Oreocarya: "Biennial or perennial from rosettes of basal leaves; flowers more than 5 mm in diameter, often distinctly long-tubular with prominent yellow eye."

    Cryptantha: "Annual without rosettes of basal leaves; flowers minute, less than 5 mm diameter, short-tubed with inconspicuous eye."   

    "Cryptantha" is Greek for "hidden flower" and probably refers to the very small size of the flower.

    See Oreocarya.

Semi-desert. Sandy areas, openings. Spring.
Near the Hogback, New Mexico, April 24, 2007.

This little guy can dot large areas of sand and Mancos Shale with hundreds of plants.  It has numerous stems, each producing numerous, tiny, white flowers.  

John Torrey and Asa Gray named this plant Eritrichium crassisepalum in 1857 and Edward Greene renamed it Cryptantha crassisepala in 1887.  "Crass" is Latin for thick.

Semi-desert. Sandy areas, openings. Spring.
Near the Hogback, New Mexico, April 24, 2007.

Semi-desert. Shrublands, woodlands, openings. Spring.
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, April 5, 2005.

Tiny plants can give great pleasures. 

Semi-desert. Shrublands, woodlands, openings. Spring.
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, April 5, 2005.

This slender Cryptantha is common in Pinyon/Juniper woodlands, but is so hard to spot.  Its ball-like flower cluster does not elongate in the typical coil of other Cryptantha/Oreocarya plants.  The plant has few stem leaves and basal leaves fade as flowers open.

"Pterocarya" is Greek for "winged nut" and you can see both the nut and the wings developing in the picture below.

Semi-desert. Shrublands, woodlands, openings. Spring.
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, April 5, 2005.

The sharp-sided nutlets develop quickly.