Indian Paintbrush
by Eric Peterson
WELL,
AS YOU CAN SEE IT'S SUMMER TIME IN THE HIGH COUNTRY. AND I'M SITTING HERE IN A
CLUSTER OF BRIGHT RED COLOR AMIDST A SEA OF GREEN AND GREY, SAGE AND GRASS.
CASTILLEJA
LTNARIIFOLIA - WYOMING INDIAN PAINTBRUSH - WYOMING'S STATE FLOWER.
THERE
ARE 19 DIFFERENT SPECIES OF PAINTBRUSH IN WYOMING. THEY RANGE FROM GREEN AND
YELLOW TO RED AND ORANGE,AND THEIR HABITATS ARE AS VARIED AS THE STATE IS
VARIED.
BUT
THE ONE WHICH WAS CHOSEN AS OUR STATE FLOWER IS THE BRIGHTEST, BIGGEST, AND
SHOWIEST: THE WYOMING INDIAN PAINTBRUSH.
A
COUPLE OF INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT PAINTBRUSH.
FIRST,
THE FLOWER THAT WE SEE REALLY ISN'T THE
FLOWER. THEY ARE LIKE A POINSETTIA IN THAT THE ACTUAL FLOWER IS OVERWHELMED BY
THE DAZZLE OF COLORFUL BRACTS.
A
SECOND INTERESTING ADAPTATION IS THE FACT THAT SOME OF THE PAINTBRUSHES
ACTUALLY TAKE SOME OF THEIR NOURISHMENT FROM SAGEBRUSH PLANTS.
SO
THIS SUMMER AS YOU MARVEL AT THE SPLASH OF COLOR OUR WYOMING STATE FLOWER ADDS
TO THE RANGELAND, YOU CAN BE A LITTLE SMUG ABOUT A COUPLE OF THINGS YOU KNOW
ABOUT PAINTBRUSH THAT MOST PEOPLE DONT!
FROM
THE UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE, I'M ERIC PETERSON.