Olympic Mountains

[David Sellars]

The snow is finally starting to melt in the alpine areas of the Pacific Northwest and we spent a couple of days in the Olympic Mountains last weekend.  The air mass was cool and the mountains in sun above the clouds which resulted in superb light conditions. We went up the Switchback Trail onto Klahhane Ridge and then along the ridge towards Mount Angeles.  We found three Olympic endemics on the ridge, Campanula piperi, Viola flettii and Petrophyton hendersonii. The Petrophyton had exquisite foliage quite unlike some plants in cultivation.

[Lori S.]

Wow, what exquisite plants!  That hike looks like a bit of a scramble in that last area! 

[David Sellars]

The next day we drove along the road to Obstruction Point to a trailhead.  The road passes a cliff with a white Campanula piperi half way up, the only place we have seen this form. The masses of white Erythronium montanum in the meadows right by the road were quite a sight some mixed with rosy purple Castilleja parviflora.

[Lori S.]

Absolutely stunning, especially the Erythronium!!      Thanks for posting!

[David Sellars]

From Obstruction Point we hiked up Elk Mountain.  The range of colours in the meadows was astonishing.  Outstanding plants included Collomia debilis, Douglasia laevigata, Allium crenulatum, Phlox hendersonii, Potentilla fruticosa, Eriogonum ovalifolium v nivale, Lupinus lepidus v lobbii, Castilleja rupicola and Erigeron compositus above a sea of clouds.

[Booker]

Stunning images David!  I have just had a cataract operation and these are some of the first photographs I have viewed since the eye patch was removed ... a glorious reawakening for this most precious of my senses.  I wish I could fly out and hike that trail within days!   Many thanks for your beautiful postings.  I eagerly await more.

[Toole]

Wow David !!.

I once flowered Collomia debilis from NARGS seed.Unfortunately it didn't stick around.If memory serves me right all parts of it were very sticky.

Allium crenulatum looks a honey.

Thanks for posting.

Cheers Dave.

[Spiegel]

Beautiful pictures, David.  Loved the meadow in bloom, and the collomia (although my favorite is Collomia debilis v larsenii).
Collomia debilis is short-lived here.  It does extremely well and then sort of collapses during the late summer mugs.
Having seen where it grows, that's not too surprising.  Please, keep the photos coming.

[Tim Ingram]

David - why do we live in this little country called Britain with rather beautiful small mountains and hardly any alpine plants!! Your images are exquisite!! The meadow on Elk Mountain would be delightful transposed to our garden. At least I had one flower spike on my Petrophyton hendersonii (one of my favourite plants), but I can only dream about many of the others.

[David Sellars]

Anne and Dave:

I would love to grow Collomia debilis but I suspect it is very difficult as you have experienced. In the mountains we do not often see the plant and it only seems to grow in very loose, steep, shifting scree.  How do we replicate that in the garden?  The plants on Elk Mountain were all light in colour but I remember the one we saw on Strawberry Mountain, Anne, in 2003 which was deep blue. I have attached a few more pictures and just noticed the lovely sky blue anthers in the close-up.

[David Sellars]

Tim:

As it is one of your favourite plants, I have attached a few more images of Petrophyton hendersonii.  It was quite difficult to find - only growing on the highest rocky ridges.  I grow Petrophyton caespitosum and Petrophyton cinerascens but the Petrophyton hendersonii that I have in the garden is definitely not the right plant having now seen the magnificent foliage of the real thing in the Olympics.

[David Sellars]

A few more images from the Olympics.

Some of the mats of Douglasia laevigata on Elk Mountain were quite large. We also saw Saxifraga caespitosa and Phacelia sericea with Mt Olympus in the distance.  At the start of the Switchback Trail there were fine specimens of Pinguicula vulgaris right by the parking lot.  Finally a last look at Castilleja parviflora near the Obstruction Point Road.

[Booker]

Beautiful, David ... the Collomia close-up is EXQUISITE!

[Hoy]

What a flora - and what a photographer!

David, if I ever visit this part of the world, is it possible to hire you as a guide?

[Spiegel]

David, I've grown Collomia debilis, which I had seen in the Wallowas, for several years but then it peters out.  It likes a scree to ramble through.  My plant of choice would be Collomia debilis v larsenii, which I saw in a steep, shifting scree - definitely a soboliferous plant (such a delicious word!).  You can duplicate the scree conditions but it certainly doesn't like the humidity of the northeast.  Maybe it's just one of thopse plants which refuses to adapt.  When I saw it (across from Burroughs Mt. at Mt. Ranier - can' remember the name of the mountain), you could look down the steep scree and see it repeating itself.  The roots are anchored in the scree well above the plants.  Some of the flowers had hints of an icy blue, others a bit of lavender, quite wonderful.  Also love the Allium crenulatum.  Have you grown it?