The Newsletter
of the Wyoming
Native Plant Society

May 1997
Volume 1 6, No. 2

In this issue:

WNPS News 2

1997 Field Trips 2

The Tall Forb Cover Type in Bridger-Teton

National Forest . 3

Botany Briefs 4

Botanist’s Bookshelf 4

Recent Research on Salt Grass Rust in

Wyoming 5

Has Anyone Seen the Hyattville Milkvetch? 6
Wyoming’s Pinyon- Juniper Woodlands ... 7

The Botany Songbook 8

Pinyon pine ( Pinus edulis) is the rarest of the five
species of pines native to Wyoming. Although
widespread in the American southwest, pinyon pine
barely makes it across the Utah border into extreme
southern Sweetwater County, Wyoming, where it is
largely restricted to sandstone uplifts dominated by
Utah juniper woodlands. Like other “pinyons” of the
southwest, P. edulis is characterized by having large
nuts that are a valuable source of food for wildlife
and humans. Pinyon pine can be recognized by its
short, needie-like leaves arranged in clusters of 2 and
its broad, somewhat flattened cones that lack sharp
points on the cone scales. III. By C. E. Faxon from
The Silva of North America, 1 897. For more on the
pinyon-juniper ecosystem in Wyoming, see page 7.

WNPS News

Membership Renewal/Elections : Renewal notices and
ballots are enclosed with this issue. Members with a 95, 96, or
97 on their mailing label need to renew' now- to remain in good
standing, while those with a 98 on the label are paid through
this year. The following individuals have agreed to run for the
WNPS Board: President - Charmaine Del matter. Vice
President - Dick Scott, Secretary-T reasurer - Walt Fertig, and
2 -year board member - Jennifer Whipple, As always, write-in
votes are welcome.

New Members ! Please welcome the following new members
of WNPS: Brace Barnes (Pendleton, OR), Denver Botanic
Garden (Denver, CO), Ellen Galligan (Themtopolis), Hortus
West Publications (Wilsonville, OR), Susan Spackman
(Loveland, CO), Jane Sullivan (Casper, WY), and Beth Ward
(Laramie).

We're alwavs looking for now members : Do you know
someone who would be interested in joining WNPS? Send
their name or encourage them to contact the Society for a
complimentary newsletter.

Attention Readers : We are always looking for articles and
illustrations for the newsletter. Items for the October issue
are needed by 15 September 1997,

Treasurer's Report : Balance as of 19 May 1997: General
Fund $469.11; 1996-97 Student Scholarship Fund $150.00;
Total funds: 619.11 WF

Wyoming Native Plant Society
1604 Grand Ave., Laramie, WY 82070

President: Jennifer Whipple (Old Faithful)

Vice President: Charmaine (Refsdal) Delmatier
(Green River)

Secretary-Treasurer: Walt Fertig (Laramie)

Board Members: Jean Daly (Big Horn)

Katy Duffy’ (Moose)

Newsletter Editor: Walt Fertig (307) 745-5026 (wk)
Contributors to this issue: John Baxter, C.E. Faxon,
Walter Fertig (WF), Susan Marsh, and Theophrastus.

Summer Field Trips

Annual Meeting/Field Trip : The 1997 annual meeting and
field trip is scheduled for Saturday, July 26 and Sunday July
27. We plan to meet in the parking lot of the Ft. Laramie
National Historic Site (between the towns of Ft. Laramie and
Wheatland) at 8:30 AM on Saturday. We anticipate receiving
an educational group fee waiver, so be sure to mention that
you are with the WNPS when you reach the Historic Site.

After a brief business meeting, we will explore the botanical
features of the historic fort, with an emphasis on the
wildflowers of the river bottom. After exploring Ft. Laramie,
we will proceed to the metropolis of Torrington to visit an
interesting sand dune area on BLM lands east of town. These
dunes support an unusual sand sagebrush community that
contains a number of rare prairie plants that are not known
from any other sites in the state. The area is also a significant
birding area, so binoculars (as well as a hand lens) are
recommended. On Sunday, remaining plant lovers can tour
Guernsey State Park, where several rare species may be found.

Camping is available at state parks in the area. Motel
accommodations are also available in the towns of Guernsey,
Torrington, Wheatland, or Fort Laramie.

