Luetkea Pectinata, Partridgefoot

Day 290: Partridgefoot (Luetkea pectinata) is commonly found in the alpine/subalpine zones of Mount Rainier National Park. It stands roughly six inches high when in bloom, the flowering stalks rising above a basal rosette of foliage. Both the basal and cauline leaves (those appearing on the stems) are divided into three linear leaflets, in shape rather like a bird's foot (hence the common name). The tough, woody (ligneous) stems remove Partridgefoot from the category of herbaceous plants, but it is too short to be called a shrub. Instead, botanists call it a semi-shrub or subshrub based on this characteristic. The plant often forms dense mats, connected beneath the soil by rhizomes or sending out runners (stolons) along the surface. It is evergreen, and the tufted basal rosettes may be seen in the early season as the snow begins its retreat from the meadows.