Star Lily (Zigadenus Toxicoscordion fremontii), AKA Fremont’s Death Camus or Star Zigadene, at Garland Regional Park
It’s been a strange season so far, with heavy rain in the fall, followed by the driest January/February on record. But one flower that seems to be thriving in these odd conditions is the star lily – now abundantly blooming pretty much anywhere you look in Monterey County. Read the rest of this entry »
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Big Sur, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Tagged: fremontii, star zigadene, toxicoscordion, zigadenus | 
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Posted by xasauan
August in Big Sur Read the rest of this entry »
2 Comments | Big Sur, Insects, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Deep in the Pt. Lobos woods, there’s a dwarf brodiaea (Brodiaea terrestris) that always seems to bloom a little later than the others. It’s in bloom now so, in honor of that event, we’re making it our Wildflower of the Week.
The late-blooming brodiaea Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted by xasauan
Papaver somniferum, the opium poppy, in one of its many guises (Photo: publicphoto.org)
We’re making opium poppies our Wildflower of the Week due to an article on page 11 of this week’s Carmel Pine Cone concerning an alert Carmel police officer who discovered an opium poppy growing on a city easement along the side of a Carmel street. The offending plant, you’ll be glad to know, was seized before it could further damage the town’s moral character. After the plant tested positive for morphine, down at the station, it was renditioned to a federal crime lab for “further analysis.” The article concludes by noting that “it’s unknown who planted the illegal poppy.” Your tax dollars at work. Read the rest of this entry »
3 Comments | Big Sur, Courts, Plants, Politics, Wildflowers | Tagged: drug laws, drug war, opium, papaver somniferum | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Globe Lilies, AKA Fairy Lanterns (Calochortus albus) growing along the Kirk Creek Trail. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted by xasauan
Scarlet Bugler (Penstemon centranthifolius) blooming on the lower slopes of Devil’s Peak in the Ventana Wilderness.
Attention-grabbing stalks of Scarlet Bugler are currently blooming throughout the drier and hotter parts of the Santa Lucia Mountains, making it a natural choice for Wildflower of the Week. Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Tagged: Ventana Wilderness | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana) on Skinner Ridge. Read the rest of this entry »
3 Comments | Big Sur, History, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Well, we’ve fallen a little behind in choosing a wildflower of the week, so we’re going to make up for it by choosing silver lupine (Lupinus albifrons): one of California’s most ubiquitous flowers. Although it leaks across the border a little into Southern Oregon and Northern Baja, this perennial shrub is a true Alta Californian. These are blooming near Soberanes Creek in Garrapata State Park – one of the many State parks scheduled to be “closed” this year. Read the rest of this entry »
5 Comments | Big Sur, Insects, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Crimson Columbine (Aquilegia formosa)
Although we spent last weekend riding around on bikes and sailboats, rather than out in the hills, we are reliably informed that crimson columbine is now coming into bloom. So we’re making it our Wildflower of the Week. A member of the Buttercup Family (the Ranunculaceae), this hummingbird favorite is native to western North America, from Alaska to Baja. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted by xasauan
Pacific Hound’s Tongue (Cynoglossum grande) Read the rest of this entry »
3 Comments | Big Sur, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
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