While doing some brush clean up I found a few attractive ground covers which seem to be thriving with no human attention. I took pictures with the intention of later doing some research to identify them. A few nights later while watching a TV show I stumbled on the answer- Miners Lettuce! and what a pleasant surprise it was.
Miner’s Lettuce (Claytonia) is native of the west coast, grows well in cooler climates, and is a very hardy lettuce variety. Big shock here- it was eaten by miners which is how it got it’s name.
Some seed suppliers offer this variety but lucky for us it grows here naturally!