Field Notes of the ip20 Outing 



149 



the permanent portion of the plant body is extremely condensed at or 

 below the surface of the ground. The stems branch and rebranch, 

 forming with the leaves a closely interlaced cushion-like vegetative 

 body which rests on the ground or hugs close some rocky crevice. 

 This form of plant body is well fitted for the long winter or for the 

 great variations in temperature from freezing to summer mildness 

 which occur almost daily during July and August in our alpine 

 Sierra Nevada. 



The Alpine Eriogonum (E. incanum) illustrates this high mon- 

 tane vegetative habit. Its yellowish or reddish flowers arise from a 

 dense mat of gray foliage which flattens out on patches of decom- 

 posed granite. The little golden Draba (D. lemmonii) is another 

 vivid alpine plant abundant in the Evolution country, its leaves 

 forming close rosettes at the base and its bright yellow flowers with 

 the petals in fours, showing its relationship to other members of the 

 Mustard family. One of the most handsome of these plants is the 

 Alpine Phlox (P. douglasii), its cushion covered with dainty white 

 or pinkish flowers. True snow-plants are the little Snow Fairies 

 (Lewisia pygmaea, the Bitter-root of the Indians) — tiny plants 

 with white star-flowers, to be found growing in the moist seepage 

 slopes of melting snowbanks. 



Another type of alpine plants is frequently much dwarfed, but 

 does not develop laterally into a distinct smooth cushion. One of the 

 finest of these high mountain species is the yellow Columbine (Aqui- 

 legia pubescens), a dainty graceful plant, in marked contrast to the 

 awful grandeur of its rocky surroundings. The flowers are large and 

 handsome, with very long spurs, resembling the columbines of our 

 gardens. The color may range from cream, pale yellow, or coral to 

 pink or lavender. It is a very aristocrat among columbines, different 

 from the modest red-flowered sort which grows in lower altitudes 

 and is the common columbine of our coast ranges. 



Equally beautiful plants of the high rocky ledges are the sky- 

 blue Polemoniums, sometimes called Sky Pilots, their petioles 

 crowded with tiny leaf-segments and the stems ending in dense 

 clusters of lovely blue flowers. One of the most delightful sights 

 imaginable is to find a clump of Sierra Primrose (Primula sufjru- 

 tescens) nestled under the sheltering ledge of a great granite boulder. 

 The shiny toothed leaves from which arise the clusters of small red 

 flowers make this plant particularly attractive. 