National Elk Refuge (Jackson Hole) : On Saturday, June 14,
Jim Ozenberger (ecologist for the Jackson Ranger District of
the Bridger-Teton National Forest) will lead a field trip
covering the eastern foothills of the Refuge and the adjacent
Bridger-Teton Forest from 9:00 AM-noon. The trip will
feature a number of unusual limestone-loving plants adapted
to the foothill slopes and forests. Meet at the entrance to the
Elk Refuge (at the bulletin board on the dirt road past Lame
Duck) at 9:00 AM (participants will carpool from there). Be
prepared for a 1-2 mile hike. For more information, contact
Jim at (307) 739-5431.

2

The Tall Forb Cover Type
In Bridger-Teton National Forest

By Susan Marsh

In backcountry travels on the Bridger-Teton Forest, people
are drawn to the upper slopes where the aspen stands thin out
and clusters of subalpine fir point to the rocky skyline*
Wildflowers are what we seek there, in what I used to call
“subalpine meadows”. A few years ago on a field trip with
Alma Winward, the Intermountain Region’s plant ecologist, I
was corrected. These were not meadows, which are flat and
characterized by grasses. They were parklands, dominated by
a cover type that I had never named, though the plants were
right under my nose and over my head - tall forb.

Since then, I have learned a little about this cover type.

Not only is it beautiful, it represents an unusual and valuable
part of the upper montane mosaic. And it is in some danger.
Historically common throughout mountainous regions of
western Wyoming, Utah, and western Colorado, about half the
tall forb type is gone. Grazing practices at tine turn of the
century resulted in soil loss and replacement of the tall forb by
grasses or forbs that tolerate drier, poorer-soil conditions. In
the Gras Ventre, Wyoming, and Snake River ranges of the
Bridger-Teton National Forest, some of the most intact tall
forb sites remain. They are valuable to elk, raptors that hunt
rodents, hummingbirds, and butterflies, as well as to people
who run around the mountains with a camera. Tall forb is
also valuable to the watershed, even after it has died back in
the fall. It forms a mat of dead plant material that helps
protect otherwise bare slopes from heavy rain and sheet
erosion.

The variety of species is impressive. Tall forb parks may
have over twenty or thirty species competing for dominance,
along with a few r grasses, sedges, and early-blooming
ephemeral s such as waterleaf (Hydrophyllum) and violet. The
mix of co-dominant plants seems to change slightly from place
to place, depending on specific soil and moisture conditions.

In our area, the ones most often found in “old growth” tall forb
sites include licorice root (Ligusticum fdicinium ), sticky
geranium (Geranium viscosissimum), tall larkspur
( Delphinium occidental), sweet vetch {Hedysarum
occidentale), sweet cicely ( Osmorhiza accidental is), horsemint
(Agastache urtic (folia), fleabane (Erigeron speciosus and
several others), and bracted louse wort (Pedicu laris bracteosa).
Frequent additions are sulfur paintbrush (Castilleja
sulphurea), several asters, including the tall Aster
engelmannii, sticksecd (Hacked a floribunda), little sunflower
(Helianthella uniflora), goldeneye ( Viguiera multiflora),
meadow' rue (Thalictrum fendleri), groundsel (Senecio
crassuius and others), lupine (Lupinus argenteus), mountain
coneflower (Rudbeckia occientalis), Colorado columbine
(Aquilegia caerulea), valerian { Valeriana occidentalism and
tobacco-root ( Valeriana edulis). In moister settings, cow
parsnip (Heracleum sphondylium var. lanatum) may be found.
The mix of species forms a flower garden of colors - blue,
violet, red, pink, bright yellow, and white. Tall forb sites

Above: Bicknell’s geranium ( Geranium bicknetlii) from Britton and
Brown, 1913.

generally peak in color from mid-July through mid-August.

Characteristic grasses include onion grass (Melica
bulbosa), bluegrass (Poa reflexa), and mountain timothy
{Phleum alpinum). Slender wheatgrass (Elymus trachycaulus)
may also be found. Cliaracteristic sedges of the tali forb type
are Raynold’s and Hood’s sedges (Carex raynoldsii and C.
hoodii).

