National Park Service Smallflower globemallow f~~) Threadleaf snakeweed Banana yucca Watch for a small spring (damp area) on your Pallid hoptree Continue down the switchbacks through the Munz's bedstraw U.S. Department of the Interior Sphaeralcea parvifolia - Malvaceae microcephala - Yucca baccata - Agavaceae right, Kolb Seep, with a switchback to the left. Ptelea trifoliata - Rutaceae Coconino Sandstone cliffs. Galium munzii - Rubiaceae National Park Perennial forb, whitish Small perennial with Succulent perennial with a to 20 ft / 6 m tall with white Skunkbush Perennial shrub with green and hairy. Leaves many slender, erect, yellow- rosette of long, wide, spine- Cliff fendlerbush stems. Alternate leaves in groups Rhus trilobata - Anacardiaceae slender, wiry branches, to 2 fan-shaped, lobed, green branches and small, tipped leaves with fibers Fendlera rupicola - Hydrangeaceae of 3 leaflets. Bunches of greenish ft/60 cm tall. Leaves attach Deciduous shrub with coarsely toothed. Orange narrow leaves. Produces coming off the leaf edges. white flowers with 4 petals; to branches in groups of Shrub to 7 ft/2 m tall with straight, opposite leaves divided into 5-petaled flowers many small, yellow flowers Flower stalks with large cream- Maytojune. Seeds, surrounded four. Small, red flowers vertical stems and shaggy bark. three lobed leaflets. Dense, What's That ? with yellow centers; June to October. Like the colored flowers in spring, by a papery wing, hang down. emerge June to October. Leaves paired, narrow, thick, and spike-like, yellowish flowers June to August. larger rabbitbrush, this common plant is prominent followed by fleshy,banana - Look for the groups of four leaves slightly rolled under. Flowers April to June, followed by red A guide for identifying along in the late summer and fall when it is covered by shaped capsules. If you hold the leaves up to the radiating from the stem. This species cover the plant May to July with 4 fruit. Flowers appear before' Globemallow, widespread throughout yellow flowers. Sheepherders applied a poultice of light, you will see hundreds of of bedstraw, found only in Arizona, the Bright Angel Trail from the rim separated white petals, followed by the leaves emerge in spring. the West, thrives in dry, sunny areas. Its snakeweed to treat snakebit sheep. Yucca flowers can be pollinated only by yucca moths, tiny spots, glands filled with oily compounds that emit prefers rocky habitats. to Mile-and-a-Half Resthouse small, acorn-like fruits. Glandular hairs cover the sticky berries, giving them a leaves and flowers can be made into a which lay their eggs in the flowers. Moth larvae eat a citrus odor when crushed. Ancient hunters made a sweet-sour taste. Pioneers made the berries into a tart, tea to promote calmness. The hairs on the foliage can Reach a switchback turning to the right and only yucca seeds. Thus, each species is dependent poison for arrows from the leaves. These grow in rocky areas; tasty lemonade bestowing another name: lemonade- Fragrant ash irritate the skin and eyes of livestock, giving rise to start down "Heartbreak Hill." upon the other. Yucca provided Native Americans the Latin name rupicola means Fraxinus cuspidata - Oleaceae another common name, sore-eye poppy. with food, fiber, and shampoo. While walking down the switchbacks below the . rock-dweller. A profusion of sweet- second tunnel, watch for a century plant perched Small tree to 23 ft/ 7 m tall with juniper smelling flowers attracts attention on the cliff. Please observe it from the trail. Creeping barberry [~~1 gray, fissured trunk. Opposite leaves CI iff rose a Juniperus osteosperma - Cupressaceae Arizona thistle in spring. Native peoples used the repens - in groups of 3 to 7 narrow leaflets. Purshia stansburiana - Rosaceae Cirsium arizonicum - Asteraceae straight, smooth branches to make Loose, white flowers with long petals Short tree to 20 ft/6 m tall. Century plant Low, creeping evergreen shrub. Evergreen shrub to 8 ft/2.5 arrows, planting sticks, and awls. droop from stems April to June and Crooked, twisted trunks with Perennial forb with one to several Agave utahensis - Agavaceae Dark green, leathery, holly-like m tall with shaggy bark. mature into winged seeds. shaggy bark. Needles are scale­ erect stems. Sharp spines cover A succulent perennial; a rosette of leaves with spiny teeth along Leaves wedge-shaped, lobed, like. A blue-gray wax coats the the leaves and base of flower. thick, spine-tipped leaves with sharp the edge. Yellow flowers with and curled under at the end. This ash differs from others in that berry-like female cones. Purple flower heads emerge from Halfway between Kolb Seep and the second teeth along leaf edges. Flower stalk 6 petals April to June, followed Flowers cream-colored with it has fragrant flowers with petals. Used by Native spiny bracts May to October. tunnel, you may spy a prickly pear growing grows in a few weeks to 20 ft / 6 m by blue berries. 