Flower for the Day Finding Old Friends 8-2-19

This is a special year for wildflowers in Estes Park made possible by the large amount of rain this spring. The seeds from hundreds of years past lie quiescent until the right circumstances arise for their growth. Here are some old friends I have not seen here for years.

           
   

These are Virginia blue bells (Mertensia virginica). I have them at home but the deer

love to eat their leaves so they have been decreasing in my garden.

                  

Wild blue flax (Linum lewisii) are  wonderful flowers that open in the morning and close by noon.

Showy milk weed (Asclepius speciosa) is one of 19 species of milkweed that grows in Colorado. I was surprised to see it by a trail. I have my eyes peeled of Monarch butterflies which love it. Monarchs are not common here.