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Wildflowers
WILDFLOWERS occur in BC in spectacular diversity, largely because of the province's widely varied geography (see also PLANTS, NATIVE). Flowers of BC's vast FORESTS may adapt to low wind levels by producing hooked seeds distributed by passing animals, while on nearby mountains alpine plants exploit strong winds with airborne seeds. Plants in the arid regions of the southern Interior may have intricate roots that can extract the most minute amounts of moisture from seemingly dry soil, while...
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Yellow water lily (Nuphar polysepalum) has heart-shaped floating leaves that contrast large cup-shaped golden flowers, making this plant quite unmistakable in ponds and shallow lakes throughout BC.
Yellow avalanche lily (Erythronium grandiflorum) is a sub-alpine species appearing after the receding snow on mountains east of the Cascades and on southern Vancouver Island.
Western anemone, also called wind flower (Anemone occidentalis), occurs in alpine meadows. The stems grow up to 20 cm and the terminal flowers are replaced by plumes of seeds. The species ranges from northern BC east to the Rocky Mts and south through the Cascade Mts.
Satin-flower (Sisyrinchium douglasii) has purple flowers, each with 3 yellow anthers, borne on single stalks up to about 20 cm. The flowers bloom as early as mid-February on Vancouver Island, on rocky slopes under Garry oaks. In the Interior the species is found on either side of the Cascade Mts south of Kamloops.
Pink rhododendron (Rhododendron macrophyllum) is a compact, rounded bush about 2 m tall, covered with pink to rose-coloured flowers. It grows in semi-shaded forest edges and can be found along the highway in Manning Park and in the Skagit Valley. Two isolated pockets of this species survive on Vancouver Island.
Orange honeysuckle (Lonicera ciliosa) is a showy vine that climbs trees and shrubs in open forests from the coast to the Cascade Mts. Another common species of the genus, Lonicera hispidula, purple honeysuckle, has a similar range.
Ocean spray (Holodiscus discolor) forms thickets of strong stems up to 3 m tall. Its cream-coloured drooping clumps contain hundreds of cream-white flowers, which appear in June or July.
Northern riceroot (Fritillaria camschatcensis) is similar to the chocolate lily but with slightly recurved petals and no speckles. Found near the coast, it ranges from the far north of the province through the Queen Charlotte Islands and northern Vancouver Island.
Menzies larkspur (Delphinium menziesii) produces deep blue flowers on single stems. It may be found on coastal bluffs and rocky slopes in May and in mountain meadows in June and July, and it occurs eastward to the Cascade Mts.
Lady's slipper (Calypso bulbosa) is a delicate pale purple orchid growing deep in the forests of Vancouver Island and through southern BC.
Harebell, or bluebell (Campanula rotundifolia), ranges throughout many of the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere and is variable in form. In BC it occurs abundantly in mats in the Rocky Mts; it is more sparse along the coast.
Few-flowered shooting star (Dodecatheon pulchellum) belongs to a genus that has strongly reflexed (backward-bending) petals; in this species the flowers are a striking rose-pink. The stamen-tube is ringed with deep yellow at the base, and the single stalk rises from low-lying leaves. The species is found from coastal flats to mountain meadows throughout the province.
Easter lily (Erythronium oregonum), with nodding white flowers on a slender stem, occurs on southern Vancouver Island and the extreme southern coastal mainland of BC in open woodland and grassland in the spring.
Death camas (Zygadenus venenosus) is one of 3 species of Zygadenus found in BC, all of which are highly toxic. First Nations people were careful to mark this plant while its white flowers were conspicuous so that its bulbs would not be confused with those of the edible camas. This species is found in meadows and open places, most commonly in southern BC.
Columbia lily, or tiger lily (Lilium columbianum) is one of 2 BC lilium species. It may have up to 30 bright orange flowers on a single 80-cm stem, and is found in open woods and logging slashes on both sides of the Cascade Mts and Vancouver Island.
Brittle prickly pear (Opuntia fragilis) is a savagely armed plant. It spreads its mats of fleshy-jointed green stems, bearing brilliant, deep yellow flowers, over the parched hillsides of the dry Interior.
Bitter root (Lewisia rediviva) is abundant on arid flatlands unsuited for irrigation, throughout the southern dry Interior. Each 3-cm solitary flower, carried about 5 cm above the ground, has 12 to 18 pale pink petals.
Balsam-root (Balsamorhiza sagittata) forms tufts on dry open slopes in the Interior. The triangular leaves, 8-12 cm wide by 30 cm long, grow on long petioles. Each tuft has large yellow flowers with long stems -
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