PHLOX FAMILY
Reading edition
Trumpet Phlox Gilia aggregata
Plate 19, fig. 3
The flowers of the Trumpet Phlox show a wide range of color. In the mountains they are usually pink, while on the plains pure white 26 and deep red are the commonest colors. The blossoms are clustered along the slender stems which are 2-4 ft. tall. The plants are widely distributed on plains, foothills and open places in the mountains at 6000-10000 ft. and they bloom throughout the summer. The humming-bird is a regular visitor of this flower for the sake of its nectar. In fact, the latter can be secured only by humming-birds and butterflies because of the length of the tube. In Indian legend, the nectar of the Trumpet Phylox was the drink of the wild dove.
Nectar Cup Polemonium speciosum
Plate 19, fig. 5
The fragrant pale blue flowers of the Nectar Cup are hidden away on the highest peaks of Colorado at 12000-14000 ft. They grow in dense heads at the tips of stems about a foot tall and bloom in midsummer. The name refers to the abundant honey at the base of the corolla tube.
Jacob’s Ladder Polemonium pulchellum
Plate 19, fig. 6
Jacob’s Ladder doubtless receives its name from the ladder-like leaves. The flowers are delicately blue with white tubes and are clustered on graceful stems a foot tall or less. They may be found in spruce forests on the mountains at 8000-14000 ft. and bloom in summer, often so abundantly as to form a blue carpet on the forest floor.
Tiny Trumpet Collomia linearis
Plate 19, fig. 7
The tiny white to reddish flowers of this plant may easily be overlooked on account of their size. They are grouped on stems which vary from a few inches to about 3 ft. in height, and grow in dry and sandy soil at 4000-9000 ft. They come into bloom in the spring and blossom throughout the summer.
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