Tall forb types grade into slightly drier shrublands,
especially on irregular mountain slopes where bedrock or
colluvium is found near the surface. The change in species
can be abrupt between the classic tall forb mix and those
species which persist in drier conditions.

Differences in shade and moisture also influence the mix of
species in a tall forb park. Near the edge of the forest shade-
tolerant plants like Colorado columbine and Engelmann aster
may become dominant. Some species are restricted by light
and moisture needs; others are widely tolerant - mountain
coneflower and sticky geranium seem to occur in rocky sites
and moist swales alike. These species tend to be more
abundant in grazed areas.

Tall forb types are found mostly in the subalpine and upper
forest zones, 7000 to 10,000 feet in our area, where annual
precipitation is 30-35 inches. Tall forb may be found on all
aspects except north, where shrubs tend to dominate the
openings (these are often avalanche chutes).

Tall forb soils are deep and loamy. At one site in the Gros
Ventre mountains, Alma buried his core sampler to the handle
(3 feet) and came up with homogeneous dark loam. Tall forb
seems to be more common in mountains of limestone and
shale; sandstone and granite forms coarse soils insead of the
fine-textured loam the tall forb type requires.

One of the most intriguing things about the tall forb type is
that we don’t know' much about it. What makes it so stable?
How does such deep soil form on young, geologically active
surfaces? What species indicate trends and why are some
present in certain tall forb sites and not others? Is fire a factor
in keeping shrubs from invading? Are pocket gophers and
other burrowing animals necessary to perpetuate tall forb?

These questions will continue to provide puzzles as we look
forward to another summer in the mountains. Knowing how
important tall forb sites might be, in ways we may never
understand, helps us appreciate their beauty even more.

3

Botany Briefs

Botanical News from Wyoming and the Rocky Mountain
Region

Teton Science School Summer Botany Classes: The
Teton Science School in Kelly Wyoming is offering the
following summer seminar courses on wildflowers of the
Teton and Jackson Hole areas:

Wildflower Photography : Instructor: Bruce Thompson*
Date: June 15, 1997. Fee: $50. Enrich your botanical
experience of the spectacular show of wildflowers in the valley
while learning close-up techniques.

The Wonders of Wildflowers : Instructor: Kristi Dahl.

Date: June 22, 1997. Fee: $50. Enjoy and identify the
colorful wildflowers that blanket Jackson Hole during June.

Field Botany. Flora of the Tetons : Instructor: Dr. Leila
Shultz. Date: June 24-27, 1997. Fee: $200 + $7 for tram.

Learn to recognize plant families and variation in plant
species and structure in native settings through four days of
field exploration and work in a laboratory. Academic credit
available.

Alpine Wildflowers : Instructor: Kim Springer. Date: July
18, 1997. Fee: $50, Explore the exquisite alpine
environment,

Wildflower Walk : Instructor: Dr. William Edwards. Date:
July 19, 1997. Fee: $50. Go sauntering and become
acquainted with some of the most spectacular flowers on earth
in Grand Teton National Park.

For further information on these, or other natural history
courses, contact the Teton Science School at (307) 733-4765
(e-mail tss@wvoming.com) . PO Box 68, Kelly, WY 830 1 1 .

Buyer Beware: Not all “Native Wildflower” Seed
Mixes Contain Native Species: I was recently looking
through the variety of seed packages for sale at the Laramie
Wal-mart, when I ran across a package of Burpee seeds
labeled “Native American Wildflower”. Always curious about
what species might be enclosed, I read the back of the
package. In a highlighted box, the company extolled that the
package contained “a mixture of American wildlflowers native
to Western, Midwestern and Eastern states. . This was then
followed by a list of 23 genera of wildflowers in the mix, 10 of
which are not native to North America, and several of which
contain species considered noxious weeds! The non-native
genera include A lyssum, Centaurea (many of which are
noxious weeds). Chrysanthemum, Cosmos, Cvnoglossum (a
noxious weed), Diartthus, Dimorphotheca, Gypsophila, Iberis,
and Lavatera, Other genera are native to North America, but
are either not native to Wyoming or are probably represented

by cultivated species that are not native to the state. These
genera include Clarkia , Eshscholzia, and Papa\>er.

With the exception of noxious weed species, all of these
flowers may be appropriate species for the garden.

