Gorgeous flowers. Happy bees. Invasive shrub. Two out of three ain’t bad 🙄
Actually, this species has something going for it besides its beauty—it is noted for its antibacterial and antifungal properties. Research conducted by the University of KwaZulu-Natal found that aqueous extracts of P. myrtifolia are effective against Candida albicans, the yeast that causes candidiasis or thrush.
I love these delicate little chalice-like seed pods.
Cuscuta—commonly called dodder or amarbel—is a genus of more than 200 species of parasitic plants, typically yellow, orange, or red (and only rarely green). It occurs across temperate and tropical regions worldwide. The plant grows as long, thin, twining stems that coil around host plants, drawing nutrients by inserting tiny, straw-like structures into the host’s phloem. Dodder is able to locate suitable hosts by sensing airborne volatile organic compounds, which may explain why we saw it growing mostly on black sage during today’s hike.
Its many folk names include strangle tare, strangleweed, scaldweed, beggarweed, lady’s laces, fireweed, wizard’s net, devil’s guts, devil’s hair, devil’s ringlet, goldthread, hailweed, hairweed, hellbine, love vine, pull-down, angel hair, and witch’s hair—curiously linking it to angels and devils, ladies and beggars, fire and hail, love and hell.
This peony is endemic to southwestern California (USA) and northernmost Baja California (Mexico). It grows on dry hillsides in the coastal sage scrub and chaparral communities of the coastal mountains.
The plant dies back in the summer, and tolerates little or no water while dormant. It puts forth its compound leaves after a good winter rain, which this year happened in mid-November. So we’re seeing the flowers already, before the end of the year. Nice!
It’s red berry season in this part of the world, and our yard boasts three different shrubs bearing this cheerful fruit. None of them are native; in fact both cotoneaster and firethorn are considered invasive in California. I’d like to replace them both with our lovely endemic toyon.
Ventura Botanic Garden is free on Fridays. And you can take your dog on Wednesdays and Fridays. It’s a very steep site with ocean views all the way up. Definitely a place to return to in spring.
Before leaving Palm Springs, I spent a few hours in the desert oasis of Andreas Canyon on the Agua Caliente Indian Reservation. There’s spectacular geology, and a permanent creek bordered by dense California fan palms (Washingtonia filifera), the only palm species native to the southwestern United States. Pretty velvety goldenrod was flourishing in the dappled shade. Such a gorgeous place to ‘forest bathe’ before the long drive home.
Lovely nature journal club meetup today. We had five new people come, which is always awesome. I love our regulars, but it’s great to welcome new folks too.
What’s going on here? A little research results in the guess that this is Agave celsii ‘Nova’, allegedly “rather famous for performing unusual bloom tricks” (ref).
hashiworks 