A member of the Rose Family found mostly in the Sonoran Zones of Zion National Park. Several plants may be seen near the South Entrance Station. It is well named, as it has a burned and dead appearance during much of the year; however in late April and May it puts out minute grey-green leaves and creamy-yellow flowers made up of four sepals and no petals. The stamens are numerous. The Cliffrose, Bitterbrush and Mountain-mahogany are closely related to the Blackbrush.
Blackbrush
36. BUSH CINQUEFOILRose Family
Potentilla fruticosa
Found most commonly at Cedar Breaks, this member of the Rose Family puts on a very showy display for a brief period of the summer, generally in July or earlier at lower elevations. It is a shrub commonly 2 to 3 feet high with leaves that are five-parted, hence the name Cinquefoil. The shrub is often dotted all over with rose-like flowers, about an inch across, with clear-yellow petals and deeper yellow anthers. The plant is common in the mountains, across the continent, up to altitudes of 10,000 feet or more.
Bush Cinquefoil
37. PRAIRIESMOKERose Family
Geum triflorum var. ciliatum
This graceful plant, with its nodding, bell-shaped, pink-colored flowers, is found fairly abundantly in the alpine meadows of Cedar Breaks National Monument.
The plant has a number of common names such as: China Bells, Oldman-Whiskers, and Grandfather’s-beard. The silvery, plumose tails of the fruit present an attractive display, especially as the sun’s rays light the waving plumes in late afternoon or early morning.