5 petals. Fruits sport 4 to 10 Americans to make bows and arrow shafts. Pinyon-juniper forests cover from a crack in the rock wall above you. Can tall; covered with yellow flowers feathery plumes. millions of acres in the More than a dozen species of you find it? May to July. Barberry's stems trail along the ground. Many fleabane Southwest. Birds and coyotes eat the thistle occur in Arizona. This mammals and birds feed on the berries, although Cliffrose leaves are bitter tasting, leading to the name Erigeron concinnus - Asteraceae berries and deposit the encased seed species is native, but others are The century plant grows for 20 to 40 people may find them dry and tasteless. The Navajo quinine-bush; yet, many animals browse on it. The in their droppings, helping disperse exotic and highly invasive. Hummingbirds and many Prickly pear years. One spring it will rapidly sprout use the plant to treat scorpion bites. Steep the roots Perennial forb. Leaves branches were fashioned into arrow shafts and the the plant. Junipers provide fuel, building material, insects feed on the flower's nectar. Opuntia sp. - Cactaceae a huge flowering stalk, after which for a laxative tea. alternate, hairy, long, and shaggy bark lined Navajo and cradleboards. medicine, food, and ceremonial items for Native the entire plant dies. The agave has narrow. Seed heads also Cactus with flat pads covered Americans. provided Native Americans food, At the bottom of the Coconino switchbacks, covered with hairs. Flowers Douglas fir with spines. Large yellow, fiber, and medicine for centuries. traverse along the Hermit shale slope. April to October; many white Indian ricegrass Pseudotsuga menziesii - Pinaceae pink, or red flowers emerge petals with a large yellow Achnatherum hymenoides - Poaceae Fremont barberry Evergreen tree to 130 ft/40 m May to June. Oval, red, fleshy center. Perennial bunchgrass with Mahonia fremontii - Berberidaceae tall, tapering to a point, with fruits, called tunas, ripen below Beechleaf Miner's lettuce The fine hairs give this narrow leaves as long as the drooping branches. Short, flat the flowers. Many species of Frangula betulifolia - Rutaceae Claytonia perfoliata - Portulacaceae Evergreen shrub to 10 ft/3 m fleabane a fuzzy appearance. The word fleabane stem. Large seeds on the ends of needles. Small cones hang down prickly pear thrive from rim to tall. Alternate leaves with thick, Deciduous shrub to 8 ft/2.5 Annual forb with many derives from using this plant to keep away fleas and slender, openly branched stalks; from branches with bracts river—some with long spines, gray-green leaflets have spiny tips. m tall. Large, prominently spreading stems. Two types other insects. May to August. Yellow 6-petaled flowers appear protruding between cone scales. others with no spines; pad size veined leaves with tiny teeth of leaves—long, narrow April to July, followed by bluish- and color varies. At the base of each group of spines along the edge. Small greenish leaves near the ground, Congratulations on reaching Mile-and-a-Half The large seeds at the ends of the black berries. In spite of its name, Douglas fir is not a true fir—cones are tiny tan spines termed glochids. No matter the flowers Maytojune. Round and fleshy, circular leaves Resthouse. After resting, while hiking back clumped grasses give them a lacy on firs are upright and disintegrate before falling. size of the spines, they hurt, so keep your distance. berries turn purple in the fall. surrounding small, white to the rim, revisit the plants you learned. Can appearance. The seeds, easy to The sharp-tipped leaves deliver a painful poke. Birds Look for the cones with bracts or "mouse tails" People eat the tunas raw or cooked into jellies, and flowers. The circular, flower- you find any plants not listed in this guide? harvest, are very nutritious. Native Americans roasted and small mammals consume the berries. The stems between the cone's scales. Douglas firs usually grow at the calcium-rich young pads are eaten raw, boiled, or The most noticeable feature bearing leaves make it easy to identify miner's lettuce. Images by Lee Dittmann used with permission from nazflora.org. them to make into mush, cereal, or bread. Mammals and roots produce a brilliant, yellow dye used to color higher elevations. Because of the cooler, north-facing fried. Many animals from grounds squirrels to coyotes about this plant is the large, veined leaves, shiny on Both Native Americans and pioneers used these Images by Al Schneider used with permission from and birds also eat, and sometimes cache, the seeds. cloth, buckskins, and baskets. slope, they thrive here. also enjoy the fruits. top, pale and fuzzy beneath. Wildlife relish the berries. leaves to make salads. swcoloradowildflowers.com ©0711 Learn the plants while A note about terminology: All plant species are Hoary-tansyaster Smooth spreading four