The summit of Mount Elbert is an alpine environment , featuring plants such as Phacelia sericea ( sky @-@ pilot ) , Hymenoxys grandiflora ( old @-@ man @-@ of @-@ the @-@ mountain ) , and Geum rossii ( alpine avens ) . Also noted are Carex atrata var. pullata , Salix desertorum , Platanthera hyperborea , Thalictrum fendleri , Aquilegia canadensis , Chenopodium album , Gentiana detonsa var. hallii , and Bigelovia parryi . Below treeline the mountain is heavily forested , with the lower slopes covered with a mixture of lodgepole pine , spruce , aspen and fir .