The bright masses of purple, yellow and white flowers are visible from a great distance. Plants grow in clumps to conserve warmth. Mountain streams and endless sunshine help to compensate for cool temperatures and short growing seasons. Many arctic plants grow in tussocks or mounds that are built up by their root systems year after year. These plants reproduce vegetatively from a central root stock by sending out new roots or runners.
Seeds are less likely to survive the harsh arctic growing conditions.
Please remember that plants and animals in national parks are protected. Plants grow so slowly there that you will destroy many years of plant life by picking a single plant. Picking plants lessens the opportunities of others to see them. In the following brief list, the most commonly used plants appear with the English name first, followed by the Inuit name. The arctic willow is the tallest tundra plant and forms the forests of the north.