o'clock Rubber rabbitbrush White sagebrush r~J Pass beneath the tunnel blasted through the Muttongrass native to Grand Canyon unless they are listed as Machaeranthera canescens - Asteraceae Mirabilis oxybaphoides - Nyctaginaceae Ericameria nauseosa - Asteraceae Artemisia ludoviciana - Asteraceae Kaibab Limestone cliff. Poa fendleriana - Poaceae walking the trail. exotic. Annual indicates the plant lives for only Forb with many branches. Perennial forb. Leaves Perennial shrub with Perennial forb with foliage Perennial bunchgrass. Leaves mainly one year, while perennial means it lives for more goldenbush Leaves alternate and very opposite, heart-shaped, with felt-like, greyish-green that becomes gray-green as it come from the base of plant with than a year. A forb is a plant, other than a grass, Ericameria arizonica - Asteraceae that does not have a woody stem. narrow, often with bristly wavy margins. Stems many- upright branches. Leaves matures. Leaves deeply divided sheaths closed along the lower third tips. Flowers brilliantly blue branched and hairy. Purple alternate and narrow. into 3-5 lobes. Many yellow Perennial shrub to 1.5 ft/50 cm of the leaf. Branched seed heads funnel-shaped flowers with 3 Yellow flowers cover the flowers arranged in a branched taper towards the top; April-August. A number of plants grow near the trailhead. or purple with many petals tall. Reddish-tan stems with long, lobes; August to September. plant July to October. stalk; August to October. See how many you can identify while surrounding a yellow center; narrow leaves. Yellow flowers enjoying the magnificent canyon view. July to November. with a big, fluffy center and 5 A widespread grass often found in You will see this plant trailing Rabbitbrush becomes one of the most noticeable White sagebrush, found throughout Grand Canyon, is narrow petals appear in the fall. open woodlands and grasslands, this These eye-catching flowers add color along the trail along the ground. The genus shrubs in late summer and fall when it is covered with one of the most widely distributed species in western is an important food source for elk, Pinyon pine well into the fall. They grow in areas that have been name, Mirabilis, translates dense masses of tiny yellow flowers. Rabbits browse . Native Americans boil it into a tea, Like Grand Canyon rockdaisy, deer, and . The Havasupai grind and eat Pinus edulis - Pinaceae disturbed or have poor soils. The Navajo use this plant as "wonderful," for its large, and hide in the plant. The Hopi use the branches in burn it as an incense, and crush it to use as a poultice. these plants occur mainly along the seeds or boil them to make dumplings. Short tree to 45 ft/15 m tall to help with nasal congestion and stomach aches. beautiful flowers. Native Americans used the root to basket making. the rock wall above the trail. They often with a crooked trunk treat colic, rheumatism, and infections. also are endemic to (i.e. found Continue to the sign warning of the danger and furrowed dark bark. Walk down to the Bright Angel Trail only at) Grand Canyon. Botanists recently designated of hiking to the river and back in one day. Two short, curved needles Cheatgrass information sign at the first switchback. 50 feet/15 meters down the trail is a geology this plant as a new species. per bundle. Small cones Bromus tectorum Poaceae brickellbush Fernbush (~) sign introducing the Kaibab Formation. The Brickellia californica - Asteraceae produce large seeds each Exotic annual grass with Big sagebrush r~) Chamaebatiaria millefolium - Rosaceae fall. next two shrubs surround it. Squirreltail drooping seed heads. Many-branched, aromatic Artemisia tridentata - Asteraceae Shrub to 5 ft/1.5 m tall. Starting at the trailhead, this guide Plants solitary or in clumps. shrub to 3 ft/1 m tall. Leaves Elymus elymoides - Poaceae Mountain snowberry Q Leaves alternate and fernlike. points out some of the plants you pass. Pinyon pines are one of Flowers and dries in May. triangular, toothed, and Perennial bunchgrass with Perennial shrub with thick, Symphoricarpos oreophilus - Caprifoliaceae crooked trunk and silvery White flowerswit h 5 petals; Trail descriptions (written in red) help the most common covered with fine hairs. Flowers leaves that are often folded July to November. Fernbush is easily along the South Rim. Their gray-green foliage. Leaves you find where different plants first start Cheatgrass invaded the Deciduous shrub to 5 ft/1.5 m cylindrical, white to yellowish, or rolled down. Flowers identified by its cones produce large, tasty wedge-shaped and hairy United States in the late tall with smooth stems. Leaves and clustered; July to October. March to September with loose sticky leaves, which to appear along the trail. You will not pinyon nuts. The nuts opposite and oval. Tubular and open seed heads. with 3 rounded lobes at the 1800s. It spread quickly, outcompeting native grasses