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Page Revised: 4/6/07 |
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Available Sites Circle X Ranch Rancho Sierra Vista Point Mugu State Park Cheeseboro & Palo Comado Cyns Malibu Creek State Park Zuma & Trancas Canyons Castro Crest |
Date of Review 4/6/07 & 3/24/07 &
3/23/07 & 3/9/07. 3/25/07 3/23/07. 3/21/07 3/14/07. 3/10/07 |
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What's Blooming photo gallery: http://www.researchlearningcenter.com/bloom/bloom.htm |
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Circle X Ranch |
Quick update |
Date: 4/6/07 |
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Just a very quick update for the ceanothus
lovers in the crowd. The bigpod
ceanothus has pretty much finished up.
However, several of the other, later-blooming, ceanothus species are
doing quite well right now. My
favorite is the Hairy-leaved ceanothus with its pale to deep violet blossoms.
Look for it on the sheltered hillsides generally above 2000’. Greenbark ceanothus is also doing well in
the moister habitats. It has blue flowers ranging from nearly white to pale
blue. Up higher we run into the
hoary-leaved ceanothus with blossoms that are generally white. It is easily
told from the others by looking at the leaves. They are arranged opposite on the branches
and are quite white underneath.
Overall the flower display this year remains poor compared to other
years we’ve had recently. (TV) |
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Naturalist's rating: Generally Poor but with some bright spots |
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Rancho Sierra Vista |
Satwiwa
Loop Trail |
Date: 3/25/07 |
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On March 25th, we hiked the Satwiwa loop at Rancho Sierra Vista. Both ponds were dried up! Flowers that were present were small in
number. The highlight was seeing Padre's shooting stars. Peony had just finished. My list: morning glory, California everlasting,
California poppy, fiddleneck, wild cucumber,
ceanothus, wild radish, black mustard, blue dick, slender tarweed, filaree, locoweed, vetch, and purple nightshade. (KJ) |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Circle X Ranch |
Sandstone Peak Trail |
Date: 3/24/07 |
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This trail is usually not the best
around for flowers but in compensation more than makes up for it by taking
you to the highest point in the Santa Monica Mountains. The views are unobstructed and on a clear
day you can easily see San Clemente seventy miles out to sea or the snow on
Old Baldy eighty mile to the East. The ceanothus is the flowering shrub to
see right now. While the bigpod
ceanothus is winding down there are still many individuals dotting the
landscape with their whitish to purplish blossoms. For me the prize is the
hairy-leaved ceanothus with its tight purple clusters of many small blossoms.
It is easy to see why some people call this shrub the “chaparral
lilac.” As you climb higher
toward the peak the bigpod and hairy-leaved give way to the whiter
hoary-leaved ceanothus which is also beginning to bloom nicely on this
trail. The other flowers worth noting
are prickly phlox, wild cucumber, deerweed, chaparral current, purple
nightshade and Eastwood manzanita.
Otherwise we saw very few flowers, both in terms of variety and
quantity. All told only a little over
two dozen different flower species were seen in bloom. (TV) |
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Naturalist's rating: Good |
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Circle X Ranch |
Mishe Mokwa loop |
Date: 3/23/07 |
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Here's one for the Circle X
area. We hiked the Mishe Mokwa /
Backbone loop on March 23 and saw the following in bloom: Big-pod,
Hoary-leaved, and Hairy-leaved Ceanothus, Peonies with buds, Prickly Phlox,
Deer Weed, Chaparral Currant, Shooting Stars, Woolly Lomatium, Blue Dick,
Wild Cucumber, Eastwood Manzanita, Coastal Lotus, Popcorn Flower. (BS) |
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Naturalist's rating: NR |
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Point Mugu State Park |
La Jolla Canyon |
Date: 3/23/07 |
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From Ray Miller Trailhead - La Jolla
Canyon trail through La Jolla Valley and return via the Backbone trail. The Giant Coreopsis in La Jolla Canyon are
almost in full bloom. Most plants had
3/4's of their buds open. Another week
and they should be at their peak. We
also saw copious amounts of Blue Dick and Indian Paintbrush throughout the
hike. Other flowers in bloom were:
Scarlet Pimpernel, Fuchsia Flowered Gooseberry, Shooting Stars, Red Stem
Filaree, Turkish Rugging, Parry's Phacelia, Fiesta Flower, Wild Cucumber,
Purple Nightshade, Lemonade Berry, Buckwheat, Everlasting, Morning Glory,
Hedge Nettle, Greenbark Ceanothus, Buck-Brush, Blue Eyed Grass, Tree Tobacco,
Bladder Pod, California Poppy, Collarless California Poppy, Coast Wallflower,
Mustard, Deerweed, Santa Barbara Locoweed, Bush Sunflower and Chaparral
Currant. At Thornhill-Broome Beach
across Hwy 1 from the trailhead we observed Pink Sand Verbena. (R&AT) |
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Naturalist's rating: Good |
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Cheeseboro & Palo
Comado Canyons |
Misc. Trails in the Burn Area |
Date: 3/21/07 |
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Here is the list Kendra compiled from
the Wednesday's burn area scoping survey.
