Plants of Vega State Park

Equisetum arvense, the field horsetail or common horsetail, is a herbaceous perennial plant, native throughout the arctic and temperate regions of the northern hemisphere. It has separate sterile non-reproductive and fertile spore-bearing stems, growing from a perennial underground rhizomatous stem system. The fertile stems are produced in early spring and are non-photosynthetic, while the green sterile stems start to grow after the fertile stems have wilted, and persist through the summer until the first autumn frosts. less ↑

Equisetum laevigatum is a species of horsetail known by the common names smooth scouring rush and smooth horsetail. This plant is native to much of North America except for northern Canada and southern Mexico. It is usually found in moist areas in sandy and gravelly substrates. It may be annual or perennial. It grows narrow green stems sometimes reaching heights exceeding 1.5 meters. The leaves at the nodes are small, scale-like brownish sheaths and there are... less ↑

The Colorado spruce, blue spruce, green sprucewhite spruce, or Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens), is a species of spruce tree native to the Rocky Mountains of the United States. Its natural range extends from Colorado to Wyoming but it has been widely introduced elsewhere and is used as an ornamental tree in many places far beyond its native range. less ↑

Medicago lupulina (black medic, sometimes spelled medick or meddick; also known as black hay, black nonsuch, blackweed, etc.) is a summer annual or perennial plant usually considered a weed. It has a tap root. Like other legumes, it has three leaflets; its center leaflet is on a separate petiole. As with other legumes, nitrogen-fixing bacteria, known as rhizobia, are found in nodules on the roots. less ↑

Lupinus argenteus is a species of lupine known by the common name silvery lupine. It is native to much of western North America from the southwestern Canadian provinces to the southwestern and midwestern United States, where it grows in several types of habitat, including sagebrush, grassland, and forests. This is a perennial herb growing erect to heights anywhere between 10 centimeters and 1.5 meters. It is sometimes silvery-hairy in texture and sometimes nearly hairless. Each palmate... less ↑

Lathyrus lanszwertii is a species of sweet pea known by the common names Nevada sweet pea or peavine. It is found in western North America from California to Texas to British Columbia. It is a tender vining perennial which bears lavender, fuchsia, or white pea flowers, and pods containing inedible peas. There is much variation among individuals of this species, and there are several distinct varieties: less ↑

Vicia americana is a species of legume in the vetch genus known by the common names American vetch and purple vetch. It includes a subspecies known as mat vetch. It is a climbing perennial forb that grows from both taproot and rhizome. The leaves are each made up of oblong leaflets and have tendrils for climbing. It bears showy pea-like flowers in shades of lavender and fuchsia. The fruit is a hairless pod about 3 centimeters... less ↑

The Virginia strawberry, wild strawberry, or common strawberry (Fragaria virginiana) is one of two species of wild strawberry that were hybridized to create the modern domesticated garden strawberry. Its natural range is confined to North America, in the United States (including Alaska) and Canada, although a popular variety called "Little Scarlet" is grown only in Great Britain, having been imported from the United States in the early 1900s. less ↑

Dasiphora fruticosa (shrubby cinquefoil; syn. Potentilla fruticosa L., Pentaphylloides fruticosa (L.) O.Schwarz) is a species of hardy deciduous flowering shrub in the genus Dasiphora (formerly Potentilla) of the family Rosaceae, native to the cool temperate and subarctic regions of the northern hemisphere, often growing at high altitudes in mountains. less ↑

Sorbus scopulina is a species of rowan that is native to western North America, primarily in the Rocky Mountains. The common name of this species is often given as 'Greene mountain-ash', and is so named in honor of American botanist Edward Lee Greene. Throughout the Cascade Mountains and the Pacific Northwestern portions of this rowan's habitat, it is commonly called Cascade Mountain-ash, sometimes listed as Sorbus scopulina var. cascadensis. less ↑

Amelanchier alnifolia, the saskatoon, Pacific serviceberry, western serviceberry, alder-leaf shadbush, dwarf shadbush, chuckley pear, or western juneberry, is a shrub with edible berry-like fruit, native to North America from Alaska across most of western Canada and in the western and north central United States. Historically it was also called "pigeon berry". It grows from sea level in the north of the range, up to 2,600 m (8,530 ft) elevation in California and 3,400 m (11,200 ft) in the Rocky Mountains. less ↑

Humulus lupulus (common hop or hop) is a species of flowering plant in the Cannabaceae family, native to Europe, western Asia and North America. It is a dioecious, perennial, herbaceous climbing plant which sends up new shoots in early spring and dies back to a cold-hardy rhizome in autumn. Strictly speaking it is a bine rather than a vine, using its own shoots to act as supports for new growth. less ↑

Cornus sericea, syn. C. stolonifera, Swida sericea, (red osier dogwood) is a species of flowering plant in the family Cornaceae, native throughout northern and western North America from Alaska east to Newfoundland, south to Durango and Nuevo León in the west, and Illinois and Virginia in the east. Other names include red willow, redstem dogwood, redtwig dogwood, red-rood, American dogwood, creek dogwood, and western dogwood. less ↑

