July 21, 2011

Long-Leaved Pholx
Bozeman, Montana
2011

There’s a more compact, low-lying type of phlox that comes out earlier in the year that I like better than the Long-Leaved Phlox, but as I mentioned in a previous post, I didn’t get around to photographing flowers early enough to catch some varieties.

Native Americans use to us Long-Leaved Phlox to build up blood in anemic children and to treat eye problems, stomach-ache, diarrhea, and venereal disease. That was probably before the white man introduced them to snake oil as a cure-all.

Speaking of previous posts, I now think that the flower photo I featured on July 17th under the title Subalpine Valerian is actually Meadow Death-Camas. While Valerian is a common dietary supplement even today, Meadow Death-Camas is as ominous as it’s name implies. Except for Hemlock, it is the most poisonous plant in the West. Given my shaky ability to correctly identify plants, I think I’ll stick to snake-oil to cure my ills.