Somehow it was not so easy to identify many of the plants I saw at an altitude of around 4000 meters in Ladakh. I’d been more successful with the plants below this height and those above. An example was the plant you see in the featured photo. I saw this about 50 meters from the shore of Pangong Tso at Spangmik. I’m pretty certain that this is a knotweed (family Polygonaceae), but I can’t drill down to the species (any help you give will be highly appreciated). It has the same growth habit, size, and flower shape as the pink knotweed (Persicaria capitata) but the flower colour is different.
After a bit of a climb from Durbuk going towards Chang La, we had to halt briefly to let a small convoy of trucks pass. As I looked out at the bushes on the slope next to me, I saw something which I didn’t even recognize as flowers. I thought it was one of the many dandelion-like plants which were seeding at this time. The bushes were only 30 to 60 cms high but grew a little above eye level on the slope next to me. I took a photo, not expecting to be able to identify it. So I’m very excited to find that this is the Himalayan Winterfat (Krascheninnikovia ceratoides) in the family Amaranthaceae (APG III). The flowers are minute and the spikes that one sees are inflorescences!
I’d seen Blue Lettuce (Lactuca tatarica) earlier at about 3500 meters, but the species has a wide vertical range in the Himalayas. I saw it again as we climbed from Durbuk towards Muglib. The previous week when I’d seen it at a lower altitude the flowers had just opened. At this higher altitude they had begun going to seed. Like many other members of the family Asteraceae at this height, the seeds are spread by the wind, borne on cottony parachutes.
I saw this plant by the side of a road above Durbuk going towards Muglib. It spread across the ground in a large clump and had many erect flower bearing stems which gave it the appearance of a dense bush. I’m not sure I’ve managed to figure out which plant it is. Could it be a peppergrass (genus Lepidium)? It is not one of the seven species listed in Flowers of India, but then there are around 200 known species in this genus. It would be great if you can help.
I saw this bush growing very close to the shore of Pangong Tso in gravelly soil. It was a spreading bush with many erect stems which 30-60 cms high. Since it did nor reach my knees, I bent to take this photo; neither the flower nor the plant has a smell. I would have called it a Nepal purslane (Koenigia nepalensis, family Polygonaceae) except that this does not have red stems like that plant.
This post is scheduled to appear while I travel. I’ll reply to your comments and look at your posts when I have network coverage.
Don't hold your breath 