Persicaria amphibia (syn. Polygonum amphibium) is a species of flowering plant in the knotweed family known by several common names, including longroot smartweed, water knotweed, water smartweed, and amphibious bistort. It is native to much of North America, Asia, Europe, and parts of Africa, and it is known elsewhere as an introduced species and sometimes a noxious weed. less ↑

Polygonum arenastrum (Common knotweed) is a summer annual weed that is native to Europe and can be found on most continents as an introduced species and a common noxious weed. Known by many other names, such as mat grass, oval-leaf knotweed, stone grass, wiregrass, and door weed, as well as many others, knotweed was first seen in North America in 1809 and is now seen throughout all of the United States and Canada. less ↑

Bassia scoparia (syn. Kochia scoparia) is a large annual herb in the family Amaranthaceae native to Eurasia. It has been introduced to many parts of North America, where it is found in grassland, prairie, and desert shrub ecosystems. Its common names include burningbush,ragweed, summer cypress,mock-cypress, kochia, belvedere, Mexican firebrush, and Mexican fireweed. less ↑

Lactuca serriola, also called prickly lettuce,milk thistle (not to be confused with Silybum marianum, also called milk thistle) compass plant, and scarole, is an annual or biennial plant, slightly foetid, that is commonly considered a weed of orchards, roadsides and field crops. The closest wild relative of cultivated lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). The leaves grow along a spiny stem and get progressively smaller as they reach its top. They emit latex when cut. Many flowers are... less ↑

Tragopogon dubius (western salsify, western goat's-beard, wild oysterplant, yellow salsify, yellow goat's beard, goat's beard, goatsbeard, common salsify, salsify) is a species of Salsify native to southern and central Europe and western Asia and found as far north and west as northern France. Although it has been reported from Kashmir and India, recent evidence suggests that specimens from these areas may be a different species. Western Salsify has been introduced into North America where it has... less ↑

Leucanthemum vulgare, the ox-eye daisy or oxeye daisy, (syn. Chrysanthemum leucanthemum), is a widespread flowering plant native to Europe and the temperate regions of Asia and an introduced plant to North America, Australia, and New Zealand. It is one of a number of Asteraceae family plants to be called a "daisy", and has the vernacular names: common daisy, dog daisy, moon daisy, and oxe-eye daisy. less ↑

Artemisia cana is a species of sagebrush native to western and central North America, having three subspecies. It known by many common names, including silver sagebrush,sticky sagebrush, silver wormwood,hoary sagebrush, and dwarf sagebrush. While these names apply to the species in general, there are others for each subspecies: plains silver sagebrush applies only to the autonymous subspecies Artemisia cana subsp. cana; Bolander silver sagebrush applies to A. c. subsp. bolanderi; and mountain silver sagebrush applies to A. c.... less ↑

Artemisia tridentata ("big sagebrush" or "sagebrush") is an aromatic shrub from the family Asteraceae, which grows in arid and semi-arid conditions, throughout a range of cold desert, steppe, and mountain habitats in the Intermountain West of North America. The vernacular name "sagebrush" is also used for several related members of the genus Artemisia, such as California Sagebrush (Artemisia californica). less ↑

Achillea millefolium, commonly known as yarrow /ˈjæroʊ/ or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Asia, Europe, and North America. It has been introduced as a feed for livestock in places like New Zealand and Australia. However, it is a weed in those places and sometimes also in its native regions. less ↑

Erigeron speciosus is a widespread North American species of flowering plants in the daisy family known by the common name showy fleabane and aspen fleabane. It has been found in western Canada and the United States, from Alberta and British Columbia south as far as Arizona and New Mexico, with some isolated populations in the State of Baja California in Mexico. less ↑

Rudbeckia occidentalis is a species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common name western coneflower. It is native to the northwestern United States from Washington to northern California and east to Wyoming and Montana, where it grows in moist habitat types, such as meadows. It is an erect perennial herb growing from a thick rhizome, its mostly unbranched stem approaching two meters in maximum height. The large leaves are generally oval but... less ↑

Hymenoxys hoopesii (formerly Dugaldia hoopesii) is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common names owl's claws and orange sneezeweed. It is native to the western United States, where it grows in habitats of moderate elevation, such as mountain meadows. It is an erect perennial herb approaching a meter in maximum height, with smooth-edged leaves oval on the lower stem and lance-shaped toward the top. The inflorescence bears several flower heads... less ↑

Geranium richardsonii is a species of geranium known by the common name Richardson's geranium. It is native to western North America from Alaska to New Mexico, where it can be found in a number of habitats, especially mountains and forests. This is a perennial herb varying in maximum height from 20 to 80 centimeters. The plant grows from a tough, woody taproot and older plants develop rhizomes. The leaves are up to 15 centimeters wide and... less ↑

Quercus gambelii, or Gambel oak, is a deciduous small tree or large shrub that is widespread in the foothills and lower mountain elevations of the central southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. Its range is centered on the states of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico, but also extends into Nevada, Wyoming, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma and west Texas. In Mexico, it is mostly confined to northern Sonora and Chihuahua. Gambel oak typically grows at altitudes... less ↑

