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Page Revised: 5/23/09 |
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Available Site Reviews Topanga Canyon State Park Backbone Trail Nicholas Flat Newton/Zuma Canyons Circle X Ranch Upper Solstice Canyon Castro Crest |
Date of Reviews 5/21 & 5/20. 5/16 & 4/11. 5/15. 5/11. 5/4 & 4/11. 5/3. 5/1. |
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What's Blooming photo gallery: http://www.researchlearningcenter.com/bloom/bloom.htm |
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Late spring in SoCal
always reminds me of summer or even fall elsewhere and this year is no
exception. The spring rains ended a
bit too early to give a us a great blooming season but most of the flowers we
see in any given year have made their appearance, if in smaller numbers and
for a shorter period of time than typical. Many of the early spring flowers have
been mostly gone for awhile now and are getting hard to find even in the
sheltered areas. On the other hand
many of the later spring flowers like the appropriately named “Farewell
to Spring” are up and blooming well now. However, if you look carefully you may
still find a few of those earlier species holding on in sheltered nooks and
crannies. Please note that because we
are in transition from early spring to late spring many of the flower reports
here are more out of date than you might otherwise expect. This is especially true since many of the reports
are getting a bit old as people often stop sending in reports once the drama
of early spring subsides. – ed. |
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Topanga Canyon State
Park |
Santa Ynez Trail |
Date: 5/21 |
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The beginning of this hike is along a
creek in a shady canyon. A good walk for a hot day. Just watch
out for the plentiful poison oak. In the creekside
area there is canyon sunflower, black sage, bush lupine, sticky monkey
flower, California bee plant, California buckwheat, blackberry, California
everlasting, wild rose, hedge nettle, purple and white nightshades,
elderberry, and large flower and caterpillar phacelia. Climbing up into
the chaparral portion of the trail that leads up to Trippet Ranch there are
Turkish rugging, yellow pin cushion, white snapdragon, star lily, golden
yarrow, deer weed, chamise and heart leaf penstemon. – Dorothy Steinicke. |
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Topanga Canyon State
Park |
Trippet Ranch Nature Trail |
Date: 5/20 |
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The Trippet Ranch pond is,
surprisingly, full of water. The water is full of tadpoles. There
are also mallards and a great egret. The milkweed in the meadow by the
old nature center are just about to bloom. Also in that meadow are lots
of purple clarkia. Continuing into the chaparral portion there are bush
lupine, bush sunflowers, black sage, elderberry, California buckwheat and
some lovely mallow along with some really stunning flowering yuccas. – Dorothy Steinicke. |
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Backbone Trail |
Date: 5/16 |
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Today’s hike was number nine of
the NPS sponsored Backbone Trail hikes in the 2008 – 2009 series. We
are hiking west to east, one section of the Backbone Trail each month. With hot off-shore winds at the top
of the range the cool, fog-shrouded coast below us was tempting. But our route stayed inland and would
reward us with over 65 native species in bloom. From Saddle Peak to the top of Hondo Canyon
offered fabulous vistas and late spring bouquets of some of the hardiest species:
golden yarrow, bush monkey flower, sugar bush, California buckwheat, deer
weed, morning glory, and caterpillar phacelia. Once in the cool shade of
Hondo’s north-facing slopes we descended from chamise chaparral through
California bay woodlands and finally to sheltering oak riparian. Along the way we encountered a varied array
of species in bloom. The drier, higher
environs of slender tarweed and Turkish rugging segued into chaparral understories with 3 clarkia species still in all their
glory. By the time we reached Old
Topanga and its pocket grasslands we had glimpsed golden stars, star lily,
wooly blue curls, blue eyed grass, Chinese houses, fuchsia flowering
gooseberry, buttercups, wild brodiaea, and much more. On the climb from Old Topanga to
Trippet Ranch we saw only a few species in flower, but appreciated them all
the more due to their scarcity. Rating:
Enjoyable. – R. Waycott (and
others). |
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Nicholas Flat |
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Date: 5/15 |
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We did a quick hike out to the pond
at Nicholas Flat and back to check on the water level and the red-winged
blackbirds. It was a nice cool day but
the wildflowers are definitely transitioning out of the grand displays of
early spring. This area has a lot of
weeds because the many years of ranching still lay heavily upon the
land. Nevertheless the pond is
reliable enough to support true aquatic plants and the song of the blackbirds
is worth hearing. The hike to the pond
is short, less than half a mile, but there is a lot of additional hiking to
be done if you wish. There is even a
trail that goes all the way down to the coast at Leo Carrillo State Beach.
