink diagrams and sketches on pages 3, 60, 61, 62 and inside back cover, were prepared by Mary Chilton Gray, of the staff of Denver Museum of Natural History.

SOME COMMON COLORADO WILD FLOWERS

FOREWORD

The generous acceptance of the first seven numbers of MUSEUM PICTORIAL convinced the Trustees of the Denver Museum of Natural History that the publication is filling a definite need in the field of natural history reports. The subjects are so varied that a wealth of material is available.

The present issue is the first printed in color, and will, we hope, be followed by others. The authors, Harold and Rhoda Roberts, probably are the foremost photographers of wild flowers of Colorado and the Southwest. This field work has carried them from the tops of the highest mountains of Colorado to the depths of Death Valley. Their outstanding Kodachrome slides have been shown to many audiences and have appeared in publications. It is hoped that Museum Pictorial No. 8 will be the first of a series on Colorado wild flowers by the authors, which may eventually be compiled into book form.

Harold Roberts, prominent Denver attorney, is a Trustee of the Museum, and chairman of its Building Committee.

The purpose of this booklet is to portray a few of the common wildflowers of Colorado in such form that they may be recognized and their names learned without the use of any botanical key. The color plates here published show fifty different flowering plants, each of which grows in abundance in some part of this state. Most of them are found also in other areas, particularly in the Rocky Mountain states. With the description of each plant, some reference is made to the life zone in which it grows, but no attempt is made to give the geographical extent of its range. In every instance the photograph reproduced was taken on Kodachrome film of a living plant in its natural setting. All of them are shown in full bloom as we see them in Spring or Summer, except milkweed, page 43, and cattail, back cover. These appear in seed as we find them along the roadsides in October.

The flowers are here arranged in substantially the order that the families to which they belong appear in most botany manuals. Some references to these plant families, and to the genera and species into which they are subdivided, will be found on page 57. With each plant we have given the common name most familiar to us. As there is little uniformity in common name usage, others may know them by other names. We have added in each case, in italics, the Latin botanical name, with abbreviated identification of the botanist first using that name. The English form of the family name is also given. We have tried to select flowers representing as many plant families as possible, and among them to cover plants from different altitudes and from different types of soil and growing conditions.

Some of these photographs were taken at close range, with a long focal length lens, to show on a large scale the beauty of very small flowers. Others were taken with different equipment so as to include the form of the complete plant and show plainly its natural setting. In all cases the size of the flower and of the entire plant are given in or may be inferred from the descriptive text. The figures used are approximate, and considerable variation from these sizes will be found. The colors are as accurate as colorfilm and high class press work can make them.

The pictures here reproduced were all taken by the authors within the past twelve years. Most of the plants were found within a few hundred feet of some well traveled road. A few of the pictures were taken in adjoining states, but in every such instance the species shown is found in the same sort of environment in Colorado. Many of these flowers are reproduced as part of the setting in habitat life groups in the Denver Museum of Natural History. Look for them there, and also get acquainted with them in their native haunts. They add decided interest to outdoor ramblings.

LIFE ZONES

Climate, which is a composite of prevailing temperature, length of season and average moisture, is the chief factor in deciding where plants of any given species can grow and propagate. Soil type also plays a part, and if extremely unfavorable may totally exclude some species of plants from a large and otherwise favorable area, but in general, soil is the minor factor. In Colorado, climate is largely determined by altitude, so here, as we pass from one elevation to another, we find plant life arranged in horizontal layers or zones of the sort illustrated in the above sketch. The thinness of air, in the sense of less oxygen per cubic foot of air, that goes with high elevation, seems in itself to have little effect on plant life, but the prevailing cold, the long period of snow cover, and the increase in annual precipitation, that go with elevation in our mountains, do have a profound influence on plant growth. High latitude has much the same effect as high altitude, so that the timberline conditions we find in Colorado at from 11,000 to 12,000-foot elevations are very similar to those existing at sea level near the Arctic Circle. Growing conditions, and prevailing plant species, at these widely separated places, are, for this reason, much alike.

These zones of life have no sharp boundaries, but tend to intergrade into each other. Many species of plants normally inhabit parts of two or more zones, and local conditions may so influence climate that particular species of plants will be found growing at lower elevations, or at higher, in one part of the state than in another. Generally, however, in Colorado like elevations result in plant populations of quite similar makeup, even though a whole range of mountains or a deep wide valley may lie between. The principal factor causing exceptions to this rule is the tendency of many areas in western Colorado, particularly those between about 6,000 and 10,000 feet in elevation, to receive greater average annual precipitation than is received by corresponding areas east of the Continental Divide. As a result of this, many species which in eastern Colorado occur only in moderately high elevations will be found clear down in the foothills in western sections.

The individual life zones of Colorado are illustrated and described on the next five pages.

