This season I have been particularly interested in identifying wildflowers. I feel like I hardly noticed them two years ago because I was so focused on the Jays--not that I am
not as focused on them this year, but I started with a familiarity that I didn't have before, so I can take the extra moment to sit with a Shooting Star or photograph a Larkspur or take a deep breath in a field of Blue Dicks.
Upon returning to the cabins after a day of fieldwork, I often find myself reaching for
A Flora of Santa Cruz Island, an intense but incredibly helpful guide to every single tree, flower, grass, and thistle on the island. The text is like trying to read another language (botany has an incredibly unique vocabulary), but the line drawings are simple and beautiful, so I use what knowledge I have of plant families to get me to the right section of the book and then I skim the pages for familiar petals or fruits.
Here are a few photos of what I have found so far.
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| Shooting Star, Dodecatheon clevelandii subsp. insulare. |
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| Larkspur, Delphinium parryi subsp. maritimum. |
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| Larkspur, fully flowering. |
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| Blue Dicks, Dichelostemma capitatum. |
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| In the first month of the field season, the open grassland vistas were glazed with purple Blue Dicks. |
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| Johnny-Jump-Up, Viola pedunculata. This edible flower reminds me of my Grandmother, Kathy. |
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| Wood Mint (or Hedge Nettle), Stachys bullata. The leaves make a delicious tea. |
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| Fremont's Death Camas or Common Star-lily, Zigadenus fremontii. This plant is poisonous to humans and livestock! |
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| One of my favorites: Goldenstar, Bloomeria crocea. |
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| Such a vibrant back stripe on every petal! |
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| Bush Monkey Flower, Mimulus longiflorus. |
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| Island Monkey Flower, Mimulus flemingii, possibly a hybrid with M. longiflorus. |
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| Catalina Mariposa Lily, Calochortus catalinae. |
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| Climbing Penstemon, Keckiella cordifolia. |
Stay tuned for beach/cliff flowers!