Flowering highlights (few as they were) included golden yarrow, Indian
paintbrush, deerweed, caterpillar phacelia, morning glory, Chinese houses,
bush monkey flower, purple nightshade, a few crimson pitcher sage, canyon
sunflower, California chicory, greenbark ceanothus, sugar bush, purple
clarkia, sticky madia, mountain dandelion, black sage, blue-eyed grass, and
common verbena. Rating: Fair. – ed. |
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Newton/Zuma Canyons |
Backbone
trail between Latigo and Kanan |
Date: 5/11 |
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We started at the Latigo trailhead of
the backbone trail and hiked west to the Kanan trailhead and then hiked back.
This section of the backbone is pretty short so the whole hike was less than
five miles. Of note is the appearance
of several of the late spring/early summer flowers. This particular section has an unusually
high amount of tree cover for the Santa Monica Mountains so it is a nice hike
on a hot day. All told we saw a little
less than seventy species in bloom which is pretty good this late in the
season, especially for a dry year. We
can expect that number to drop soon as it continues to dry out. There are already much lower quantities of
most flowers in evidence. Parts of
this trail, especially near Latigo, have a disappointing number of invasive
weedy species which are beginning to supplant the native wildflowers. Flowering highlights included dense stands
of bush monkey flower, chamise, purple sage, black sage, bird’s beak,
California buckwheat, golden yarrow, hillside penstemon, three different
sunflowers, several different lupines, a couple of early heart-leaved
penstemon, caterpillar phacelia, sugar bush, purple nightshade, popcorn
flowers, sticky madia, California chicory, morning glory, quite a few crimson
pitcher sage still holding on, California figwort, the native western thistle
with its beautiful purple flowers, elderberry, yucca, Catalina mariposa lily,
globe gilia, miner’s lettuce, fiesta flower, Chinese houses, blue-eyed
grass, mountain dandelion, blue larkspur, sticky cinquefoil, common vervain,
elegant clarkia, and Indian paintbrush.
Rating: Good. – ed. |
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Circle X Ranch |
Mishe
Mokwa Trail |
Date: 5/4 |
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We hiked out to split rock and then
up the canyon west to the stream crossing and then turned back. Things are definitely drying out now. All told we saw about 70 species in bloom
but several were on their way out even as the later spring flowers are
beginning to show nicely. Flowering
highlights included blue dicks, black sage, wooly blue curls, golden yarrow,
Catalina mariposa lily, spotted, purple, and willow-herb clarkias, California
chicory, popcorn flowers, chamise, yellow and bush monkey flowers, turkish
rugging, tarweed, dwarf flax, golden stars, purple clarkia, star lily,
caterpillar, mountain, and Parry’s phacelias, stick-leaf, chia,
collarless California poppy, sugar bush, yucca, both yellow and white pin
cushions, miner’s lettuce, purple nightshade, chinese houses, canyon
sunflower, sticky cinquefoil, angel’s and globe gilias,
red-skinned onion, blue larkspur, stinky gilia, fiesta flower, white thorn
white pitcher sage, sticky madia, California blackberry, morning glory,
yellow cress, an early bird’s beak, and California buckwheat. Rating: Good. – ed. |
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Upper Solstice Canyon |
Backbone
Trail |
Date: 5/3 |
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A two-hour round-trip hike netted
over 60 species in bloom along the Backbone Trail
through Upper Solstice Canyon -- including Caterpillar Phacelia,
Golden Yarrow, Black Sage, Woolly Blue Curls, Bush Monkeyflower,
Slender Sunflower, California Chicory, Rush Rose, Catalina Mariposa Lily,
Mouse-eared Chickweed, Red-skinned Onion, the native California
Mustard, Fiesta Flower, Globe Gilia, Silver Puffs, Sticky Cinquefoil,
Skullcap, and two kinds of Vetch (American Vetch and possibly Slim
Vetch). On the drive up to Castro Crest the hills along Corral Canyon Rd., burned in the
most recent Malibu fire, were covered with Morning Glories plus an
occasional Large-flowered Phacelia.
