Snow queen is a perennial wildflower with a cluster of basal leaves and several bare stems arising to 15 cm high. The leaves are long-petiolate with ovate-heart to kidney-heart shaped leaves with palmate venation. The blades range from 2-8 cm in length and width and have shallow lobes which are further toothed along the whole margin.
The inflorescence is a few-flowered raceme. The bluish corollas are 5-7 mm long and bell-shaped.
Snow queen is found in coniferous forests and is less commonly found in forest clearings.
Snow queen may be found from southwestern Washington south to the west of the Cascade crest to San Francisco Bay.
In the Columbia River Gorge, it may be found between the elevations of 100'-1600' from west of Cape Horn east to approximately Dog Mt.
Basal leaves of snow queen as seen along the Pacific Crest Trail uphill to the west of the Greenleaf Creek bridge crossing, Columbia River Gorge.........November 13, 2013.