front yard
Tag: wildflowers
purple and gold
Clarkia bottae
I keep thinking about an archeologist-naturalist being hired as the ship’s surgeon. I want to know how that worked out. Hopefully nobody got appendicitis or gangrene on the three-year journey.
Silene laciniata
Also known as cardinal catchfly, Mexican campion, Mexican-pink, and campion. I know these flowers are a favourite of hummingbirds, but do they catch flies, as one of the common names suggests?
Rhus aromatica
Stachys bullata
Hedge nettle is a native mint endemic to these parts. Even though it has ‘nettle’ in the name, it doesn’t sting. It has a strong and interesting smell.
tapia spur trail
I was intrigued by the differences in the plant communities on the north and south sides of the ridge, so decided to record the obvious species. I ended up hiking about twice as far as I planned, because I inadvertently left my art supply bag near the turnaround point and didn’t discover the fact till I was nearly all the way back to the start. Lucky it was lovely weather and I didn’t have to be anywhere else.
meadows
Paeonia californica
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!
Castilleja affinis
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