Oregon's brilliant wildflower season is set to begin later this month. Here are three local wildflowers to seek out on your next adventure in nature:
Western White Trillium (Trillium ovatum)
Also known as the Pacific trillium, this iconic flower has three distinctive white petals framed by three green leaves. As they age, the white blossoms can turn pink or purple. A member of the lily family, trillium grows in shady moist soil, so it thrives around these parts.
Hike: Check out blooms at Tryon Creek Park (in Lake Oswego), including along the Trillium Trail.
Common Camas (Camassia quamash)
The common camas, another member of the lily family, is often spotted among company, creating fields of blue and blue-violet. The bulbs were a delicacy for Native American tribes (including the Blackfoot, Cree, and Nez Perce) because they can be cooked down and turned into a sugar.
Hike: Camassia Natural Area (in West Linn) has its eponymous flower and other blooms, often through late May.
Pale Larkspur (Delphinium leucophaeum)
This versatile flower, with bluish-white petals, grows on slopes, plateaus, and even vertical cliffs, in sun as well as shade.
Hike: Cooper Mountain in Beaverton has this flower, but wait probably till May to visit.
Pale larkspur will bloom later this spring. (Jeff Dillon / USFWS)
More wildflowers: If you’re going in search of the spring bloom, check out this map.
