A really Green Mountain

We've been getting plenty of moisture this Spring but finally it turned from snow to rain.  Warm temps this weekend will really spur growth.  The grass is already 4-6" tall, and since the snow smashed the old grass down, the mountain is truly looking green.

Only a couple new blooms this week, but one of them is a rare one.  I've only seen Spring Beauty (Claytonia rosea) one other time, but I found it blooming high on the mountain on the northwest part of the Halo trail.  The other place I found it was in a cool ravine, so it surprised me.  

Spring Beauty (Claytonia rosea)

The other flower that finally made an entrance is usually one of the first, and usually is blooming by mid-April.  Musineon divaricatum, or Musineon to its friends, is another member of the parsley family, like Salt and Pepper.  It's flowers are bright yellow but have the same umbel shape.  They don't grow very high--up to 6-8", but can add some color in the early Spring.  If you compare the two parsleys that are blooming you can see the similarities, especially in the leaves.  Even though they're related to herbs we eat, don't try them--members of the parsley family can be poisonous!

Musineon (Musineon divaricatum)