Month: April 2024

Aphyllon franciscanum

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This week in the PerpJo—according to Milt McCauley (Wildflowers of the Santa Monica Mountains), two species of the Broomrape family are native to the SMM, but very rare. Clustered broomrape (Aphyllon franciscanum) is found in chaparral and coastal sage scrub. It has fleshy stems 2 to 8 inches (5 to 20 cm) high, covered with soft hairs, and bell-shaped flowers 1 to 4 inches (2.5 to 10 cm) long. Broomrape is parasitic on the roots of other plants like chamise, sagebrush and buckwheat.

Big thanks to Annette for spotting this rarity. Actually, she also spied the horned lizard this week last year. I’ll have to be sure to hike with her in week 16 next year too. Who knows what she will find for us then!

Lampropeltis californiae

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Spotted this handsome striped reptile out on the trail. The California kingsnake (Lampropeltis californiae) is endemic to the western United States and northern Mexico, and is found in a variety of habitats, including woodland chaparral, grassland, deserts, marshes, and even suburban areas. It is non-venomous, and kills its prey by constriction.

Wild California kingsnakes are typically encountered at a length of 2.5-3.5 feet (76 – 107cm), though they can grow larger. This one was smaller, maybe 18 inches / 45cm long.

early blight

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I was late planting tomatoes this year. There’s been a lot of rain, which I thought they’d appreciate, but they seem to be afflicted with some kind of fungus, most likely “early blight”. The remedy for all the fungal afflictions seems to be the same, a copper-based spray applied every 7 to 10 days. Continuing research over here …

s.o.h.

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I’ve been listening (again) to Tim Minchin’s Play it Safe, written for the Sydney Opera House’s 50th Anniversary, and feeling nostalgic and proud. This multi-venue performing arts centre is widely regarded as one of the world’s most famous and distinctive buildings, and a masterpiece of 20th-century architecture. And of course Tim Minchin is also a national treasure in his own right.

In 1957, the original estimates for the S.O.H. projected a cost of £3,500,000 ($7 million) and a construction time of 4 years. In reality, the project was formally completed in 1973 (10 years late), having cost $102 million. It was partially funded by a lottery; when I was little, my grandfather won a chunk of cash in the Opera House Lottery, and we got a new car out of it. It was a sturdy reliable beast that was eventually passed down to my sister, then my brother.

I still have never attended a performance at the Opera House; but hope to one day.