Photo: Al St. John.

Whychus Canyon Preserve Wildflower List

Your guide to wildflowers of Whychus Canyon Preserve.

Questions? Contact our team!

Do you have questions, kudos, or other feedback? Let us know: info@deschuteslandtrust.org

The Land Trust's Whychus Canyon Preserve is a wonderful place to see the wildflowers of Central Oregon's high desert. It's sagebrush meadows and juniper forest offer some of the earliest wildflowers of the season, while its cool, creekside canyons delight with entirely different bouquet!

Our list of Whychus Canyon Preserve wildflowers can be found below. We've included approximate bloom times and links to photos for ease of identification. However, please keep in mind that common names are often varied and that bloom times are entirely dependent upon weather and other changing conditions. You can also download a pdf of the list. Happy wildflowering!

 

 **Bloom times are approximate and related to weather conditions more than calendar dates**

 Plant  Type  Botanical Name  Common  Names  Native Plant?  Flowering Season
Forb Achillea millefolium Common yarrow Yes All Summer
Forb Agoseris glauca Pale agoseris Yes Late Summer
Forb Agoseris glauca (Pursh) Raf. var. laciniata Sagebrush agoseris, False agoseris Yes Late Summer
Forb Amelanchier alnifolia Saskatoon serviceberry, Western serviceberry Yes Midspring
Forb Antennaria dimorpha Low pussytoes Yes Midspring
Forb Antennaria rosea Rosy pussytoes, Rosy everlasting Yes All Summer
Forb Apocynum androsaemifolium Spreading dogbane, Mountain dogbane Yes All Summer
Forb Aquilegia formosa Western columbine, Red columbine Yes All Spring and Summer
Forb Asclepius speciosa Showy milkweed Yes All Summer
Forb Astragalus filipes Basalt milkvetch, Thread-leaved locoweed, Slimpod milkvetch Yes Late Spring
Forb Astragalus reventiformis Yakima milkvetch Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Balsamorhiza sagittata Arrowleaf balsamroot Yes All Summer
Forb Berberis repens Creeping Oregon grape Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Blepharipappus scaber Rough eyelashweed Yes All Summer
Forb Boechera pauciflora Hairy rockcress Yes Late Spring
Forb Calochortus macrocarpus Sagebrush mariposa lily, Green-banded mariposa lily Yes Late Summer
Forb Castilleja chromosa Desert paintbrush Yes Midsummer
 Forb Centaurea stoebe L. ssp micranthos Spotted knapweed No All Summer
Forb Chaenactis douglasii Douglas' dustymaiden, Hoary false yarrow Yes Early Summer
Forb Chamerion angustifolium Fireweed Yes All Summer
Shrub Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus Green (yellow) rabbitbrush, Laceleaf green rabbitbrush Yes Late Summer
Forb Clarkia garcilis Slender clarkia Yes Midsummer
Forb Clarkia rhomboidea Diamond clarkia, Common clarkia Yes Early Summer
Forb Collinsia parviflora Maiden blue-eyed Mary, Small-flowered blue-eyed Mary Yes Early Spring
Forb Collomia grandiflora Grand collomia, Large-flowered Collomia Yes Midsummer
 Forb Convolvulus arvensis Field bindweed, Orchard morning glory No Spring and Summer
Shrub Cornus sericea Redosier dogwood Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Crepis accuminata Tapertip hawksbeard, Longleaf hawksbeard Yes Midspring
Forb Crepis pleurocarpa Nakedstem hawksbeard Yes Midspring
Forb Crocidium multicaule Common spring-gold, Gold stars Yes Early Spring
Forb Delphinium nuttallianum Twolobe larkspur, Common larkspur Yes Early Summer
Forb Diplacus nanus Dwarf purple monkeyflower Yes All Summer
Forb Draba verna Spring draba, Common draba, Spring whitlow-grass No Early Spring
Forb Epilobium brachycarpum Desert willowherb Yes Late Spring - Midsummer
Shrub Ericameria nauseosa (Pall. ex Pursh) G.L. Nesom & Baird ssp. consimilis (Greene) G.L. Nesom & Baird var. oreophila Gray (Rubber) rabbitbrush Yes Late Summer - Autumn
Forb Erigeron linearis Linear leaf daisy, Desert yellow daisy, Lineleaf fleabane Yes All Summer
Forb Erigeron poliospermus var. poliospermus Purple cushion fleabane Yes Late Spring
Forb Erigeron pumilus Shaggy daisy Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Eriogonum polyanthum Sulfur-flower buckwheat, Sulphur flower, Sulphur eriogonum Yes All Summer
Forb Erigonum sphaerocephalum Roundhead buckwheat Yes Early Summer
Forb Eriogonum umbellatum Torr. var. dichrocephalum Sulfur-flower buckwheat Yes Midsummer
 Forb Eriophyllum lanatum Oregon sunshine, Woolly yellow daisy Yes All Spring and Summer
Forb Erysimum capitatum Sanddune wallflower, Western wallflower, Rough wallflower Yes All Summer
Forb Erythranthe guttata Seep monkeyflower, Seep-spring monkeyflower, Common western monkeyflower Yes All Summer
Forb Fragaria virginiana Virginia strawberry, Mountain strawberry Yes Late Spring
Forb Fritillaria atropurpurea Spotted fritillary, Spotted mountain bells Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Fritillaria pudica Yellow fritillary, Yellow bell Yes Early Spring
