DBG Gunnison Rare Plant Monitoring

On Thursday we visited Denver Botanic Garden's rare plant monitoring site near Gunnison. Michelle DePrenger-Levin gave us a tour of two sites where they monitor plants. At the first site, Astragalus anisus, a Colorado endemic had set seed a few weeks prior. Michelle and her group flagged the plants with seedpods and collected the seeds. Most of the seed will go to the USDA seed bank in Ft. Collins, CO, the rest will be grown and added to DBG's living collection. Mike and I also collected a few seeds from nearby plants of Physaria rollinsii.

Astragalus microcymbus has much longer, spindly stems. It is a very hardy plant with a long taproot that can be browsed back to the ground and still resprout. They grow on all aspects except for north-facing slopes. Since 1995, the Garden has monitored populations of Astragalus microcymbus. Michelle mentioned that the original population count was in a boom year, where favorable conditions led to a high population of plants. Recent counts may show a decline, but this is likely just the natural ebb and flow of the population as conditions change.  

We headed out from the monitoring sites and stopped for lunch at the Swampy Pass Trailhead, which had a spectacular wildflower display. On the way back to Crested Butte, we drove through the Ohio Pass and Kebler Pass and stopped at Lake Irwin, a subalpine lake. In between Ohio and Kebler Pass we stopped at a wet meadow along the road and collected seedpods of Erythronium grandiflorum.

Collecting seeds from Astragalus anisus.

Astragalus anisus



Astragalus microcymbus
 

We also encountered a flowering Opuntia phaecantha at the Gunnison site.

Frasera speciosa at Swampy Pass Trailhead.

Closeup of Frasera speciosa flower.

A scree slope near Ohio Pass had Penstemon caespitosus.

View from the side of the road near Ohio Pass with Senecio atratus.

Inna near spectacular specimens of Corydalis caseana subsp. brandegei. These plants average between 5-6 feet tall! Mike was skipping down the road when we found these!



Corydalis caseana subsp. brandegei

Lake Irwin