Montane, subalpine.  Streamsides.  Summer.
Upper Calico Trail, July 12, 2004.

Mertensia ciliata can be identified from afar because of its blue-green leaves which is due to a glaucous coating, i.e., a waxy coating exuded by the leaf, similar to the coating found on new leaves of Colorado Blue Spruce and Engelmann Spruce and the coating on some plums. The second photograph at left shows rain drops on the waxy coating. As the growing season progresses, the glaucous coating wears and rain drops don't set up this way.

Like its close cousin M. franciscana, M. ciliata produces massive clusters of stems with numerous flowers.

"Ciliata" is from the Latin for "small hair" and it is most commonly used to indicate "small hairs along the margin of a leaf". Edwin James first named this plant Pulmonaria ciliata in 1825 and it was renamed Mertensia ciliata by Georg Don in 1838.

Montane, subalpine.  Streamsides.  Summer.
Upper Calico Trail, July 12, 2004.

Montane, subalpine.  Streamsides.  Summer.
Navajo Lake Trail, July 11, 2006.

Mertensia ciliata's blue-green fills the top half of the photograph, and Mertensia franciscana's light green fills the bottom half.  The bright white flowers are those of Geranium richardsonii. 

Montane, subalpine.  Streamsides.  Summer.
Near Colorado Trail above Hillside Drive, August 12, 2020.

Mertensia ciliata flowers have faded, the elongated styles remain, and fruits are developing.