Nonetheless, consumers wishing to plant “native American
wildflowers” need to be cautious about what they are
purchasing. Simply because the package says it is “native”
does not mean that the species represented are truly
indigenous to North America or Wyoming. WF

Botanist’s Bookshelf

This month we are pleased to feature 2 recently published
books by members of the Wyoming Native Plant Society.

A Field Guide to Wildflowers of the Rocky Mountains, By
Carl Schreier. 1996. Homestead Publ, Moose, WY. 224 pp.
$18.95.

I have always had a weakness for color picture guides to
western wildflowers. In recent years, many new guides have
come onto the market, nearly all of which feature wonderful
color photography. Sometimes, however, 1 am a bit
disappointed when the prose in these books does not live up to
the quality of the illustrations. Fortunately, A Field Guide to
Wildflowers of the Rocky Mountains satisfies both of these
criteria admirably.

Of course, the benchmark of any good field guide is the
quality of the illustrations. The book’s photographs (most of
which were taken by the author) are consistently outstanding,
and are nicely complimented by line drawings which highlight
features that may not be evident from the photos. Some
photographs were particularly noteworthy from a scientific and
artistic perspective. My favorites included the photos of
Nuphar polysepalum, Fritillaria pudica, Lesquerella paysonii,
and Menziesii ferruginea, (in which the leaf hairs literally leap
off the page).

Each illustration is accompanied by a paragraph describing
the species in simple, but complete prose. Personally, I much
prefer this style of writing to the “snippets” of descriptive
terms that often are used in other books, Schreier also
includes interesting facts on the history and uses of each plant,
as well as information on their distribution and habitat.

The species in the book are arranged in a phylogenetic
sequence, rather than by color or other unnatural methods, 1
like this arrangement because closely related species are
grouped together. Such an arrangement can be helpful to
readers who would like to learn more about the taxonomic
relationships of the species.

There are a few errors in the book, none of which are
serious enough to detract from its overall high quality. Some
of the species nomenclature is a little dated and does not
reflect the most current concepts of the species. For example,
Saxifraga arguta is more widely accepted today as S,
odontoloma, and Clematis columbiana (as illustrated) is what
is now called C, occidentalis var. grosser rata. A few photos
also appear to be misidentified. Draba oligosperma is
probably Lesquerella alpina. Astragalus bisulcatus is A.

4

purshis, Haplopappus uni floras is H. armerioides, Oxytropis
sericea is probably O. campestris , and Castitleja linariefolia is
C. chromosa (an error that has been perpetuated in many other
field guides!). WF

The Sunflower Family. By Cherie Winner. 1996.

Carolrhoda Books, Inc., Minneapolis, MN. 48 pp.

As its title implies, The Sunflower Family is an ode to the
Asteraceae, written for budding botanists in the 3-7* grade
range. The book is copiously illustrated with color
photographs and line drawings, and has been written to make
the complicated world of these wildflowers understandable to
younger minds. In reality, though, this book is equally useful
to grown-up readers who are confused by the complexity of the
Composites. Winner’s descriptions of the composite flower
and the evolutionary adaptations of the family are incredibly
clear and much easier to follow' than the average dusty
taxonomy tome.

Wyoming readers will also enjoy the many references to
species from our state. Two of our rarest composites are
prominently featured and illustrated: the Laramie false
sagebrush (Sphaeromeria simplex) is shown as an exatnple of
a rayless composite and Desert yellowhead (Yermo
xanthocephalus ) is featured in a discussion of specialized
habitats of rare species.

This book is recommended for anyone with a child or
grandchild interested in nature, or to any reader who wants a
quick refresher course in the sunflower family. WF

Recent Research on Salt Grass Rust in Wyoming

By John Baxter

The following is new information. If you wonder why I
haven’t tried to publish this (plus a few' other bits of data) in a
mycological journal, or at least in Plant Diseases, look me up,
and (if you have the patience) I’ll provide a lengthy
explanation.

