Chaparral Journal

Two views of the desert wishbone-bush (Mirabilis laevis). It’s a member of the four o’clock family.

The fed and green sprout of a toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia).

Toyons are evergreen shrubs native to California. They produce red berries called pomes, which are related to apples and stone fruits such as peaches and plums.

The pomes are eaten by birds, coyotes and other animals who, in turn, effectively help spread toyon seeds.

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.

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.

Baby blue eyes (Nemophila menziesii).

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

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.

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.

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.

There’s 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.

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.