I've lost the identity of this alpine... or perhaps it was mislabelled... It has bare stems, with foliage in tufts at the ends of the stems; the foliage is deciduous; the leaves are linear, up to 5mm long, covered with short soft hairs. The flowers are about 1cm across, consisting of 5 separate petals forming an almost circular outline; salverform; the petals are held in a spiral before they unfurl; the yellow stamens do not protrude. It bloomed through May,and is now finishing up in mid-June here in zone 3. It was suggested that it was an androsace, but I've not been able to find any that are similar. Thanks in advance! Lori
First impression is that it may be a Phlox. The petals are not separate They are obviously united into an elongate tube. Saxifraga are not gamopetalous Try Phlox pulvinata or Phlox siberica.
Yes, I see... the petals may well be fused at the base. (At the top, they are separate, and the petals margins are visible in the photos.) Thanks for the info - I'll compare to those species.
Ah ha, I believe it's Phlox hendersonii: http://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?ID=10812 Thank you all very much for the ideas, and especially to Cereusly Steve for the ID.