look like miniature only identify common plants, but also were an important food for Native Americans. Jays pink flowers with 5 lobes tip. Flower stalks emerge and crops, "cheating" farmers and wildlife alike from Brickellbush, while quite common, is often overlooked ferns. The flowers, discover interesting facts about each. cache the seeds in the ground to retrieve when food is bloom May to August; followed from ends of branches; more edible and nutritious native grasses. Cheatgrass since its features are not distinctive. Can you find it The seed heads look like a showy and sweet- scarce. Seeds not eaten may germinate in the spring, by white berries. August to September. Record how many plants you can find by often moves into areas damaged by overgrazing or along the trail? This drought-tolerant bush grows best bushy squirrel's tail or bottle smelling, attract bees. Deer and sheep helping propagate the tree. other disturbances. Seed heads stick in hikers' socks, checking off the box next to each name. in rocky areas with full sun. brush. It survives when exposed browse the foliage. which helps disperse the seeds. Snowberry reproduces both by seed and by vegetative to fire and competes well against One of the most widely distributed shrubs in the southwestern United Gooseberry/Currant clones. Birds and small mammals eat the brilliantly invasive cheatgrass. Deer and elk graze the grass. Its Plants are ordered according to the States, sagebrush is known for Green ephedra Ribes sp. - Saxifragaceae Gambel white berries. The Havasupai fashion cradleboards seeds are eaten by rodents and rabbits. Penstemon its pungent odor. Native Americans and pioneers Ephedra viridis - Ephedraceae first time they appear along the trail. Quercus gambelii - Fagaceae from the stems. Penstemon sp. - Scrophulariaceae Since they are close enough to see from Perennial shrub to 6 ft/2 m depended upon it for medicine, fuel, and food. Perennial shrub with many tall. Leaves alternate with Treetol5ft/5mtall Perennial forb of tall stalks with flowers along upper upright, green, jointed stems the trail, please do not walk off the Utah serviceberry Grand Canyon rockdaisy Q 3 to 5 lobes and prominent with gray, furrowed portion; March to September. Leaves opposite, Look closely at the stems for Amelanchier utahensis - Rosaceae Perityle congesta - Asteraceae Gray aster f~~] trail while examining them. Can you veins. White tubular bark. Deeply lobed triangular shaped, sometimes clasping the stem. the small, scale-like leaves Eurybia glauca - Asteraceae recognize the same plants in different flowers appear May to July, leaves are smooth above Shrub to 15 ft/5 m tall. Leaves Perennial shrub to 1 ft/30 cm tall and in the spring, for small locations along the trail? followed by red berries. and hairy below. Large alternate, oval, hairy, and Many penstemon species with many slender stems. Leaves Perennial forb with alternate yellow-green cones. acorns mature in fall. toothed. White flowers with inhabit Grand Canyon. alternate, mostly along stem, oval, pale green leaves. Violet- Two species grow along 5 petals appear April to May. Eaton's firecracker (left) and sometimes toothed. Tiny tinged white flowers with Start at the trailhead for the Bright Angel Ephedra looks like a branched, upside- the trail. Gooseberry has spines, Oak provides shelter Orange fruits ripen in summer. with beautiful narrow, red yellow flowers June to October. narrow petals and a yellow down broom, its leaves hardly noticeable. Trail on the canyon rim near the rock while currant does not. The and food for many animals. Early cultures ground the flowers is most abundant at This small, rounded plant has a center; July to September. Related to pines and juniper, it bears corral for the mules, 300 feet/100 meters berries are edible, but please leave acorn into meal. Its hard wood is important for tool- The foliage and berries are an important food for a higher elevations. Palmer's delicate appearance. Watch for it The showy flowers highlight cones instead of flowers. Ephedra produce west of Kolb Studio. them for other animals. Birds love making, and its bark produces a tan dye for Navajo variety of wildlife. People have long eaten the berries. penstemon (right) exhibits growing out of cracks in the rock wall above the trail. the large, dense patches of caffeine and ephedrine and have been the berries. and other rugs. While the leaves turn brown in fall, many do not The name originates from the early settlers who placed showy pink flowers. Look for Restricted almost exclusively to Grand Canyon, it gray aster. A powdery coating makes the firm, wide used as decongestants to relieve colds and wildlife browse the foliage. drop off until spring when new leaves replace them. serviceberry flowers on grave sites. it farther down the trail. thrives from river to rim. leaves appear grayish-green. asthma. The stems are steeped to make tea.