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Are there any plants to see in northwest Wyoming, east/east-central Idaho, or west/northwest Montana?

Or am I going to have to make do with geysers, waterfalls, lakes, mudpots, glaciers, and mountain streams?

Sigh...maybe I'll post over on Gardening for Wildlife and see what attracts bears, wolves, elk, and eagles.

O oh, a road trip. Doesn't seem like wine country, or is that the clanking of bottles I hear being packed. :>}

Keep the car pointed east so you can get away if she's gonna blow!

VV,
We've got some friends down around Franklin TN, who are big in the Nature Conservancy and the American Chestnut Foundation; several years ago, when we visited, the husband was telling us about a Nature Conservancy guy from Wyoming who came to visit, and how he was in awe at the wide range of plant material they had growing in their forest - I think they have two trees in Wyoming. LOL.

If your cat jumps in the geyser, don't jump in to save him. You should be hitting fall colors there if you are going soon, maybe even a early snow. Still have not been to Yellowstone, so can't help on the actual species to look for. Sofer should be able to help.

Enjoy

Bill

Best conifer diversity is in NW Montana, N Idaho, where:
Pinus monticola
Pinus flexilis
Pinus albicaulis
Pinus ponderosa
Pinus contorta subsp. latifolia
Picea engelmannii
Picea pungens (SW MT)
Larix occidentalis
Pseudotsuga menziesii subsp. glauca
Tsuga heterophylla
Tsuga mertensiana
Abies lasiocarpa
Abies grandis var. idahoensis
Thuja plicata
Callitropsis nootkatensis (local, N ID only)
Juniperus scopulorum
Taxus brevifolia

Resin

OK, it sounds like Resin is going to be giving me semester final exams when I get back. I'll try to take pics of each conifer I come across, with a yardstick (wife) for scale.

This is going to be a well-deserved break from the cats.

I notice most of the pictures for WY and environs tend to focus on the snowcapped peaks, like they are ashamed of the valleys or plains. I'm guessing they have a pine and an aspen/cottonwood. They split fascicles for diversity.

Are you referring to Kevin's Kalderra? I'll make sure I have my microwave-safe skivvies on.

Yeah, well, there actually is an Idaho Wine Route. I doubt the TSA is letting any bottles on flights these days, but I COULD mail some out ahead and have it waiting...

Two weeks, taking off tomorrow. Thanks for the thoughts; toodle-oo!

Resin, how do you pull out those lists so fast? Does that mean there is no Xanthocyparis anymore? I can't keep up.

Bill

I took this pic in Badlands National Park, SD. Yucca glauca which I noticed in a number of areas you're visiting.

Hi Bill,

A quick flick through a North American field guide with distribution maps.

The Callitropsis / Xanthocyparis is a more complex one, it will be up to the next Botanical Congress to decide. Callitropsis is currently the valid name as it is older than Xanthocyparis, but Xanthocyparis has been proposed for conservation over Callitropsis so may become the correct name in the future if the vote at the congress is in its favour. The next Botanical Congress isn't until 2011, so there's a long wait till the formal decision is made, though.

Resin