Puccini a subnitens, the rust fungus that infects sail grass
{Distichlis spicata), is known to have a large number of
distantly related aecial hosts in several families (Bethel 1917),
During the past 3 years, in controlled indoor inoculations,
overwintered teliospores of Pucci nia subnitens were used to
inoculate 21 possible aecial hosts, Spermagonia and aecia
developed on the following species:

Aizoaceae: New Zealand spinach (Tetragon ia expan sa),
Livingstone daisy (Doro th ecanthus bellidiformis).
Trailing ice plant (Delosperma cooperi)

Brassicaceae: Cabbage (Brassica oleracea), Dyer’s woad
(hatis tinctoria). Dame’s rocket (Hesperis
matronal is), Wallflower (Cheiranthes cheiri % Hoary
cress (Cardaria sp), and Prince’s plume (Stanley a
pinnatd).

Below: Party goldenrod (Soli dago parry i), an unusual
composite native to the Sierra Madre, Medicine Bow and
Wyoming ranges. The affinity of this species has been the
source of some controversy, with different authors treating it
as a member of the genus Aster or Haplopappus. 111. by W,
Fertig.

Loasaoeae: Wavydeaf blazingstar (Mentzelia sinuata) and
Ten-petaled blazingstar (Mentzelia decape tala).

Plantaginaceae: Lawn plantain (Plantago major) and Woolly
plantain (Plantago patagonica).

Polygonaceae; Sand dock (Rumex venosus) and Curly dock
(Rumex crispus).

No infection occurred on Limonium sinuatum. Verbena
bracteata, Hyoscyamus niger, Solanum triflorum, Lithops sp.,
and Anemopsis californica. Specimens resulting from these
inoculations have been deposited in the herbarium of the
Botanical Research Institute of Texas.

Reference; Bethel, E. 1917. Puccinia subnitens and its aecial
hosts. Phytopathology' 7:92-94.

5

Has Anyone Seen the Hyattville Milkvetch?
Bv Walter Fertig

The Hyattville milkvetch ( Astragalus jejunus var.
articulatus) was first discovered by Dr. Ron Hartman in June
1979, near Hyattville, Wyoming. By coincidence, it was also
“discovered” by Dr. Robert Dorn about 2 miles away on the
very next day! After careful scrutiny of these specimens, Dorn
recognized that the Hyattville plants represented a new taxon.
He described the plants as a new variety in the first edition of
his Vascular Plants of Wyoming in 1988.

This member of the pea family (Fabaceae) has a distinctive
“bushy” growth form (even though it only attains a height of
about 5 inches!). The leaves are mostly ! /a to 3 inches long
and are pinnately divided into 9-21 narrow leaflets, The small
flowers are mostly white with lavender tips and occur in open
clusters of 3 -7 and are in bloom from May to June. The most
distinctive feature of the plant is its inflated, bladdery fruit
pods that are papery in texture and mottled with red or purple
spots.

Hyattville milkvetch closely resembles the Starveling
milkvetch (Astragalus jejunus var Jejunus), a taxon of limited
distribution in the dry basin country of southwestern Wyoming
and adjacent Utah and Idaho. Variety jejunus can be
distinguished by its purplish flowers and shorter stems (often
with numerous, persistent dead branches). This variety is
relatively common in Wyoming, but extremely rare elsewhere
in its range and is treated as Sensitive by the Forest Service in
Utah and Idaho.

Astragalus jejunus var. articulatus grows on sparsely
vegetated, barren clay hills with red soils, It is usually found
on substrates derived from the Goose Egg and Chugwaler
Formations. Populations are generally widely scattered. Some
of the species associated with Hyattville milkvetch include
yucca (Yucca glauca), larchleaf beardtongue (Penstemon
laricifolius), Bessey’s locoweed (Oxytropis hesseyi\ miner’s
candle (Cryptantha spp.), groundsel (Senecio spp.), and
Hood’s phlox (Phlox hoodii).

Despite recent surveys by Dorn and others, A, jejunus var,
articulatus is still known only from the vicinity of Hyattville in
eastern Big Horn County, Wyoming, in the transition zone
between the eastern Bighorn Basin and the foothills of the
Bighorn Range. Dorn located 3 subpopulations during a
survey r for the US Fish and Wildlife Service in 1989. He
estimated that the population contained 6750 plants in an area
totaling 35 acres. The population appears to be secure at
present, although disturbance from off-road vehicles or
potential mining could jeopardize the species in the future.

