Category Archives: photography|wildflowers

Upper Las Virgenes Canyon: Humboldt Lily Run

Humboldt lily in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon

Was looking to get in a short run this morning and decided to check if any Humboldt lilies were blooming in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon.

The last time I’d seen Humboldt lilies bloom here was June 2006, following an unusually wet Spring and a two year period in which Downtown Los Angeles recorded 50+ inches of rain. 

This Spring some months were wet and some months were dry, but December 2010 was the wettest in Los Angeles in 121 years. Add to the mix that the last two water years Los Angeles recorded above average rainfall, and it seemed there was a pretty good chance the Upper Las Virgenes Canyon lilies would be in bloom.

I’d seen lily stalks in other areas in recent weeks, and some blooming Humboldt lilies in the San Gabriel Mountains, but when I checked Upper Las Virgenes Canyon in early May, there had been none. But today there was — right in the middle of thorny patch of blackberry bushes.

Also blooming in the canyon were California wild rose and the non-native plant moth mullein — so named because of the similarity of the flower’s anthers to the fuzzy appearing antennae of a moth.

Related post: Humboldt Lily

Canchalagua

Canchalagua (Centaurium venustum)

Relatively uncommon in the areas in which I run, the vivid rose-purple of Canchalagua (Centaurium venustum) is always a treat to see. Not only are its colors eye-catching, it’s petals are unusually uniform and precisely formed, which makes the flowers stand out even more.  A closer look reveals bizarrely shaped anthers, which are fluted and spiraled.



The plant is reported to have been used medicinally, but according to Chumash Ethnobotany by Jan Timbrook & Chris Chapman, based on the field notes of John P. Harrington, it wasn’t clear whether it was “a remedy of the old-time Indians, or of the whites.”

Here’s an advertisement from an 1852 volume of the American Whig Review, in which Canchalagua was specified as an ingredient of the patent medicine “Dr Rogers’ Compound Syrup of Liverwort, Tar and Canchalagua.” (The document was digitized by Google as part of the Making of America Project.)

Mariposa Lily Along the Phantom Trail

Clubhair mariposa (Calochortus clavatus)

The electric yellow of a clubhair mariposa (Calochortus clavatus) is one of the most vibrant colors of the chaparral. These blossoms are along the Phantom Trail in Malibu Creek State Park.

From Sunday’s run of the Phantom Loop.

Some related posts: Mariposa Yellow, Mariposa, Plummer’s Mariposa Lily

After the Station Fire: Phacelia Near Three Points

Various species of Phacelia are fire-followers and have bloomed in profusion in areas burned by the Station Fire. These are Davidson’s Phacelia (Phacelia davidsonii) along the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail about a mile from Three Points.



Like Turricula (Poodle-dog bush)*, many species of Phacelia can cause a contact dermatitis similar to poison oak. Generally, any Phacelia should be considered suspect, and especially those that are fuzzy and sticky.

One Phacelia that has been shown to elicit a reaction is California bluebell (Phacelia minor) — a relatively common wildflower in the middle to lower elevation areas burned by the Station Fire. In one study, it was found that the amount of two active compounds in Phacelia minor required to produce a qualified reaction was 6.3 µg and 3.8 µg; compared to 170 µg for Turricula and 1.6 µg for a component of urushiol from poison ivy.

*The taxonomic name for Turricula parryi (Poodle-dog bush) has changed to Eriodictyon parryi. The Jepson Manual: Vascular Plants of California, Second Edition (2012) has returned Turricula to the genus Eriodictyon, as originally described by Gray. According to the Wikipedia entry for Turricula (April 11, 2012), “… molecular phylogenetic analysis carried out by Ferguson (1998) confirms that Turricula should be treated as a separate genus within a clade (Ferguson does not use the term “subfamily”) that includes Eriodictyon, and also the genera Nama and Wigandia; Eriodictyon is the genus to which Turricula is closest in molecular terms, and is its sister taxon.” I use “Turricula” and “Poodle-dog bush” interchangeably as a common name.

Related post: After the Station Fire: Contact Dermatitis from Turricula parryi – Poodle-dog Bush

After the Station Fire: Contact Dermatitis from Eriodictyon parryi – Poodle-dog Bush

Poodle-dog bush Along the Silver Moccasin Trail at Shortcut Saddle
Poodle-dog bush Along the Silver Moccasin Trail at Shortcut Saddle

I knew Poodle-dog bush* was a common fire follower, but had never run or hiked through a burn area where it was abundant. Wow, it was everywhere on the Red Box – Bear Canyon – Gabrielino Loop last Saturday, and particularly dense on sections of the Gabrielino Trail between Switzers and Red Box. It appears to be one of the most common fire-followers in the Station Fire burn area, and likely plays an important role in the recovery process.

