Idaho Native Flowers

When you hear the phrase “native flowers”, what do you picture? Maybe a landscape full of beautiful, colorful, and beneficial flowers? Or does your mind conjure up an image of valueless, unattractive, and dull flowers? In this article, I will present three native flowers to consider planting in your landscape or garden: Common Yarrow, Wild Blue Flax, and Common Camas, emphasizing reasons to plant Idaho native flowers.

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is a perennial that grows early spring and blooms through mid-summer. It has long leaves that appear fern-like and flowers that range from white, yellow, pink, or red. Yarrow was a food source in the 17th century and North American tribes used it to treat many ailments. Its rapid growth from seed and rhizomes encourages spreading. It also tolerates many conditions and soil types and is relatively pest-free. Because it attracts beneficial pollinators and is a food source for big horn sheep, deer, sage grouse, and their chicks, Yarrow seed has been added to other nature seeds to rehabilitate disturbed sites along roadways and parks and is very well suited for xeriscaping. Yarrow is also good for composting.

Wild Blue Flax (Linum lewisii) is an annual which blooms from May to June. It produces concentrations of small, cheery blooms balanced on thin green stems. Flowers last a day and are replaced with fresh blooms of light blue, blue, yellow, and red. Blue Flax produces a lot of seeds and reseeds itself. It is adaptive to most soil conditions and is drought tolerant with minimal problems with disease. It is a food source for deer, antelope, and birds and may provide protective cover for small animals and birds. Blue Flax is also valued by land management for helping with erosion control.

Common Camas (Camassia quamash) is a perennial herb grown from an edible bulb in the Lily family. It blooms from April through June and produces many seeds. A single plant may live from fifteen to twenty years. Flowers range from light to deep blue. Camas is a food source for elk, deer, moose, and gophers. Common Camas is still considered to be one of the most important (root) foods and medicinal plants of the North American Indigenous population. The bulbs are usually harvested after flowering in the summer. It is recommended that people use caution when identifying and harvesting Common Camas so as not to confuse plants with Death Camas which can be toxic if eaten.

Native flowers are not invasive, but rather protect the biodiversity that supports our local ecosystem maintaining land development and conserving resources. Native plants are almost effortless to grow and nurture. Native plants are masterfully adapted to our unique environment, saving time and money. Along with providing beauty and benefits, with some experimentation and education, you could format your landscape for year-round attraction. For these reasons, consider planting Native flowers and help support and safeguard Idaho’s legacy.