Due to its extremely restricted range and small population
size, Hyattville milkvetch was a candidate for listing under the
Endangered Species Act until 19%. In that year, most
existing candidate species were dropped from consideration by
the US Fish and Wildlife Service as part of a revision of the
Service’s candidate policy' (see the October 1995 issue of
Castilleja). The Bureau of Land Management Wyoming State

Astragalus jejunus HYATTVILLE MILKVETCH

van articulatus

Fruits papery',
inflated pods, 12-15
mm long, mottled
with red or purple

Inflorescence
a 3-7 flowered
raceme

Low -growing,
multi-stemmed
perennial herb

Flowers white
tinged with
f lavender, 5-6.5
mm long; keel
petal blunt

Leaves pinnately
compound; leaflets 9-21,
less than 5 mm long and
1.5 mm wide; terminal
leaflet not continuous with
leafstalk

111, bv W Fcnig

Above: Hyattville milkvetch (Astragalus jejunus var. articulatus).
111. By W, Fertig from “Wyoming Rare Plant Field Guide”.

Office is currently reviewing this taxon for possible inclusion
on its list of state sensitive species.

Additional information is needed on this, and many other
rare species that might warrant protection under the
Endangered Species Act. Such information can be useful in
guiding management decisions and in determining what land
use activities may be compatible or incompatible with the
plants’ survival. Better data on locations and abundance can
also influence whether a species even needs management
attention at all (additional surveys sometimes result in the
discovery of many new populations of a rare species). If you
find yourself wandering through the Hyattville area this
spring, keep a keen eye peeled for the milkvetch and let
botanists in the Plant Society, the University, the BLM, or the
Nature Conservancy Heritage program know of your
discoveries.

6

Wyoming’s Pinyon- Juniper Woodlands

By Walter Fertig

Mention conifer forests to a Wyoming naturalist, and most
will conjure up images of cool, mountainous slopes clothed by
tall and dense stands of subalpine fir, Engelmann spruce,
Douglas-fir, or lodgepole pine. What many people may not
realize is that Wyoming is also home to a very different
conifer forest type, one in which trees reach an average height
of 12 feet and occur on dusty, low, desert mountains. This
“pygmy forest” is the pinyon-juniper woodland of southwest
Wyoming.

The two chief components of this forest type are the pinyon
pine (Firms edulis) and Utah juniper (Juniperus osteosperma).
Together, these two species cover most of the low mountain
ranges of the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau, In Wyoming,
however, Utah juniper and pinyon pine only occur together in
a small area of southern Sweetwater County on the east side of
Flaming Gorge Reservoir, Pinyon pine is at the northern limit
of its range in this area, and apparently has been unable to
spread farther north due to harsh winter conditions. Utah
jumper is more cold and drought tolerant, and has been able to
continue northward into the basins of central and western
Wyoming.

The pinyon-juniper woodland in Wyoming is found
primarily on dry, red or whitish, sandstone ridges of the Rock
Springs Uplift. Of the two species, the Utah juniper is
typically the more abundant and contributes the greater
amount of total cover. In many areas, pinyon may be
completely absent or secondary in importance to true mountain
mahogany (Cercocarpus mon tonus), curlleaf mountain
mahogany (C ledifolius var. ledifolius), or other shrubs.
Regardless of the species composition, these forests are
typically comprised of relatively short trees that are spaced far
enough apart to form a discontinuous canopy. The forest
understory is often fairly sparse, with scattered shrubs,
bunchgrasses, and low fofbs, and large expanses of bare
ground or gravel.

Pinyon-juniper forests in southwest Wyoming appear to be
spreading from ridgetop habitats into adjacent valley
communities dominated by sagebrush grasslands. Studies of
other juniper-dominated communities in Wyoming have found
dial the spread of juniper may be related to the advent of
livestock grazing and fire suppression. Grazing has been
found to contribute to fire suppression through the removal of
fine vegetation that could serve as fuel for wildfires. The
spread of jumper can result in changes in the species
composition of plant communities due to toxic effects from
chemicals released from the jumpers foliage and roots.