Forb Geum macrophyllum Largeleaf avens Yes All Spring and Summer
Forb Hemizonella minima Opposite-leaved tarweed, Smallhead tarweed Yes Late Spring
Forb Heuchera cylindrica
Roundleaf alumroot Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Heuchera micrantha Crevice alumroot, Small-flowered alumroot, Crevice heuchera Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Hieracium scouleri Scouler's woollyweed, Scouler's hawkweed Yes All Summer
Forb Ipomopsis aggregata Scarlet gilia, Skyrocket Yes Midsummer
Forb Iris missouriensis Rocky mountain iris, Western blue iris Yes Early Summer
Forb Lathyrus latifolius Perennial pea, Everlasting pea, Perennial sweetpea No All Spring and Summer
Forb Layia glandulosa Whitedaisy tidytips, White layia Yes Midspring
Forb Leptosiphon bicolor True babystars, Bicolored flaxflower Yes Late Spring
Forb Leucocrinum montanum Common starlily, Sand lily Yes Late Spring
Forb Lewisia rediviva Bitterroot Yes All Spring
Forb Linanthus pungens Granite prickly phlox, Granite gilia Yes Early Spring - Midsummer
 Forb Linum lewisii Lewis flax, Western blue flax Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Lithophragma parviflorum Smallflower woodland-star, Prairie star Yes Early Spring
Forb Lithospernum ruderale Western stoneseed, Columbia puccoon, Western gromwell Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
 Forb Lomatium gormanii Salt and pepper, Gorman's lomatium Yes All Spring
Forb Lomatium macrocarpum Bigseed biscuitroot, Giant-seed lomatium, Large-fruited biscuitroot, Large-fruited desert parsley Yes Early Spring
Forb Lomatium triternatum Nineleaf biscuitroot, Lewis's lomatium Yes Midspring
Forb Lupinus aridus Desert lupine Yes All Summer
Forb Lupinus polyphyllus Bigleaf lupine, Large-leaved lupine Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Lupinus sericea Silky lupine Yes All Summer
Forb Maianthemum stellatum Starry false lily of the valley, Star Solomon's seal Yes Late Spring
Forb Malva neglecta Common mallow, Cheeseweed, Buttonweed No All Summer
Forb Mentzelia albicaulis Whitestem blazingstar, White-stemmed stick-leaf Yes Midspring
Forb Microsteris gracilis Slender phlox, Midget phlox, Annual phlox, Pretty little phlox Yes All Summer
Forb Nothocalais troximoides False agoseris Yes Midspring
Forb Packera cana Gray groundsel, Woolly groundsel Yes All Summer
Forb Penstemon humilis Low beardtongue, Lowly penstemon Yes Midsummer
Forb Penstemon rydbergii Rydberg's beardtongue, Rydberg's penstemon Yes Midsummer
Forb Phacelia hastata Silverleaf phacelia Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Phacelia heterophylla Varied-leaf phacelia Yes Midsummer
Forb Phacelia linearis Threadleaf phacelia Yes All Spring
Shrub Philadelphus lewisii Lewis's mock orange, Western syringa Yes Early Summer
Forb Phlox diffusa Spreading phlox Yes Midspring
Forb Plagiobothrys tenellus Pacific popcornflower Yes Midspring
Forb Plantago lanceolata Narrowleaf plantain, English plantain, Lanceleaf plantain No All Year
Forb Plectritis macrocera Longhorn plectritis, White plectritis Yes Midspring
Forb Polemonium occidentale Western polemonium, Western Jacob's ladder Yes All Summer
Forb Potentilla gracilis Slender cinquefoil, Fivefinger cinquefoil Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Shrub Prunus virginiana Chokecherry Yes Late Spring
Shrub Purshia tridentata Antelope bitterbrush Yes Late Spring
Forb Ranunculus glaberrimus Sagebrush buttercup Yes All Spring
Shrub Ribes cereum Wax currant Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Shrub Rosa woodsii Woods' rose Yes All Summer
Forb Scutellaria nana Dwarf skullcap Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Sedum stenopetalum Wormleaf stonecrop Yes All Summer
Forb Sidalcea oregana Oregon checkerbloom, Oregon checker mallow, Marsh hollyhock Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Silene douglasii Douglas's catchfly, Douglas's campion Yes All Spring and Summer
Forb Sisymbrium altissimum Tall tumblemustard, Jim Hill mustard No All Spring and Summer
Forb Sisyrinchium idahoense Idaho blue-eyed grass Yes Midsummer
Forb Solidago elongata West coast goldenrod, Narrow goldenrod Yes All Summer
Shrub Spiraea douglasii Rose spiraea, Douglas's spiraea, Hardhack Yes All Summer
Shrub Symphoricarpos albus Common snowberry Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Townsendia florifer Showy Townsend daisy Yes Late Spring - Early Summer
Forb Toxicoscordian paniculatum Foothill death camas Yes Early Spring
Forb Tragopogon dubius Yellow salsify, Goat's beard No All Summer
Forb Verbascum thapsus Common mullein, Woolly mullein No All Summer
Forb Viola purpurea Goosefoot violet, Purple-backed violet, Mountain violet Yes Late Spring

 
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