Category Archives: wildflowers

Two June orchids

  Since mid-May, I have been watching for the appearance of the mountain lady’s slipper. I had already posted images of two earlier local wild orchids: fairy slippers, and striped coralroots. But, the mountain lady’s slipper had yet to appear. … Continue reading

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Butter sipping

  I am sure the participants did not appreciate the etymological niceties of their situation as a butterfly sipped nutrients from a buttercup. The names of each species seem to have been of imitative origin, and resulted from their yellowish … Continue reading

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Two wild orchids

  I have been watching for, what I expected would be, the second wild orchid of the season. However, the mountain lady’s slipper has yet to appear. Instead, I found two others.  This month opened with pictures of the fairy … Continue reading

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Orchid season

  Wild orchid season begins in May and, spanning a number of species, seems to run through July. Indeed, on May 1st there appeared the particularly early-season orchid, the Fairy Slipper. And it appeared in surprisingly great numbers (last year … Continue reading

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Bombylius, Not Bombus

  With the advent of sunny spring, I noticed my first lawn flower of the year, a chionodoxa, a tiny bluish flower with a whitish centre. It is sometimes known as the glory of the snow. Abruptly, the flower was … Continue reading

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Western larch

  Come early November, I am often wont to offer an encomium to the western larch. Sometimes the tree is shown covering the mountainside, this time only a portion of an individual appears. The western larch grows only on the … Continue reading

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Gibson errors

  We drove to Gibson Lake. Gibson Lake is one of the many satellite alpine lakes that hang over Kootenay Lake. On the way there, I was asked two questions: Might we see Indian Paintbrush? Might we see a Hoary … Continue reading

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Giant Helleborine

  The Giant Helleborine is a wild orchid that grows in western North America. It is found in a small portion of southern British Columbia, yet it is not particularly common. Indeed, it takes some effort to locate even a single … Continue reading

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Mountain lady’s slipper

  The mountain lady’s slipper is the third species of wild orchid found in Kokanee Creek Park this year. The earlier two were the fairy slipper and the striped coralroot. A lone mountain lady’s slipper sits in the forest.  

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Striped coralroot

  The striped coralroot is a wild orchid that is both uncommon and widespread. Favouring the deep forest floor that little sunlight reaches, it obtains its energy, not as a result of photosynthesis, but through fungi. Indeed, the plant lacks … Continue reading

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