A number of uncommon shrub species are largely restricted
to pinyon-juniper woodlands in Wyoming. Among these are
the little-leaf mock-orange (Philadelphus microphytlus), a
white-flowered, shreddy-barked relative of the Hydrangea ,
dwarf ninebark (Physocarpus aitemans), known only from one
location in the state just north of the Utah state line, and dwarf
mountain mahogany ( Cercocarpus ledifolius var. in tricot us), a

species with narrow, leathery' leaves that are almost completely
folded to obscure the white- woolly undersides.

Perhaps the most unusual of these shrub species, however,
is the green Mormon lea (Ephedra viridis). This essentially
leafless, yellowish-stemmed shrub is the only member of its
family (Ephedraceae) in Wyoming. The Ephedraceae is an
evolutionarily isolated group that combines morphological
characters of the gymnosperms with some advanced
reproductive features of the flowering plants (angiosperms).
Early pioneers in the west used the dried stems of this and
related species to concoct a tonic beverage called Mormon or
Brigham tea. A related species from China is the source of the
drug ephedrine (which may account for the popularity of the
pioneer’s brew'). In Wyoming, green Mormon tea is known
from only 3 extant populations, all within the pinyon-juniper
country near Minnies Gap and Richards Mountain, Individual
plants are often found growing below larger “nurse” shrubs
which appear to offer some protection from herbivory.

The Uinta draba (Draba juniper ina) is one of the “rarest”
plants to occur in the pinyon-juniper community', even though
it may be numerically one of the most common forb species
present. This yellow-flowered mustard is a regional endemic,
with a total global range that is limited to the pinyon-juniper
country' of soutwestem Wyoming and extreme northeastern
Utah and northwestern Colorado. Recent surveys have found
that this plant may number in the millions within this small
area. Uinta draba is one of the few forb species that appears to
be tolerant of the inhibitory chemicals released by junipers and
thrives in the needle duff and cryptogam-rich sandstone soils
beneath these trees.

In addition to plants, the pinyon-juniper forest is also
significant as habitat for a number of rare animal species.
Birders have long recognized the importance of this
community as nesting and foraging habitat for a suite of
“juniper obligate” songbirds that includes the gray flycatcher,
ash-throated flycatcher, western scrub-jay, plain titmouse,
bushtit, Bewick’s wren, gray vireo, and Scott’s oriole. Pinyon-
juniper also provides important habitat for the cliff chipmunk.
Great Basin pocket mouse, canyon mouse, northern tree lizard,
and midget faded rattlesnake, all of which are considered rare
in the state.

Most of the pinyon-juniper woodlands in Wyoming are on
public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management or
Flaming Gorge National Receation Area (Ashley National
Forest). Currently, these lands are utilized primarily for
grazing or recreation. Although current impacts from these
activities do not appear to be significantly damaging this
community, increased use could have negative impacts in the
future. Adequate representative areas need to be managed to
ensure that the biological values of tills community can persist.

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The Botany Songbook
Purshia

By John “Barney” Baxter

One morning a lovesick young antelope

Told his sweetheart “my dear we just can't elope”

Please excuse my inertia
I ate too much Purshia ,

Which to me tastes much better than cantaloupe.

The Study of Botany

An early botanical limerick, attributed to Theophrastus
(371-285 BC), a student of Aristotle and widely regarded
as the “father of botany” (according to a US Forest
Service DG message making the rounds a few years ago)

There should be no monotony
To studying your botany
It helps to train
And spur the brain
Unless you haven’t gotany

The Wyoming Native Plant Society, established in 1981, is a
non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging the
appreciation and conservation of the native flora and plant
communities of Wyoming. The Society promotes education
and research on native plants of the state through its
newsletter, field trips, and annual student scholarship award.
Membership is open to individuals, families, or organizations
with an interest in Wyoming’s flora. Members receive
Castiileja, the Society’s quarterly newsletter, and may take
part in all of the Society’s programs and projects, including
the annual meeting/field trip held each summer. Dues are $5
annually.

To join the Wyoming Native Plant Society, return the
membership form below to:

Wyoming Native Plant Society
1604 Grand Ave.

Laramie, WY 82070

Wyoming Native Plant Society

Name:

Address:

$5.00 Regular Membership

$15.00 Scholarship Supporting Member

($10.00 goes to the annual scholarship fund)

Wyoming
Nanve Plant
Society

WYOMING NATIVE
PLANT SOCIETY

1604 Grand Avenue
Laramie, WY 82070

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