- A Wildflower Walk Boreal Forest to Rocky Mountain Foothills to the Alpine Zone From a Cultural and Naturalist s Perspective Andy Fyon ontariowildflower.com Sudbury, Ontario
Journey Geology Culture Far North First Nations Boreal forest Fort Hope, Kasabonika Lake Rocky Mountains Kananaskis Country to Waterton Lake National Park 2
Disclaimer I am: Not a biologist Not an horticulturist a geologist Wildflowers are my hobby Prefer not to discuss medicinal or some culinary uses of plants 3
Geology in Our Lives We eat minerals We grow food in geological materials We get drinking water from the Earth Rocks are a source of energy
Geology in Our Lives Construction material Roads, bricks, facing Buildings Metals Cars, trains, planes, boats Horticulture materials Ornamental stone Fertilizer 5
Geology in Our Lives We depend on geological materials from the moment we wake up until we go to sleep So do plants Warm rock, Iqaluit 6
Ontario Bedrock Geology 7
Glaciers Over Ontario 8
Fort Hope Eabametoong First Nation Several cultural slides have been removed from the web version, but were used to discuss some cultural aspect of this First Nation. 9
Fort Hope Eabametoong First Nation 10
European Influence Catholic Church Anglican Church 11
Boreal Forest - Landscape 12
Iceberg Tracks 13
Boreal Forest Shrub Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) Rocky areas Ground cover 14
Boreal Forest Shrub Bush Honeysuckle (Diervilla Ionicera) Dry rocky areas Ornamental shrub 15
Boreal Forest Shrub Pipsissewa (Chimaphila umbellata) Perennial evergreen Dry conifer forest Treat stabbing wounds to the chest 16
Boreal Forest Shrub Pincherry (Prunus pensylvanica) Sunny areas Fruit food for birds Red dye 17
Boreal Forest Bunchberry (Cornus canadensis) Shady woodlands Itchy beard berry (hairs on fruit) Red food colouring 18
Boreal Forest - Clintonia or Blue Bead Lily (Clintonia borealis) Woodland forest True blue berries Named: De Witt Clinton, governor of New York State, early 1800 s
Boreal Wild Lily-of-the-Valley or Canada Mayflower - (Maianthemum canadense) Moist woods Fruit food for wildlife 20
Boreal Wild Iris or Northern Blue Flag (Iris versicolor) Quebec s Provincial flower Lakeshore Versicolor = rainbow or various colours Water garden 21
Ontario Bedrock Geology 22
Grass of Parnassus (Parnassia palustris) Moist calcareous Soil Evergreen Parnassia: Greek, Parnassos - "of Mount Parnassus ; mountain in central Greece palustris: Latin, paluster, "boggy, marshy" 23
Large Yellow Lady s Slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum var. pubescens) Forest, bogs, open swamps, alongside streams Calcareous soil Never transplant 24
Northern Green Bog-orchid / Leafy Green Orchid (Platanthera aquilonis) Moist calcareous soil Common orchid Never transplant 25
Kasabonika Lake First Nation 26
Kasabonika 27
Kasabonika Lake First Nation Several cultural slides have been removed from the web version, but were used to discuss some cultural aspect of this First Nation. 28
Northern Limits of Boreal 29
Bog - Geology Depressions in sand and gravel left by glaciers or rock Isolated, no connection to rivers or other lakes 30
Bog - Conditions Acidic Low nutrients - not in plant friendly form Little nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium Isolated from sources of mineralized water Dominated by peat moss above water Organic deposits below peat mosses 31
Boreal - Cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus) Bake-apple, Headberry, salmonberry Bogs Delicious fruit
Large Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) Coniferous bog Edible commercial cranberry cultivated from this wild species 33
Bog Flowering Plant Survival Tactics Carnivorous: trap and digest insects Non-carnivorous work with soil fungi (mycorrhizal association) to: pull in nutrients change nutrients to form used by plant fungus may penetrate plant root What s in it for the fungus? receives sugars and other products from the plant 34