Castilleja linariifolia is a perennial plant, native to the United States and is the state flower of Wyoming. It has a number of common names including Wyoming Indian paintbrush, narrow-leaved Indian paintbrush, desert paintbrush, Wyoming desert paintbrush, Wyoming paintbrush, linaria-leaved Indian Paintbrush, and Indian paintbrush. less ↑

Thalictrum fendleri is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family known by the common name Fendler's meadow-rue. It is native to western North America, including much of the western United States and northern Mexico. It is a common plant found in many types of habitat. It is a perennial herb growing erect to one or two meters tall. The hairless stems are green to purple in color. The leaves have compound blades divided into... less ↑

Delphinium nuttallianum is a species of larkspur known by the common names twolobe larkspur and Nuttall's larkspur. It is widely distributed across western North America from California to Alberta. This wildflower has a white to pink erect stem usually not exceeding half a meter in height which may branch several times. Deeply lobed leaves are located mostly about the base of the plant. The inflorescence occupying the top end of the stem has few widely spaced... less ↑

Clematis hirsutissima is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family known by the common name hairy clematis. It is native to much of the western United States, from Washington to Nebraska. It is a small, erect plant which, unlike other Clematis, does not generally produce vines. It is quite variable in appearance, especially across varieties. In general the hairy stem reaches up to about half a meter tall and has many hairy leaves divided... less ↑

Clematis ligusticifolia is a climbing, spreading vine with showy flowers. It is also known as Old-man's Beard and Yerba de Chiva, and Virgin's bower, (though Old-man's Beard may also refer to C. vitalba, and Virgin's bower may also refer to C. lasiantha). It is native to North America where it is widespread across the western United States in streamside thickets, wooded hillsides, and coniferous forests up to 4,000 feet. less ↑

Mahonia repens commonly known as creeping mahonia, creeping Oregon grape, creeping barberry, or prostrate barberry, is a species of Mahonia native to the Rocky Mountains and westward areas of North America, from British Columbia and Alberta in the north through Arizona and New Mexico, then into northwest Mexico by some reports. It is also found in many areas of California and the Great Basin region in Nevada. less ↑

Symphoricarpos rotundifolius is a species of flowering plant in the honeysuckle family known by the common name roundleaf snowberry. It is native to the western United States from California to Idaho to Texas, where it grows in many types of habitat. It is an erect, spreading, or trailing shrub often exceeding meter in height with many stiff branches. Older woody parts are covered in shreddy bark and smaller, newer twigs are coated in fuzzy hairs. The... less ↑

Osmorhiza berteroi is a species of flowering plant in the carrot family known by the common name mountain sweet cicely. It is native to much of western and northern North America, as well as Argentina and Chile, where it grows in wooded and forested areas. It is an aromatic perennial herb producing a branching stem which may exceed a meter tall. The plentiful green leaves have blades up to 20 centimeters long which are divided into... less ↑

Heracleum maximum, Cow Parsnip (also known as Indian Celery or Pushki) is the only member of the genus Heracleum native to North America. Its classification has caused some difficulty, with recent authoritative sources referring to it variously as Heracleum maximum or Heracleum lanatum , as H. linatum, or as either a subspecies, H. sphondylium subsp. montanum, or a variety, H. sphondylium var. linatum, of the Common Hogweed (H. sphondylium). The classification given here follows ITIS. less ↑

The White Checkermallow or White Checkerbloom, Sidalcea candida, is a wildflower found from Nevada to Wyoming and south to the southern part of New Mexico. The plant grows to three feet, and is also known as Wild Hollyhock. Its flowers are about one inch wide with five petals. It is found mostly in mountain meadows and along streams. It flowers between June and September. less ↑

Malva parviflora is an annual or perennial herb that is native to Northern Africa, Europe and Asia and is widely naturalised elsewhere. Common names include cheeseweed, cheeseweed mallow, Egyptian mallow, least mallow, little mallow, mallow, marshmallow, small-flowered mallow, small-flowered marshmallow and smallflower mallow. M. parviflora leaf extracts possess anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities. It has a decumbent or erect habit, growing to 50 cm in height. The broad leaves have 5 to 7 lobes and are 8... less ↑

Populus tremuloides is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, one of several species referred to by the common name Aspen. It is commonly called quaking aspen, trembling aspen, American aspen, Quakies, mountain or golden aspen, trembling poplar, white poplar, popple, and even more names. The trees have tall trunks, up to 25 meters (82 feet) tall, with smooth pale bark, scarred with black. The glossy green leaves, dull beneath, become golden to... less ↑

Salix exigua (sandbar willow, narrowleaf willow, or coyote willow; syn. S. argophylla, S. hindsiana, S. interior, S. linearifolia, S. luteosericea, S. malacophylla, S. nevadensis, and S. parishiana) is a species of willow native to most of North America except for the southeast and far north, occurring from Alaska east to New Brunswick, and south to northern Mexico. less ↑