PLAINS

All of Colorado lying east of the base of the mountains, as well as large areas in western Colorado lying along the course of the Colorado River and its main tributaries, are within the life zone commonly known as the Plains, and referred to in technical books as Upper Sonoran. These areas are mainly below 5500 feet in elevation, and are relatively flat. Clay soils are the rule, with local sandy spots. The rainfall throughout this zone is scanty and irrigation essential to general farming. These conditions have restricted the native vegetation throughout this zone to species which can tolerate long periods of drought, and thrive on sunshine with heat in summer and cold in winter. A surprising number of species of flowering plants live and thrive on these very conditions. We rarely find them in colorful masses, single plants or small colonies being the rule.

Originally native grasses covered this zone with a fairly tight sod, broken, however, by windblown patches and cut by arroyos. Live streams were far apart. Trees were absent except for cottonwoods and a few box elders along water courses. Settlement has brought roads, ditches, cultivated fields and a large amount of livestock. These acts of man have made life hard for some native flowers, but for most species, living opportunity has been increased. The plains are flowerless only for those who fail to pause and search.

The detailed growth patterns or specialized mechanisms by which the various plains flowers resist drought, and so get a chance to live, are numerous. In general they do one or more of these things: rush through a short individual life cycle from seed to seed so timed that the new seed crop is set before the heat of summer is far advanced; conserve the limited moisture their roots gather by having few leaves and defending them from animals by thorns or toughness; or, spend a large part of every year, especially the dry, hot months, as a dormant bulb or buried root stock.

The picture at the top of this page shows a plains area just at the base of the foothills near Denver. It looks barren, but many species of flowers can be found there in May and June.

FOOTHILLS

Long strips of land from 5500 to 8000 feet in elevation lying between the plains and the mountains, and filling in with rough hills and valleys the spaces between mountain ranges, comprise a life zone known as the Foothills, and named, by naturalists, the Transition zone. In this zone much of the soil is filled with gravel and weathered rock detritus washed down from higher land or left there by ancient glaciers. Total annual rainfall in this zone is higher than on the plains, and the broken character of the land gives protection from storms.

A greater number of species of flowering plants can be found in this zone than in any other single zone. Local conditions of soil, water and sun exposure vary widely, and these variations offer favorable living conditions to different types of flowering plants and to the numerous shrubs that grow here. Many species of wild flowers which grow on the plains extend into the lower parts of this zone, while other species found in the higher mountains reach down into it, especially along streams.

The chief native trees of this zone are yellow pine and, along streams, narrow leaf cottonwood. Scrub oak covers many hillsides with dense growth, junipers are locally plentiful, and aspens reach down from higher elevations. This tree population attains forest proportions only here and there so that open places for wild flowers are abundant.

In Colorado, visible spring comes earlier in this zone than on the plains below. Sheltered slopes facing the sun pick up the earliest flush of spring green, and by the end of March the very first flowers may here be found in bloom. Late April, May and early June bring the main flower crop. Mass color effects may then be found such as several acres blue with Larkspur, or a whole hillside dotted with red clumps of Lambert's Loco. The main show is over by mid-July, though asters and sunflower-like composites keep the roadsides colorful till frost.

The picture at the top of this page shows a foothills area near Golden. In good years these hills are rich in flowers by early May. A half hour walk then will frequently yield 30 species or more.

MONTANE

The great mid-sections of our high mountains, lying between 8,000 and 10,000 feet in elevation, make up a life zone called Montane, also known as Canadian. Since most of our Colorado mountains are granite, the typical soils in this zone are granite gravel. Some mountains, however, are faulted blocks of sedimentary rock which have weathered into clay and sand soils. The annual rainfall in this zone is over double that of our plains. This has resulted in forests of lodgepole pine, aspens, and of several species of spruce, with stream banks lined with willows and water birch.

This abundance of vegetation has produced enough humus to build rich black soil in the bottoms of the narrow valleys. In this zone grow a wealth of flowering plants. The principal adverse conditions against which they struggle for existence are: a fairly short season from spring melt to fall freeze; and more tree shade and more competition from tree and shrub roots than they would choose. The steep hillsides in this zone may be quite rock covered. Between the rocks small amounts of good soil may form, and under loose rocks moisture stays for a long time. Trees thrive on these hillsides, but in open spots and beside rocky outcrops flowers get their chance. The columbine grows in perfection in this zone, extending downward into the foothills and upward to timberline.

The building of highways in our mountain areas has introduced new conditions of which some plants are quick to take advantage. The stirred-up soil of new road fills and drainage channel construction will be colorful with fireweed, purple fringe, brown-eyed-susans, with here and there penstemons and asters by the second or third season of their use. Local irrigation accomplished by highway drainage and the use of snowplows, as well as distribution of seeds by animals and even by cars that use the roads, all play their part in this quick restoration of life in the soil that has been torn up.

The picture at the top of this page was taken near Mary's Lake in Estes Park. The mountain shown is Twin Sisters. Its slopes are a fine hunting ground for flowers.

SUB-ALPINE

Above 10,000 feet the pattern of life changes. Until timberline is reached at about 11,500 feet, this band of mountain country is called the Sub-Alpine or Hudsonian life zone. Soil and moisture conditions are almost as favorable as in the lower montane zone, but here the snows of winter stay late, especially on north slopes, and frost may come even in mid-summer. The race to ripen seed, before winter comes, is intense, and the seeds, when produced and scattered, face special problems of germination and survival.

