Red paintbrush is common province-wide, then we also find alpine paintbrush at higher elevations. Both are red-scarlet, showy, and easily identifiable.

Our area also has a yellowish paintbrush, found in the grasslands and open forests. Some plants even have a faded yellow to white color or a greenish hue. All paintbrush is semi-parasitic, feeding off the roots of other plants. This perennial of the figwort family appears in late-spring in many places of the Interior Plateau, here seen on the Embleton Trail in June.