Silky Phacelia wildflowers are found on the slopes of, and near, Mt.Washburn in Yellowstone National Park. This photo was taken in 2013, close to Park Road. The US forest service says this about Silky Phacelia.

With its thick stalks of dark blue or purple flowers and silvery-pubescent fern-like leaves, the silky phacelia (Phacelia sericea) is one of the most handsome wildflowers of western North America. No surprise then that it is often sought for cultivation in the home garden, not just in its native range from southern Canada to northern California, Utah, and Colorado, but elsewhere with sufficiently cool temperatures to promote germination.

Planting silky phacelia enriches a garden with color and might repay the gardener with a tiny pot of gold.