Species: Amsinckia menziesii, Arctostaphylos glandulosa, Baccharis salicifolia,
Calandrinia sp., Calystegia macrostegia, Camissonia californica, Castilleja
foliolosa, Ceanothus crassifolius, Cryptantha muricata, Dendromecon rigida,
Encelia californica, Eriogonum cinereum, Erodium botrys, Erodium cicutarium,
Eucrypta chrysanthemifolia, Helianthemum scoparium, Heterotheca grandiflora,
Hirschfeldia incana, Hordeum murinum, Juncus bufonius, Leptodactylon
californicum, Lessingia filaginifolia, Lotus strigosus, Marah macrocarpus,
Medicago polymorpha, Melilotus indicus, Mimulus aurantiacus, Mirabilis
californica, Muhlenbergia microsperma, Nolina cismontana, Paeonia
californica, Pectocarya linearis, Pedicularis densiflora, Phacelia parryi,
Plagiobothrys canescens, Polypogon monspeliensis, Ribes indecorum, Salix
lasiolepis, Salvia columbariae, Schismus arabicus, Solanum xanti, Tauschia
arguta. (KS & TS) |
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Naturalist's rating: NR |
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Malibu Creek State Park |
Phantom Trail |
Date: 3/14/07 |
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I was on the Phantom Trail (northern
Malibu Creek SP, north of Mulholland) earlier this week (Wednesday, to be
specific), and I saw a lot of Indian Paintbrush in bloom. Not certain of the exact species, but it is
bright cardinal in color, one in which the style extrudes itself out of the
flower tube. There are also California
poppies coming out on the ridge, as well as a fair amount of ceanothus in
bloom, and not big-pod, either, in both white and 'blue'. Naturally, poison oak is beginning to put
out buds in many areas. I also saw
willow in bloom, but can't remember exactly where - been all over, trying to
get out a lot before the weather gets too hot - just that it wasn't on the
Phantom Trail, of course. I also saw a
few very small, deep purple-with-a-hint-of-red flowers that had a vague
resemblance to native geraniums (not the horticultural ones) on the southern
Phantom Trail ridge. A "belly
flower" that require getting on your stomach to really see, (JC) |
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Naturalist's rating: NR |
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Zuma and Trancas
Canyons |
backbone trail |
Date: 3/10/07 |
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Saturday, 3/10, we walked from Kanan
to Mulholland crossing the upper watersheds of Zuma and Trancas Canyons. The
following were blooming (they're listed in no particular order.) big-pod ceanothus, greenbark ceanothus,
man-root, purple nightshade, California everlasting, chaparral currant,
fuchsia-flowered, gooseberry, Indian warrior, milkmaids, hoary-leafed
ceanothus, walnut, California poppy, deerweed, mule fat, California buckwheat,
hummingbird sage, morning glory, four o'clock, coyote bush, telegraph weed,
slender sunflower, Parry's phacelia, sticky monkey flower. The big pod was outstanding. A lot of everlasting, chaparral currant,
man root and nightshade. Everything
else was sparse. (RW) |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Circle X Ranch |
Various trails |
Date: 3/9/07 |
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The very dry conditions we’ve
had this winter has resulted in unusually few flowers so far this year. In particular, the annuals that depend on
regular winter rain to germinate their seeds are running way behind. Even the perennials have been slow to get
going. However, we are finally
beginning to see good numbers of ceanothus blooming so at least they believe
Spring is beginning. In fact, they have been so quick to pop out that
I’ve had to re-write this review since I began composing it a few days
ago The chaparral current has been
blooming for a month now and while some have already finished blooming most
are in their prime. The same can be
said for big-berry manzanita although the later blooming Eastwood manzanita
is just beginning. Individual bigpod
ceanothus shrubs have been blooming for some time but the population as a
whole is only just beginning. However,
in just the last two days a dramatic change has occurred and now they can be
seen on the hillsides at a distance.
Even a few of the other species of ceanothus can be seen blooming here
and there. The other notable right now
is the shooting star. Again, they are
just beginning but both the Mishe Mokwa trail and the Backbone trail below
the Mishe Mokwa display them well in a number of locations. I’ve also run across scattered
examples of purple nightshade, California buckwheat, deer weed, wild
cucumber, wooly lomatium, southern tauschia, silk-tassel bush, prickly phlox,
two-tone everlasting, morning glory, and a few popcorn flowers. On the Canyon View trail last weekend I
noticed that the wishbone bush looks like it is getting ready for a good year
but has not quite started blooming yet.
Along the creeks the small flowers of the mule fat are easy to
miss. On the grotto trail two weeks
ago we smelled the sweet fragrance of the California bay and examined a nice
display of young ferns. A hike to
Sandstone Peak last week resulted in the poorest flower showing I have ever
seen, but the hike itself was magnificent with vistas of the offshore islands
and distant snow-capped peaks. Even
the typical roadside weeds like the mustard, filaree and groundsel seem to be
struggling to do much. The creeks are
mostly dry, and while there is water at the grotto, none of the waterfalls
are doing anything worth mentioning.
On the other hand the trails are pleasantly green and in good
condition. In summary, from a strictly
flowering perspective, the hikes I’ve done so far this year have been
mostly poor, but that may change fast now that the days are getting
warmer. (TV) |
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Naturalist's rating: Mostly Poor but with some Fair sections |
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Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area 401 West
Hillcrest Drive 805-370-2301 |
Thank
you for your
contributions: Bob Sweet |
If you
would like to contribute to the wildflower report: e-mail: or phone
Tony at 310-457-6408 |
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