Chris Sokol, Photos: Chris Sokol
Editor’s Note: It’s gotten colder. Winter is coming and we’re moving into the darkest months of the year. It might seem odd to read about spring flowers right now, but what better way to remember there’s light at the end of winter’s tunnel?
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We live on the north side of Stacker Butte at 2500 feet. The top of Stacker Butte stands a whopping 3220 feet above the Columbia River across from the The Dalles. The Butte was built by lava flows and scoured by ancient floods. As Stacker Butte is at a higher elevation, there is more of a compressed time frame for the unfolding of flowers, shrubs and grasslands.
A little High Prairie history … Stacker Butte was named after a German immigrant, Henry Stacker, who came to Klickitat County in 1883. From his homestead on the High Prairie, he grazed his sheep on top of the Butte, where today you’ll find microwave towers and a wigwam-shaped antenna signal to aircraft arriving and departing Portland International Airport. Henry Stacker and his wife are buried at the Lone Pine Cemetery 1893-1923.
The north side of Stacker Butte has different ecosystems than Dalles Mountain Ranch (part of Columbia Hills State Park) on the south side, depending on the elevation. There is a partially forested woodland consisting mainly of Oregon White Oaks with Ponderosa Pine and Douglas Fir, along with shrubs and open grassland. Stacker Butte supports important populations of Obscure Buttercup, Dagger Pod Lily and Hot Rock Penstemon, giving this area a preserved status in the Columbia Hills State Park. Our property goes nearly to the top of the ridge. Although it may have once been grazed by Mr. Stacker and others, it is now covered in native grasses and plenty of wildflowers in the spring and summer. Here’s a record of spring rambles and the wildflowers we found:
March 27 – The first wildflowers to appear in the spring, especially lower on the mountain in wetter, grassy areas, are the Grass Widows. They are a perennial in the Iris family. Their species name, douglasii, honors David Douglas, a botanist who was an early explorer of the Pacific Northwest and who also had the Douglas Fir tree named after him.
March 28 – At higher elevations are Yellow Bells (Frittillaria pudica)(left). Pudica means bashful or chaste to describe the drooping flower
which hides its pistil and stamens. To forage, their small bulbs are dug and eaten boiled, or pit cooked. The Lakota tribe uses the whole plant as a cancer cure and the plants are pulverized to make a salve for swellings.
March 28 – Spring Beauty (Claytonia lancelata)(right) is considered an herb and one of the first subalpine plants to emerge after the cold dormancy of winter. Its name is in honor of the botanist John Clayton. ‘Lancelata’ refers to its lance-shaped leaves. The entire plant can be eaten raw or cooked, but it is best to forage l i k e a deer would browse, only taking a leaf or two from each plant.
Late March/Early April – New green needle buds of the Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) (left) start showing around the time of the first wildflowers. These new growth tips can be eaten fresh or brewed as a tea and are a rich source of Vitamin C.
April 8 – Another early bloomer is Columbia Kittentails (Synthyris stellata) (right), part of the Figwort family.
April 9 – Bright yellow Glacier Lilies can be seen on Centerville Highway in the High Prairie, growing in large fields in marshy lowlands, and are often one of the first plants to bloom after the snow melts, hence the name Glacier. They can be foraged; the leaves and bulb have a slightly sweet taste and can be eaten raw or cooked. Its best to take only a single leaf to not disturb the plant.
April 20 – Poets Shooting Star (Dodecatheon species) is part of the primrose family, found on the lower slopes and moist areas. All parts of the plant can be eaten raw or cooked.
April 27 – Lovely blue Common Camas (Camassia quamash) (left) grows in plentiful beds. This beautiful flowering lily has an edible bulb tasting of sweet potato when cooked but indigestible raw. Bulbs are best gathered late spring to early summer. Be sure not to mistake the white-flowered Death Camas, which is poisonous, for the blue Common Camas.
April 29 – This unusual looking Big-Headed Clover (Trifolium macrocephalum) (right) comes out a little before the Balsamroot.
May 11 – I think the Penstemon in the photo on page 6 is a Sticky Stem Penstemon. There were hundreds on the north slopes in early May.
May 18 – Spreading Phlox (Phlox stolonifera) (left) was growing in a sunny and rocky, sloping location higher on the Butte.
May 22 – We found Buckwheat (Eriogonum sp.) (right) and Blanket Flowers, one of the last of the spring flowers to bloom.
May 24 – We found Western Wallflower, or Prairie Rocket.
May 29 – Miner’s Lettuce (Claytonia perfoliate) (left) is an annual found in wetter areas, especially near our seasonal creek throughout March through May. It was tasty to nibble on during hikes! This plant has been raised commercially as a hardy winter salad crop.
April 29 through end of May —Balsamroot (Balsamorhiza sagittata) (right). They are a First Nation food, with roots dug from spring to mid-autumn. The small ½ inch long sunflower-like seeds are a source of protein. The roots can be made into a tincture which promotes the flow of mucus secretions in the respiratory tract. It stimulates the immune system and white blood cell activity. A syrup made from roots soothes sore throats and leaf salve speeds the healing of wounds.
Mixed with Balsamroot are Harsh Paintbrush and Lupine. Foragers recommend not eating lupines, as some are toxic, especially the seeds. The word lupus means wolf and since lupines grow in poor soil it was thought they robbed the soil of minerals just like wolves’ depredation. In actuality, lupines enrich the soil since they fix nitrogen.
Harsh Paintbrush, or Prairie Fire, is a perennial in the Broomrape family and is hemiparasitic, feasting on the roots of grasses and forbs.





Very nice article, well well done.
Some of this flowers and grasses were assisted by hydro-seed within 250 feet of the house, along the drive and road.