Gland-tipped hairs on Poodle-dog bush leaves
Gland-tipped hairs on Poodle-dog bush leaves. Click for larger image.

Gland-tipped hairs on the plant secrete a sticky substance that causes a rash “like poison oak” in sensitized persons. I thought I wasn’t sensitive to the plant, because I had brushed against the leaves of Poodle-dog bush before without reacting to it. This time my exposure was repeated, frequent, and prolonged; and the leaves were heavily coated with exudate. At the end of the loop my legs and forearms were coated with a thick layer of resinous brown gunk that would not wash off with water.

Trail dust and other debris caught on a sticky Poodle-dog bush leaf
Trail dust and other debris caught on a sticky Poodle-dog bush leaf. Click for larger image.

By the time I had finished the run, talked to some people at Red Box, and driven home, 2-3 hours had passed. Tecnu helped remove the resinous goo, but as I would discover a couple of days later, it did not prevent me from getting the rash.

My reaction to Poodle-dog bush was quite a bit different than what I’ve experienced with poison oak. A blotchy red rash developed on my arms and legs Monday, about 48 hours after exposure. After another 24 hours I thought the rash was going away, but it was actually morphing into a more widespread and uniform inflammation that was similar to bad sunburn — a very itchy sunburn. There was some swelling and edema, particularly on my ankles. In the areas that had the most contact with the Poodle-dog bush, primarily my shins and around my knees, there was some blistering. The blisters were small, perhaps 1/16 inch in diameter or less.

Flowers of Poodle-dog Bush (Eriodictyon parryi) near Three Points
Flowers of Poodle-dog Bush near Three Points

Most of the blisters were gone by Thursday afternoon, and since then the inflammation has been slowly subsiding. Although very itchy and annoying at times, it has not been debilitating. An equivalent exposure to poison oak would have been much more severe. However, in my case an underlying irritation or sensitivity has lingered for some time after the visible reaction dissipated. It seems like it will probably take a few more days for the reaction to completely resolve. We’ll see!

Update July 12, 2011. My reaction to Poodle-dog bush cleared after about two weeks. A running friend who recently did some trail work removing Turricula on the Kenyon Devore Trail sent this photograph of a blotchy red rash that developed on his forearm. He first noticed a reaction four days after doing the trail work, and the photograph was taken 10 days after exposure. As in my case, several hours later he commented that the blotchy rash had merged into a more general inflammation with swelling.

Poodle-dog bush leaf arrangement
Poodle-dog bush leaf arrangement

Research has found the dermatitic agents in the Poodle-dog bush exudate are “phacelioids,” hydroquinone based compounds structurally related to poison oak/ivy urushiols, but not as active. In one study the amount of the phacelioids in Poodle-dog bush required to produce a qualified reaction was 100 times that required for a component of urushiol from poison ivy — 170 µg vs 1.6 µg.

It is also noted that in place oxidation of hydroquinone based phacelioids is likely necessary to interact with the proteins of the skin and produce a reaction. This (and common sense) suggests that leaving the Poodle-dog bush exudate on your skin for several hours (like I did) is probably a bad idea.

For more information see:

Contact Dermatitis From Eriodictyon parryi: A Novel Cause of Contact Dermatitis in California. Christopher D. Czaplicki,  Wilderness & Environmental Medicine, 2013; 24(3):253–256

Prenylated Phenolics that Cause Contact Dermatitis from Glandular Trichomes of Turricula parryi. G. W. Reynolds, P. Proksch, E. Rodriguez, Planta Medica, 1985; 51(6): 494-498

Unusual contact allergens from plants in the family Hydrophyllaceae. G. W. Reynolds, W. L. Epstein, E. Rodriguez, Contact Dermatitis, 1986; 14:39-44

The book Poisonous plants of California by Thomas C. Fuller, Elizabeth May McClintock (1986) describes a 1941 incident in which hairs from old flowering stalks “easily broken from the stems” caused a rash, but flowering plants the previous year did not.

*The taxonomic name for Turricula parryi (Poodle-dog bush) has changed to Eriodictyon parryi. The Jepson Manual: Vascular Plants of California, Second Edition (2012) has returned Turricula to the genus Eriodictyon, as originally described by Gray. According to the Wikipedia entry for Turricula (April 11, 2012), “… molecular phylogenetic analysis carried out by Ferguson (1998) confirms that Turricula should be treated as a separate genus within a clade (Ferguson does not use the term “subfamily”) that includes Eriodictyon, and also the genera Nama and Wigandia; Eriodictyon is the genus to which Turricula is closest in molecular terms, and is its sister taxon.” I use “Turricula” and “Poodle-dog bush” interchangeably as a common name.

Related post: Getting Over Poodle-dog Bush Dermatitis and these additional posts.