Red Creek Buckwheat - Johanneshowellia puberula

 This pretty member of the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae) is Red Creek buckwheat (Johanneshowellia puberula), with a previous genus name of Eriogonum. It grows only in Utah, Nevada, and California from valley bottoms up to the pinyon-juniper community.

Flowers are small and turn into little red berries. For more info about Red Creek buckwheat, click here.

Cushion Buckwheat - Eriogonum ovalifolium

When I was uploading these photos I found I had some from last year, like the one above. It's been difficult finding new flowers for this blog, but what I have found is that I have some photos of species that I haven't yet identified, some due to time, some due to difficulty.

Nevertheless, this little white puffball has now found its way onto this blog. It's cushion buckwheat (Eriogonum ovalifolium), a member of the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae).

The buds are quite pink, then the flowers are usually white, but get pinker with age. The leaves are distinctive, with their wavy pattern.

The species name ovalifolium is Latin for oval-shaped. Cushion buckwheat grows in western North America and has about 11 varieties.

For more information about cushion buckwheat, click here.

Flatcrown Buckwheat-Eriogonum deflexum

This plant blends in well with the gravel, so I had to get down low to get a photo of it so you could get an idea what it looks like. It's flatcrown buckwheat (Eriogonum deflexum), part of the Buckwheat family (Polygonaceae). It grows in the desert southwest.
Flowers are rather inconspicuous.

This is a view of the plant from above.
For more info on flatcrown buckwheat, click here.

Toothed Willow Dock-Rumex salicifolius var. denticulatus

Keeping in the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae), here's toothed willow dock (Rumex salicifolius var. denticulatus), also called California dock. It grows along lake shores and wet places from 7,700 to 10,500 feet in this area. It grows in western North America.

For more info on toothed willow dock, click here.

Alpine Mountainsorrel-Oxyria digyna

I found this little plant from the Buckwheat family (Polygonaceae) growing near a snow patch in early August. It's alpine mountainsorrel (Oxyria digyna), and it's fond of alpine and sub-alpine areas. It grows in western and northern North America.

Leaves are round and thick, while the flowers are green and soon replaced by reddish-brown seed pods.
For more info about alpine mountainsorrel, click here.

Shockley's Buckwheat-Eriogonum shockleyi

This low-lying mat-forming plant with yellow flowers is a member of the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae). It's called Shockley's buckwheat (Eriogonum shockleyi) and I found it on a rocky outcrop at about 5,000 feet. It flowers from May to September.


For more information about Shockley's buckwheat, click here.

Curly Dock-Rumex crispus

Standing erect with seed pods that become more obvious during the summer as they turn browner is curly dock (Rumex crispus), a member of the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae). It's native to Eurasia, but is now common throughout North America.

The leaves of curly dock can be used as a remedy if you get into stinging nettle, and both conveniently grow often in the same moist habitats.

As the seed pods age, they turn from green to pink.

And then to an orangish-brown.

For more information about curly dock, click here.

Redroot Buckwheat-Eriogonum racemosum

The flowers on this two-foot tall plant are small, so they might not attract your attention at first, but they are one of the few pink flowers blooming this time of year. They arise from a basal rosette of leaves that help identify this plant as a member of the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae). This is redroot buckwheat (Eriogonum racemosum), with many other common names, such as wild buckwheat. It's found in the desert southwest.

The flowers have six petals and are close to the stem.

For more information about redroot buckwheat, click here.

Snake Range Buckwheat-Eriogonum holmgrenii

This cute flower with the powder-puff flowers is not easy to find--in fact, it is endemic to just one mountain range in the world. It's called the Snake Range Buckwheat or Holmgrem's Buckwheat (Eriogonum holmgrenii), and is only found in eastern Nevada. It's a member of the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae). 

Pink flowers are pistillate (female) while white flowers are staminate (male). 

The flowers generally bloom in July and August and grow above 9,500 feet.

They are found on limestone and metamorphic rock, and often grow in colorful patches. For more information about Snake Range buckwheat, click here.

American Bistort-Polygonum bistortoides

Nestled among grasses and sedges in wet meadows from about 7,000 to 10,000 feet, little white cotton balls appear. Upon closer inspection, one can see that they are small flowers. This is American bistort (Polygonum bistortoides), also called snakeweed, western knotweed, and western bistort, and formerly having the genus name Bistorta.

It is native to western North America. Those with sensitive noses may be able to identify this flower by smell--some say it smells like dirty socks.

For more information about American bistort, click here.

Sulphur-flower Buckwheat-Eriogonum umbellatum

Often growing in gravelly soils is a plant with umbel flowers that almost look fluorescent yellow. This is sulphur-flower buckwheat (Eriogonum umbellatum), a member of the Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae).

The flowers last a long time. They start out as red buds, and then as they age and dry out, they turn red again.

For more information about sulphur-flower buckwheat, click here.