While on our shore expeditions at Skaergaard, I saw many interesting plants. Here are pictures of some of them. The plants here are similar to the tundra plants we saw in northern Russia -- no surprise.
The prostrate Arctic willow was common throughout our travels in Greenland. As noted at the link, the appearance and size is highly variable.
This was one of the prettiest that I saw with its curvilinear branching pattern.
"Reindeer moss" is one of several lichens in the Cladina family (if family is the right word; taxonomy isn't my strong suit). It is the white mossy looking substance here and we saw it throughout Greenland wherever there was tundra vegetation.
A different Arctic willow. There are separate male and female flowers, but I've not been able to find a definitive description of how to tell them apart. I'm guessing these are female flowers because the fuzz looks a lot like seeds to me.
I haven't identified this unless it is a variety of Rhodiola rosea or Roseroot. It was more common to see plants with green leaves and yellow or dark red flowers, but otherwise they are very similar.
Crowberries (Empetrum nigrum), were common throughout our travels in Greenland. They are similar to the dwarf blueberries that are often found nearby. These berries, however, are not used raw. I tasted one and found it bitter and unpleasant. They are cooked and prepared in a variety of ways as described at the link.
Based on the foliage and what is left of the flowers, I believe this plant is Diapensia lapponica. The flowers are past their bloom and only the calyx remains prominent.
My best guess at this little beauty is Oxyria digyna, or mountain sorrel.
I couldn't find this in the Plants of Greenland reference that I located online after we got back. It looks a lot like moss phlox and there is in fact a phlox borealis native to northern Canada. This may be that or something related.
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