– Jay Sullivan. |
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Castro Crest |
Backbone
Trail west of the Corral Canyon
trailhead |
Date: 5/1 |
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This nice section of the Backbone Trail
passes through several different ecosystems and thus affords a diverse array
of plant species. There is quite a bit
of shade along some sections but others are very exposed and dry so be sure
to bring your hat and sun block. I descended from the Corral Canyon trailhead
and passed through the area that burned recently. Most of the flowers there are you typical
fire-followers but many have already passed their prime. I moved down to the lowers section that
parallels the creek and was pleased to see some persistent pools of water in
the creek bed. I had made the trip
down to the creek to find a particular flower that I wanted to photograph and
add to our flower gallery. However,
the hike was so inviting I spent much of the day down there even after I
found my goal. In all I saw about
eighty species in bloom – not bad at all for this time of year. However, I expect that number to drop fast
in the near future – many were clearly finishing up their blooming
season. Flowering highlights include
morning glory (they are robust fire-followers), both bush and yellow monkey
flowers, California chicory, whispering bells, a couple of different evening
primroses, blue dicks, purple nightshade, greenbark ceanothus, chamise,
golden yarrow, slender sunflower, wooly blue curls, turkish rugging, star
lily, caterpillar phacelia, several different popcorn flowers, several
different lupines, red-skinned onion, silver puffs, miner’s lettuce,
skullcap, angel’s gilia, globe gilia, fiesta flower, milk maids, sticky
cinquefoil, winter cress, western pearlwort, woodland star, Jonny jump-up,
blackberry, collarless California poppy, mountain dandelion, blue-eyed grass,
Chinese houses, American vetch, scarlet bugler, and fuchsia-flowered
gooseberry. Rating: Good. – ed. |
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Backbone
Trail East of Malibu Creek SP |
Date: 4/11 |
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Today’s hike was number eight
of the NPS sponsored Backbone Trail hikes in the 2008 – 2009 series. We
are hiking west to east, one section of the Backbone Trail each month. With great weather for hiking, cool
and sunny, we traverse numerous plant communities on the eastern slope of
Malibu Canyon from Saddle Peak to Tapia.
The grandeur of the soaring, boulder-strewn ridgelines gives way to
chaparral(s), spotted with grasslands and coastal sage scrub. With the boulders standing watch high
above, the trail winds in and out of drainages until the inviting light,
sounds and smells of Dark Canyon beckon a rest. Continuing the decent into Monte Nido offers intimate groves of ceanothus, coast live oak
and California bay. At least 95 native species were
observed in flower. Most were
familiar, but a few stymied and humbled us.
At the higher elevations perennials like Eastwood manzanita, ceanothus
(hairy-leaved, buck-brush and white thorn) and interior live oak were quite
spectacular. Winning the popularity
contest were: tomcat clover (one patch of owl's-clover), globe gilia, chia,
mariposa lily, fiesta flower, Chinese houses, collarless poppy, purple larkspur, baby blue eyes,
yellow pincushion, and blue-eyed grass.
Trail-side displays throughout included: purple nightshade, blue
dicks, lupine (var.), caterpillar phacelia, lomatium, and miners lettuce. At lower elevations the ceanothus species
gave way to green bark and hoary-leaved.
Some bashful species were spotted, perhaps for the last time this
season. They were: chocolate lily,
Indian warrior, and summer holly. Rating: Very Enjoyable. – R. Waycott (and others). |
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Circle X Ranch |
Mishe
Mokwa Loop |
Date: 4/11 |
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This hike was a NPS sponsored flower
hike out to Split Rock and back.
Several of us decided to continue on and do the entire six mile loop
even though the trip to Split Rock is the best section for viewing flowers.
We are in a transition period right now where many of the early spring
flowers have left us and the late spring flowers are just starting up. For
example, we saw only a few shooting stars blooming in fields where hundreds
were blooming only a few weeks ago.
Similarly, we saw a few early chamise starting to bloom when most are
barely in bud. All together we saw about ninety different species in
bloom. Highlights include many
chocolate lilies, blue dicks, several different lupines, yellow monkey
flower, bush monkey flower, a few early heart-leaved penstemon, twining
snapdragon, several different members of the wooly-head tribe, purple
nightshade, hairy-leaved ceanothus, hoary-leaved ceanothus, Parry’s
phacelia, mountain phacelia, caterpillar phacelia, evening primroses, chia,
California chicory, collarless California poppy, several different native
mustards, globe gilia, star lily, yellow pincushion, miner’s lettuce,
virgin’s bower, several different members of the wild celery family,
coast goldfields, owl’s clover, blue larkspur, over a half-dozen
different popcorn flowers, California saxifrage, California peony, milkmaids,
skullcap, prickly phlox, Chinese houses, and Eastwood manzanita. Rating: Very Good. – ed. |
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Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area 401 West
Hillcrest Drive 805-370-2301 |
If you
would like to contribute to the wildflower report: e-mail: or phone
Tony at 310-457-6408 |
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