The tutor discusses his field find of rose campion.

In a way, this identification is a reverse one. Normally, one might notice a plant in the field, then check the guide to identify it. This plant I noticed first in the guide, then recalled seeing it around. I decided to find it again in the field for confirmation.

While I recalled the plant being common, I didn’t see it so quickly as expected. In fact, a few weeks passed before I saw some. However, this morning I did, growing in gravel by the sidewalk.

The plant was exactly as I recalled: pale bluish-green foliage (maybe even greyish), with red flowers about 3 cm across. It’s about 50 cm tall.

On the specimen I saw, the petals follow an “over-under” pattern: a petal overlaps the previous one, but then gets overlapped by the next one. There are five petals.

I’ll be sharing more of my field finds:)

Source:

Pojar, Jim and Andy MacKinnon. Plants of Coastal British Columbia. Vancouver:
  BC Ministry of Forests and Lone Pine Publishing, 1994.

Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.