Bike Carson

Here’s a flower you’ll want to check out when riding or hiking the trails in Ash Canyon. It’s easy to miss, since the flowers hang towards the ground, and the rest of the plant is somewhat unremarkable. Brown’s or Wild Peony can be found growing all along the lower trails right now, but I’ve seen a few plants up higher too.

Brown’s or Wild Peony

According to the Sierra Wildflowers website:

Scientific Name: Paeonia brownii
Common Name: Brown’s or Wild Peony
Family: Peony
Color: Maroon with Yellow edges

Description: The nodding flower heads consist of five purplish sepals, five to ten maroon petals with yellow edges, and many scraggly yellow stamens. Two to five pistils develop into pod-like fruits that push through the stamens.

Habitat: Dry slopes and forest openings.

Medicinal uses: Northwestern Native Americans made tea from the roots to treat lung problems.

Comments: The unusual look of this early bloomer can intrigue even the mildly interested observer. The large flowers are surprisingly inconspicuous, blending in to their own foliage. The genus name (Paeonia) comes from “Paeon,” physician to the gods in Greek mythology.

Look for this plant growing alongside the trails

So if you’re looking for a good excuse to rest on the climb up the canyon, take some time to enjoy these flowers while they’re blooming!

Related posts:

1. Ash Canyon Trail Report The snow has been steadily melting all week, so on...
2. Kings Canyon/Ash Canyon Trail Meeting Please consider attending the Open Space Committee meeting this Monday,...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Tags: Ash Canyon, brown's peony, Carson City, eastern sierra, nevada, Paeonia brownii, wild peony

This entry was posted by Jeff Moser on Thursday, May 27th, 2010 at 9:35 am and is filed under Trails. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.