Arrisk
Image Source: http://www.conifers.org/po/Lepidothamnus_laxifolius.php
Habitat: Alpine mountains, most commonly either in mountain meadows or along barren mountain ridges.
Brief summary of the plant
Characteristics: An arrisk is a conifer shrub that grows in groups along snow mountain ridges or in mountain meadows. It typically grows to be around 16 inches (.4 meters) in diameter and 4 inches (10 cm) high. The shrub is easily distinguished by its red tinged needles. In late spring and summer, if it is in a fairly temperate area such as a meadow, the shrub can fruit, giving off fleshy red cones that can can be eaten like berries which, while edible and highly nutritious, are quite bitter and waxy, making it not a particularly appealing choice for people. When they grow these 'fruits', the needles flatten out and mesh together into thin rows of scales around the cones, giving it the appearance of a flower.
Due to the the sheer and windy mountain ledges the shrub finds itself on, it grows thick, barbed roots that help to keep it in one place by hooking onto the rocky layers beneath them. These roots are capable of, over time, boring into the rock underneath what little soil they have around them to further secure itself. Due to the sparsity of nutrients along the ledges, arrisks in those conditions grow extremely long roots in order to get as much nutrients as they can. The ones that grow in mountain meadows do not grow roots that are quite as long, as they are able to get more nutrients out of the ground around them.
The plant plays two important roles in the alpine ecosystem, depending on where on the mountain it grows. Along ledges, its extensive roots monopolize space and what little nutrients there are around them, threatening to choke out the few plants that might be able to grow in the same habitats such as Silver Lines. However, it can be kept in line by herbivorous animals that are able to get to their roots. It continues this role as a producer in the more temperate meadows. While the roots don't grow as long in the meadows, their fruits provide a great source of food for animals, due to how close to the ground they are.
Its roots, when ground up, create a powder which gives a sense of delirium and drowsiness when consumed. It could theoretically be mixed with other ingredients to make a sleeping aid or a drug.
LM Approval Required: Yes, as I would like to expand upon the substance in the roots further in another Lore post.