THE NORTH TEMPERATE ZONE 



149 



and the woods and moist meadows are adorned throughout the 

 summer with a great variety of beautiful flowers, many of them 

 related to those of the Rocky Mountains, but a large number are 

 peculiar to California. Among the latter is the curious "snow- 

 plant" (Sarcodes sanguined) related to the Indian-pipe of the 

 eastern states, but sometimes a foot high, and with a large 

 raceme of blood-red flowers. 



In the lower forest zone, 

 there is an undergrowth of 

 deciduous trees, oaks, maples, 

 and the showy flowering 

 dogwood (Cornus Nuttallii) . 

 There are also many showy 

 shrubs, like the syringa (Phil- 

 adelphus Lewisii) and the 

 azalea, which is extremely 

 abundant and beautiful in 

 the Yosemite. 



Most of the deciduous trees 

 disappear at the higher eleva- 

 tions, and the forest is exclu- 

 sively coniferous, and certain 

 Rocky Mountain species, e. g., 

 lodge-pole pine, western white 

 pine (Pinus monticola) are 

 associated with the Pacific 

 coast species. At timber line, 

 the alpine white pine (P. albi- 

 caulis), and a large juniper 

 (Juniperus occidentalis) , are 

 found. 



On the rocks and in drier soil are many showy flowers: blue 

 Pentstemons, forget-me-nots (Lappula), and lupins; scarlet Gilias, 

 pink Spraguea, yellow Wyethia, looking like dwarf sun-flowers, 

 little pink and yellow Mimulus and others. In the wet moist 

 meadows are masses of blue Camassia and pink shooting-star 

 (Dodecatheon), white marsh marigold (Caltha) and white violets, 

 and somewhat later white orchids (Habenaria leucostachys), 

 blue monkshood and larkspur, gentians, mimulus, scarlet Castil- 



Fig. 43. — False hellebore (Veratrum Cali- 

 fornicum) . Lake Tahoe. 



