Frasera speciosa is a species of flowering plant in the Gentian Family (Gentianaceae) known by the common names elkweed, deer's ears, and monument plant. Growth pattern. It is a perennial herb growing from a woody base surrounded by rosettes of large leaves that measure up to 50 centimeters long by 15 wide. Stems and leaves. It produces a single erect stem which can reach two meters in height. Inflorescense and fruit. The stem bears whorls of lance-shaped, pointed leaves smaller than those at the base. The plant is monocarpic, growing for several years and only flowering once before it dies. Flowering is synchronized among plants in a given area, with widespread, picturesque blooms occurring periodically. It is not known why some plants in an area will not flower in a mass flowering event, or what cues the plants rely on to initiate flowering. The inflorescence is a tall, erect panicle with flowers densely clustered at the top and then spread out in interrupted clusters below. Each flower has a calyx of four pointed sepals and a corolla of four pointed lobes each one to two centimeters long. The corolla is yellow-green with purple spots and each lobe has two fringed nectary pits at the base. There are four stamens tipped with large anthers and a central ovary. It blooms from July to August. Uses and ecological interaction. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Frasera speciosa.