Category Archives: wildflowers

nature, photography, running, topanga state park, trails, wildflowers, wildflowers

Plummer’s Mariposa Lily Along the Garapito Trail

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Plummer's mariposa lilies (Calochortus plummerae) along the Garapito Trail in the Santa Monica Mountains. June 29, 2019.

When I run to Trippet Ranch from the Top of Reseda, I like to take the fire roads out and single-track trails back. The trails I use to return to the Top of Reseda from Trippet are the Musch, Garapito, and Bent Arrow Trails.

Scarlet larkspur along the Garapito Trail in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Scarlet larkspur along the Garapito Trail.

I don’t think I’ve seen as many Plummer’s mariposa lilies (Calochortus plummerae) along the Garapito Trail as I did this last Saturday. Like many other plants this showy lily seems to have benefited from the wet 2018-19 rain season and generally cool Spring temperatures.

The Plummer’s mariposa lily has a CNPS Rare Plant Rank of 4.2, which means it has a limited distribution and is moderately threatened in California. It’s not necessarily rare within its range, but its range is limited to a small area of Southern California.

Among the other wildflowers along the trail were numerous large patches of Scarlet larkspur (Delphinium cardinale) and Farewell-to-spring (Clarkia bottae).

ahmanson ranch, nature, photography, running, smmc open space, trails, upper las virgenes canyon open space preserve, wildflowers, wildflowers

Humboldt Lilies in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Humboldt Lilies in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (Ahmanson Ranch) on June 19, 2019.

Although I’d photographed them here before, it is still a bit startling to find Humboldt lilies on a hot, dry, dusty run in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve, aka Ahmanson Ranch. The vibrant orange blossoms stand out against the mix of muted greens, grays and straw-yellows of the oak woodland and chaparral and are hard to miss.

The Humboldt lily and a few other wildflowers have been added to my Weekday Wildflowers slideshow. These are wildflowers photographed on weekday runs from the Victory Trailhead of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve.

Related posts: More Weekday Wildflowers, Weekday Wildflowers

adventures, backbone trail, nature, news, photography, pt mugu state park, running, trails, wildflowers, wildflowers

Fire Followers Along the Backbone Trail

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.
Fire poppy (Papaver californicum), a fire follower, along the Backbone Trail west of Sandstone Peak. May 18, 2019.
Fire poppy along the Backbone Trail.

Fire followers are plants that grow in a recently burned area in much larger numbers than before a fire. In some cases the species may rarely have been observed in the area prior to the fire.

A good example of a fire follower is Poodle-dog bush (Eriodictyon parryi), which became widespread in the San Gabriel Mountains following the 2009 Station Fire.

A wet rain season also increases the population of many species. Combine a fire and wet rain season and plant distributions and populations can be dramatically altered.

Large-flowered Phacelia (Phacelia grandiflora), a fire follower, near Tri Peaks. May 18, 2019.
Large-flowered Phacelia near Tri Peaks. Click for larger image.

Yesterday, I did a long run in the Santa Monica Mountains that included several miles of the Backbone Trail between Sandstone Peak and the Danielson Multi-use area in Sycamore Canyon. This area was burned in 2018 Woolsey Fire and there were some stunning displays of fire followers and other wildflowers.

Star lily was one of the earliest fire followers to bloom in the area and remains prevalent, but the champion fire follower at the moment is large-flowered Phacelia. Before the Woolsey Fire it would be unusual to see this plant on this section of the Backbone Trail. Now its purple-blue flowers blanket large areas along the trail.

Although not as numerous as the large-flowered Phacelia, I’ve never seen so many fire poppies along the Backbone Trail. Its orange-red color is striking and stands out sharply against the brown, charcoal-infused soil. Also more abundant this year is the vibrant yellow collarless poppy.

Here is a slideshow of some of the wildflowers seen on the run.

ahmanson ranch, nature, news, photography, running, smmc open space, trails, upper las virgenes canyon open space preserve, wildflowers, wildflowers

More Weekday Wildflowers

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Wildflowers photographed on weekday runs from the Victory Trailhead of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve.

Over the past two weeks more than 15 species were added to my Weekday Wildflowers slideshow. These are wildflowers photographed on weekday runs from the Victory Trailhead of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve.

Some related posts: Chinese Houses Along the Sheep Corral Trail, Weekday Wildflowers

ahmanson ranch, nature, news, photography, trails, upper las virgenes canyon open space preserve, wildflowers, wildflowers

Chinese Houses Along the Sheep Corral Trail

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Chinese Houses (Collinsia heterophylla) along the Sheep Corral Trail

Wildflowers continue to flourish following our wet rain season. Above average precipitation tends to produce more wildflowers, a wider variety of wildflowers, larger patches of a wildflower species, larger plants, and in some cases larger blossoms.

During the week I photographed several new “Weekday Wildflowers” on runs from the Victory Trailhead of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve. This week’s runs included Lasky Mesa, Upper Las Virgenes Canyon, and the Sheep Corral Trail.

Chinese houses, white snapdragon, yellow monkey flower, stinging lupine, and a few other species were added to the Weekday Wildflowers slideshow.

Related post: Weekday Wildflowers

cheeseboro, nature, photography, smmc open space, trails, wildflowers, wildflowers

Form and Color: Wind Poppy

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Form and color of a wind poppy.

The wind poppy is one of several new wildflowers I’ve recently added to the slideshow in the post Weekday Wildflowers.

Only about the diameter of a dime, the flower of this uncommon poppy is easy to miss. A closer view reveals its striking combination of form and color.