Sierra Lessingia (lessingia leptoclada) dominates some areas during the late summer. At a certain season it carpets the Valley floor and lines the roads. Not a showy plant in general, in the summer of 2011, the display in the southwest corner of Ahwahnee Meadow turned the meadow a gorgeous purple. My first sight of Sierra Lessingia is always bittersweet — it's a sign that summer is coming to an end and the clock is ticking on all those summer projects I haven't done.