BOTANICAL INFORMATION. 309 



ing time are clothed-with a crimson or purple carpet. About 

 this time begin the immense masses of small flowering Ona- 

 grariea to grow up, such as Epilobium 380, 229 and 231 in 

 moist places ; Oenothera, 546 and 547, Epilobium 545, with 

 Eucharidium ? 658. About this time begins the flowering of 

 the Clarkia pulchella, clothing the whole region, far and wide 

 m its purple. It is far prettier on its native ground, the 

 largest plants forming a panicle from the base, covered with 

 flowers, but the mass of them are one or few-flowering plants 

 not more than 2 or 3 inches high. Wherever there is a nut- 

 shell-full of soil on a rock, there blooms a little Clarkia ; the 

 next characteristic plant of this region is the Collomia elegans, 

 following soon after the Clarkia has begun, and now are seen 

 flowers and beautiful colours in every direction, as : Pentste- 

 mon 515 ; Silene} 519, Ceanothus 526, Gnaphalium 536 and 

 5 42, Phaca 562, Aster {Eurybia) ? 586, Hieracium 593, 

 Calochortus 618, Pentstemon 641, Gnaphalium. 643, Phlox} 

 480, Erigeron 478, Townsendia 479, Homalobus 475, Pent- 

 stemon 477, (very rare), Cynanchum 449, Aster) 447, Lygo- 

 desma 440, Ipomopsis 434, Chrysopsis villosa, Silene 385, 

 Crepis 336, and several others ; hei-e also grow the Grami- 

 nea, Kcelera ? 537, Hordeum 542, with Trilicum and Festuca, 

 356. Another sort of flora is found in the gravelly and 

 sandy plains, though occasionally are found some plants 

 from the woods in them, as the Lewisia and several Ona- 

 grariea. Generally they exhibit fine groups of Eriogonum, of 

 which each small district seems to have another species, as I 

 have observed from the Platte hills to the Columbia. The 

 roost conspicuous of the genus is perhaps Eriogonum 425 ; as 

 other species do, this also forms a brushy mat on the coarse 

 gravel or basalt-rock, sometimes three or more feet in diame- 

 ter, showing its cordate-hastate woolly leaves during the 

 winter. I n the time of flowering one observes that each 

 Pknt or mat bears flowers of a different tint, from cream- 

 white to a deep gamboge yellow, in large regular cymes, 

 which are often 8 to 9 inches in diameter, and with the scape 

 n ear a foot high. Those on naked basalt in the next sub- 



