If you haven’t already started planning your aspen leaf-spotting trip, this is your sign!

While this flower is not native to Colorado, I was fascinated to learn about its morphology when I saw it on outside Gunnison last week.

Three common non-native flowers in Colorado look pretty similar to me (I’m sure trained botanists disagree!). Anyways, here’s more about these three plants, how to tell them apart, and the difference between non-native and invasive plants.

Best known as the host plant to monarch butterflies, “showy” milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) is a very common summer wildflower in Colorado!

I saw a bunch of Rocky Mountain Irises (Iris missouriensis, a.k.a. western blue flag) near Woodland Park a couple weeks ago!

Prickly pear cacti (Opuntia polyacantha) are an iconic species of the Western US and Mexico. Learn how this cactus is uniquely adapted to its environment and how humans have traditionally interacted with this plant!

For the last week or two, people on my neighborhood Facebook page have been warning others about an increase in poison hemlock in their backyards. They aren’t alone - others in Colorado have noticed, too.

Dogbane is an important plant to be able to identify - as its name suggests, this plant is notable for its toxicity to humans and other animals, including dogs.

These are one of my favorite summer wildflowers - I love how it looks like they are wearing a crown!

Nodding onions (Allium cernuum) are beautiful, delicate flowers that get their common name from the slight bend at the top of the main stem, which differentiates it from others in the allium family.

Avalanche lilies (Erythronium grandiflorum) stand out with their cheerful yellow colors, particularly in the alpine habitats where they thrive!

Mountain Candytuft (Noccaea fendleri) is generally found on hillsides, slopes, open woods or forests, and tundra, and blooms from April to July.

Blue flax (Linum lewisii) is a vibrant spring wildflower that is easy to spot and identify. We can expect to see blue flax growing by mid-March, and they flower until fall.

Tall chiming bells (Mertensia ciliata), also known as mountain bluebells, are beautiful and delicate flowers with colors ranging from (occasionally) white or pink to (frequently) blue or purple.

The Rocky Mountain Spring Beauty (Claytonia sp.), as the name suggests, is one of Colorado’s earliest and most beautiful blooms.

Mullein, a highly invasive plant, is found across most parts of the United States and into Canada. In the field a couple years ago, my coworkers and I came across a bunch of gigantic mullein plants!

Stemless Townsend Daisies (Townsendia exscapa) are another early-year wildflower in Colorado! They grow in a “tufted” or “mounded” form, giving them the title of “stemless” - the stems are so short they can be difficult to spot.

In the final part of this post, we’ll discuss analyzing tree cores under the microscope and on the computer.

Generally the second flower I see in the spring, sand lilies (Leucocrinum montanum) are resilient and beautiful!

The tree cores have been collected, stored in paper straws, and labelled. In Part II of this post, we talk about the next steps to prepare tree cores for analysis!