Chaparral Journal

A record of the chaparral habitat that inspires my art. Wildflowers, wildlife, more. 🌿 View my work: Mozaic Studio. #ChaparralJournal

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Bird’s foot cliffbrake (Pellaea mucronata) is a fern usually found in rocky areas. It’s native to California.

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Spotted hideseed (Eucrypta chrysanthemifolia) is an herb with a white flower about as wide as your pinkie nail.

Eucrypta is a genus name meaning “well-hidden,” which describes its seeds hidden in the fruit; “hideseed” is the common name.

It’s a California native and a member of the waterleaf family.

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One of the most satisfying things about documenting wildflower blooms from one year to the next is seeing a species you like steadily increase its footprint.

Case in point is the Texas toadflax (Nuttallanthus texanus). I saw maybe three or four plants total last year and significantly more this year, closer to 50.

It’s not a California native, but it’s a cheery flower and a beautiful color; I’m happy to have it.

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A sunny trio of California sun cups (Camissoniopsis bistorta).

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Blooms on a California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum), slowly changing from pink and cream to rust.

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Baby blue eyes (Nemophila menziesii).

Normally this flower is a pretty light blue, but ours consistently turn out a vivid shade of lapis (not a complaint).

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An upright example of nightshade. It’s either chaparral nightshade (Solanum xanti) or bluewitch nightshade (Solanum umbelliferum); hard to tell the difference.

At any rate, these plants tend to bloom with their faces downward, so catching it from this angle is a bit of a rarity.

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A fringed redmaid (Calandrinia menziesii). A redmaid is a type of flower and not necessarily a description of color.

They’re typically low-growing, spreading plants with flowers about the width of your fingernail. Ours are almost always a pinkish-ish purple. They bloom profusely across our property, but close up at night and are slow to reopen in the morning.

This particular redmaid is a California native and completely edible, including roots and seeds.

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One sure sign of spring is the appearance of catkins on the wild willow (Salix lasiolepis).

Catkins are technically flowers, although they don’t look anything like it. They produce pollen that attracts the insects the willow needs for pollination.

Eventually they produce little clouds of fluffy seeds that blow in a million directions.

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Fiddlenecks (Amsinckia, very probably Amsinckia eastwoodiae, which is specific to Southern California).

In the spring, fiddlenecks explode in our area, filling fields and hillsides with tall, bristly stems of pretty yellow flowers.

They’re a big downside, though. Fiddlenecks are so prolific that they’re invasive, and will crowd out every other native plant and wildflower that might otherwise grow. If you mow them down, they’ll quickly come back, so they have be pulled out by the roots.

We’ve spent every spring since we’ve been here slowly but steadily yanking them out before they go to seed. Their footprint is much smaller and getting smaller each year. As a result a lot of natives have come back to take their rightful place.

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Some nights, when we take the dog outside just before bedtime, we come across a Western toad (Anaxyrus boreas) on his or her way to the water saucer we keep filled for wildlife.

If they’re in the middle of the yard, they’ll step up the hopping to get out of your way. If they’re close to the house, they’ll recede into the shadows and remain perfectly still, keenly hoping you won’t notice them. I always pretend we don’t.

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Blooms on common stork’s bill (Erodium cicutarium).

It’s a low plant, maybe an inch or so off the ground, and so prolific in the spring we get fields it across the property. The leaves spread out in rosettes.

It’s a native of Africa and Eurasia, and has naturalized in the western U.S.

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Texas toadflax (Nuttallanthus texanus), a newcomer this year (that is, I don’t remember seeing it last year).

It’s a member of the veronica family, so it’s related to foxglove and snapdragons. It does look a lot like the wild Nuttall’s snapdragon with a similar shape and color.

It appears across the western U.S.

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Common cryptantha (Cryptantha intermedia), a plant so similar to the unrelated popcorn flower (Plagiobothrys) that until recently I thought they were the same.

Both share very small white flowers with yellow throats and narrow leaves. The only obvious difference is that the cryotantha is taller.

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The zigzag pattern of a silver bird's-foot trefoil (Acmispon argophyllus).

In the past I’ve called this the coastal medick because of the similarity in appearance, but I’m certain I misidentified it. (I suppose the tip-off should have been “coastal” in its name. 🙄)

Anyway, the silver bird’s-foot trefoil (or silver lotus) is a California native and is classified as a legume. Glad to set the record straight.

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On December 24, this California peony (Paeonia californica) poked its first shoots out of the ground after a mild autumn and a lot of rain.

By January 25 — a mere 31 days after that— it was this tall, full, and unruly blooming plant.

An amazing growth cycle for a plant making the most of its environment.

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Buckbrush (Ceanothus cuneatus), a flowering shrub native to California.

It’s one of a number of chaparral plants that need fire for germination, and produces beanpod-like seeds that can lie dormant on the soil for years.

It’s a larval host for nearly a dozen moths and butterflies.