It's Getting Seedy Up Here

Nothing especially new to report at Lone Pine, except that the plants are busy, busy, getting ready for next year!  Many plants have already gone to seed and sometimes the seed-stages are as lovely as the bloom.  The Onion, Fleabane, Flax and Harebell are still flourishing and beautiful, and well as a couple of new ones: Birchleaf Spirea, Orange hawkweed (invasive) and Purple Thistle.

Birchleaf Spirea

Orange Hawkweed

Purple Thistle

Harebell

Blue Flax

I suppose more accurately I should say the blossoms have gone to their fruit stage, which also contains the seeds for next year.

Remember those beautiful apple blossoms?
Here are the apples--see "Rainy Weekend" in my May postings for the flower.

This is the fruit of the Russian Honeysuckle.
See "Honeysuckle: Mystery Solved" in my June Postings.

Chokecherry trees abound along the lower trail.

My favorite chokecherry tree up high against the blue sky.
See "Fragrant Forest in May postings.

Low Oregon Grape; this was a beautiful yellow flower earlier--
see "May Sunshine."

Here are the flower-seeds that I can identify:

Stickseed--the flower was like a blue forget-me-not; I don't think I ever posted this one.

Blue Penstemon

Flax and seed

Lupine

Coralroot

Salsify is a plant that can easily grow to two feet tall or more, and I found it at several different stages, including both blossom and seed.

When the flower is done it closes back up like this.

Then the seed-feathers begin to squeeze out...

...creating a beautiful puffball like a dandelion...

...but MUCH larger!

I thought I'd also do a little study on Fleabane, and then you can compare it with the Asters when they come out.  This variety has fairly thin petals and lots of them, also that's not always the case with Fleabane.

The best identifier is looking at the back of the flower to see how the green bracts grow--basicly they are all the same length in this Fleabane.  Asters have overlapping bracts like roof-shingles.

Showy Fleabane has multiple flower-heads per stem.  Sub-Alpine Fleabane has single flowers per stem, and of course, you usually see it up higher in the mountains.

Showy Fleabane