Flowering Carnivorous Plant Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia purpurea) Attract insects using bold coloured patterns and nectar secretions
Flowering Carnivorous Plant Pitcher Plant Leaves contain water soup Hairs stop insect from exiting Drowned insect releases nutrients 36
Flowering Carnivorous Plants Spoon-leaved Sundew (Drosera intermedia) 37
Flowering Carnivorous Plants Spoon-leaved Sundew Sticky, sweet secretions attract and trap insects Insect digested Nutrients absorbed 38
Bog - Non-carnivorous Plants Symbiosis with soil fungi Plant receives nutrients from fungi that change organic nitrogen to plantfriendly amino acids Fungus receives plant derived carbon compound Fungi block plant uptake of metal poisons, like zinc, copper, aluminum 39
Boreal - Non-carnivorous Plants Leatherleaf (Chamaedaphne calyculata) Bog Early blooming Early established in bog 40
Bog - Flowering Non-carnivorous Plants Labrador Tea (Ledum groenlandicum) Retains leaves plants efficiently use scarce nutrients to make leaves keep nutrients stored in leaves
Flowering Non-carnivorous Plant Bog Rosemary (Andromeda glaucophylla) Flowers on new growth Poisonous 42
Sheep Laurel (Kalmia angustifolia) Flowers on old growth. Poisonous, hence the name sheep-laurel or lamb-kill. The nectar contains the toxin that results inmar toxic honey. 22/06 43
Kananaskis Country to Waterton Lakes National Park 44
Mountains Alpine Subalpine Montane Foothills Plant adaptation 45
How Mountains Form Plate tectonics Large pieces (plates) of the Earth collide against each other 46
Parkland to Foothills <2400 m (<1700 ft); Rolling hills grade into prairie; Mix of grassy slopes and open aspen forest 47
Foothills Calypso Orchid (Calypso bulbosa) Canada Violet (Viola canadensis) 48
Foothills Blue Clematis (Clematis occidentalis) 49
Foothills Nodding Onion (Allium cernuum) Shooting Star (Dodecatheon pulchellum)
Foothills Larkspur (Delphinium nelsonii) 51
Foothills Cliff Anenome (Anemone multifida) 52
Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) 53
Montane and Boreal Foothills 2400 3000 m (1700 5100 ft) Open stands of forest at low elevations become more dense toward subalpine Lodgepole pine, white spruce, aspen 54
Mule Deer 55
Montane Monkey Flower (Mimulus lewisii) Moist to wet conditions 56
Montane - Heartleaf arnica (Arnica cordifolia) 57
Montane Scorpion Weed (Phacelia sericea) 58
Montane Beargrass (Xerophyllum tenax) 59
Subalpine 3000 3500 m (5100 7000 ft) Ends where trees end Moisture is high (snow + rain) 60
Ground Squirrel High Pass 61
Subalpine Yellow Columbine (Aquilegia flavescens) 62
Subalpine - Yellow glacier-lily (Erythronium grandiflorum) 63
Subalpine Globeflower (Trollius laxus) Alpine Forget-me-not (Myosotis alpestris)
Subalpine Elephant-head (Pedicularis groenlandica) Subalpine Siberian Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) 65
Subalpine Alpine Western Pasqueflower or Anemone (Anemone occidentalis) Early to flower Shaggy seed head ( Hippie on a stick )
Subalpine White and Yellow Mountain Aven (Dryas octopetala and Dryas drummondii) 67
Subalpine cirque formed by glacier 68
Subalpine Mountain Gentian (Gentiana calycosa) Mountain Sorrel (Oxyria digyna)
Alpine (Tundra) >3500 m (7000 ft) Treeline to end of vegetation Cold, windy, snow or bare, dry Small, low-growing, rapid growth Arctic plants No trees Pika 70
Rocky Mountain Sheep Geological mineral salt lick 71
Alpine - Moss campion (Silene acaulis) 72
Alpine Alpine Buttercup (Ranunculus eschscholtzii) Alpine Sawwort (Saussurea densa)
Alpine Alpine Rock Jasmine (Androsace chamaejasme) 74
Alpine Shrubby Penstemon (Penstemon fruticsus) 75
Alpine King s Crown (Rhodiola integrifolia) 76
Spotted Saxifrage (Saxifraga bronchialis) 77
Red Paintbrush (Castilleja miniata) The End Andy Fyon info@ontariowildflower.com www.ontariowildflower.com 78