The trees of this zone are largely Engelmann spruce, limber pine and alpine fir. Some thick forest stands exist, but the main pattern is small compact tree groups--one or more big seed-trees surrounded by younger offspring--with open patches of grass between. Perennial flowering plants, springing from woody root-crowns have special advantages here, though some annuals thrive, especially if they can get started in the fall and remain dormant under snow till spring. Melting snows in May, June and early July give natural irrigation to large areas of this zone. Competition with sedges and grasses and ability to stand light frost are problems for the plants that live here. Many typical alpine plants of the next higher zone work down into these sub-alpine meadows.

The picture at the top of this page was taken just west of the Poudre Lakes in Rocky Mountain National Park. Lake Irene is in the foreground.

ALPINE

From timberline up to our highest Colorado mountain summit climate is too severe for any trees. This condition marks these areas off as a separate life zone called Alpine or Arctic. Soil forms only slowly on these rocky summits, but mosses, lichens, sedges and grasses have been here for ages of time, all of them patiently building humus. Erosion carries less soil away from the tops than it does from the lower hillsides. So in the spaces between the barren looking rocks, good soil exists, and water, though mainly falling as snow, and not quite as heavily as in the sub-alpine zone below, is adequate for plants. Here grasses, sedges, a few dwarf shrubs and herbaceous plants have all the sunlight to themselves without tree competition. The ever-present adverse condition is low temperature, frequently with strong wind.

It is in this zone of harsh living conditions that some individual plants probably attain greater age than is normally reached by plants of the lower life zones. We know of no statistical study to support this statement, but observation of mats of moss campion, or of tufts of alpine spring beauty, or of scarred old crowns of alpine forget-me-not, indicates that they have safely survived the snow cover of a great many alpine winters.

The view at the top of this page is from Trail Ridge in Rocky Mountain National Park. Longs Peak is in the distance. In mid-July these foreground slopes are a garden of alpine flowers.

Flower is an inch in diameter, of 6 petals and sepals all alike united at their base into a tube over an inch long. Several of these rise from the buried crown of the plant, as do also the leaves, 3/8 inch wide and over 6 inches long, resembling heavy curved blades of grass. The matted, cordlike roots store, through the long dormant period, the starches and sugars needed for rapid Spring growth. Grows in sandy soil in plains or low foothills. Blooms April-May.

When sand lilies begin to dot the gray plains with their singularly pure white stars we can know that the season of growth and color is returning. We called them Mayflowers and hoped they would be in bloom for May-baskets. They usually were--along with Johnny-jump-ups and sprays of pepper and salt parsley. To pluck them one by one and suck the drop of nectar from the long white tube is one of the delights of childhood. The plants are crowded with flowers during the blooming season, but, when it is over, disappear completely from the scene.

The flower, of flaring trumpet shape 3 inches in diameter, is formed of 6 petals and sepals, all alike, tapering at both ends. Color varies from rose-red to red-orange. Stem 15 to 30 inches high, bearing a single flower and several whorls of leaves, comes from a round bulb. Picking the flower usually kills the bulb. Grows in rich soil in partial shade near streams, montane zone. Blooms July.

This is one of the most sought-after and breathtaking of our mountain flowers. It used to grow in abundance, then almost disappeared due to excessive picking. Now it is returning in secluded sylvan places. It prefers moist, shady banks where its brilliant color lights the shadows like a flame. The young flowers, with their big dark anthers, are the brightest. As they fade, the anthers shrink and turn dull orange and the flower has a tendency to become spotty. If you have the good luck to find these lilies, stop and enjoy them in their woodsy background--but do not pick any to take home.

Flower, more than 1 inch in diameter, is formed of 3 perianth segments, which are narrow, greenish and sepal-like, and 3 segments which are broad, showy and petal-like. On the inner surface of these latter, near the base, are large, hairy glands of dark color. Stem is slender, 8 to 20 inches tall, with few linear leaves, and comes from a deeply buried corm. Grows in fairly heavy clay soils on open grassy slopes in foothills and lower montane zones. Blooms June-July.

The name mariposa recalls to us the high flat tableland of Mesa Verde with thousands of these delicate lilies floating above the other flowers like butterflies, as the Spanish name implies. Our species is one of the most beautiful, with its tall stem and subtle coloring resembling a small white tulip with grass-like leaves. Other species are creamy, yellow, orange, pink, lavender, gray; some of them quite small, with pointed hairy petals. Journeys to many interesting places will go with a search for the mariposa in its infinite variety of color, shape and habitat.

Flowers, 1 1/2 inches across of 6 bright gold perianth segments, all alike and strongly re-curved, nod, singly or in twos or even threes, at the top of a naked scape which rises from the deep-seated bulb. The 6 stamens, each tipped with a large yellow anther, surround a prominent green style and hang downward. Plant is about 10 inches high, with only two broad green leaves which sheath the base of the scape. Grows in sub-alpine zone extending through montane zone. Occurs only on the west side of the Continental Divide . Blooms immediately after snow melts, which is June in high places.

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