Family: Celastraceae R. Br.
Distribution: West of North America, found in Rocky Mountains from Alaska to western Colorado and northern California.
Ecology: Wet meadows, marshes, banks of streams, mountain forests; in northern parts of its range even in lowlands and in southern areas rises into montane and alpine elevations. Blooms from July to September.
Description: Perennial herb with erect and simple stem, 10–30 cm tall, hairless. Basal leaves in a rosette with long petioles, kidney to heart-shaped, 2–4 cm wide, hairless; single stem leaf in about the middle of the stem, oval to cordate, 5–15 mm long. Flowers solitary, terminal, pentamerous, 15–22 mm across, sepals lanceolate, 4–6 mm long, green; petals obovoid, 6.5–12 mm long, white, prominently 5-nerved, fringed. Fruit is a capsule about 1 cm long.
These images were taken in Canada, Alberta, Kananaskis, Ptarmigan Cirque (August 2012).
