Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. “Leaves of three, let it be!” Six pithy words of advice that have probably saved many a youngster — indeed, many an oldster! — from messing with poison oak and from two or three weeks of itchy, blistering rash. But can we agree that as advice goes, this … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. Somewhere in Southern California, perhaps along some freeway, you’ve surely seen those impressive springtime swaths of yellow mustard in bloom. Such a bright and cheery yellow, it’s easy to admire! The legend, known to many California school children, is that early Franciscan friars brought mustard seeds from Spain, … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. Those so-called “common” plant names — you know, the ones in English, not in Latin — are sometimes wonderful clues to a plant’s features and identity. At other times, common names merely give credit to the naturalist who discovered a new species, or perhaps the name honors someone … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. Not many people look forward to chance encounters with scorpions. So when we hear that some wildflower has “scorpion weed” listed among its common names, we might back away from it. Better safe than sorry, right? But this one is complicated! The name “scorpion weed” is applied … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. When does the new year begin? Oh, another trick question! Whose new year? Western? Chinese? Rosh Hashanah? If you were a flower, you’d surely be bored by the human obsession with calendars. Instead of looking to January 1st or, perhaps, to the spring equinox, you’d be much more … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. The La Cañada trail network does an amazing job at getting us into some remarkably rugged areas that nurture a wealth of native wildflowers. But not all those flowers are native, and not all are even wild. Some have been deliberately introduced by humans, sometimes with disastrous results. … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. How many rare plants are there at Cherry Canyon? Wait, is that a trick question? How do you even know if a plant is rare? Well, in fact, over fifty years ago the California Native Plant Society prepared an inventory of all the native plants in California that … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. If you were merely to glance at the blooms at Cherry Canyon, or almost anywhere throughout our local hills and canyons, you’d be right to conclude that ours is a landscape dominated by shrubs. Happily, most of these are flowering shrubs! But if you take a much closer … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. At Cherry Canyon, over half the terrain is covered by shrubs. Most of them are flowering shrubs, including some that bear flowers pretty enough to serve as a bouquet or even a corsage. But then there’s the shrub that everyone loves to hate: Poison Oak. The common name … Read more »
Occasional observations on the wildflowers of 91011. Monkeyflowers supposedly get their name from the blossom, because someone reportedly saw a resemblance to the face of a monkey with its tongue sticking out. Well, that may apply to a few species of monkeyflower — of which California is home to over ninety — but you’re under … Read more »
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