Salal (Gaultheria shallon)

Much of the vegetation here is common in other parts of the world as well but there are some plants that particularly contribute to the unique character of this area such as the Arbutus and Garry Oak Trees, the splendid Camas Lilies and Salal (Gaultheria shallon), the flowers of which are pictured above. Salal is an indigenous plant here and thrives in the cold, salty winds of our west coast. As well as beautiful, it's a useful plant and the local native peoples used both the berries and leaves as food and as medicine. The flowers above were photographed in Highrock Park but nearly two years ago I posted another photo of some taken in Mount Douglas Park.