Arrowleaf Balsamroot (Balsamorhiza sagittata)

Do you know about the Arrowleaf Balsamroot? This plant is the first member of the composta/composite family to bloom in the Dishman Hills in the Spring. Each petal is actually a single floret bearing one enormous petal and several minute ones, giving the illusion of a ring of petals. All parts of this plant are edible. Its roots were boiled, dried, or ground for medicine. Its young leaves were eaten raw as a salad and its seeds roasted and ground into flour. Everything you see above the ground is connected to a very thick and long taproot.

Arrowleaf Balsamroot