Coast Cholla

Coast Cholla (Cylindropuntia prolifera) is another one of those species which has undergone a name change since I first encountered it. Frankly, it never made sense to me that chollas were included with the beavertail and prickly-pear cactus in the genus Opuntia, as they did not seem to resemble each other in any discernible to the average onlooker. But, science has caught up with the layperson, as it were, and chollas now have their own genus. The name Cylindropuntia comes from the Greek kylindros, "a cylinder" plus the name of the old genus Opuntia. The species name prolifera is a nod to the plant's proliferation by means of off-shoots.

Cylindropuntia prolifera is native to Southern California where it grows in coastal sage scrub, chaparral, beach, and bluff habitat. It crops up from Santa Barbara County south. Close to home, this cactus may be found along the coast of the Santa Monica Mountains, but it is kind of rare. It seems to be more abundant on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. It then comes into its own in San Diego County and Baja California.

Like most members of the family Cactaceae (Cactus) it has spines. Spines are highly modified leaves. This cholla has two types. The larger spines are quite noticeable and merit some caution. But, around the base of the clusters of those spines are little tiny spines which are called glochids. Glochids have a barbed tip and may be even more treacherous than the actual spines. They can easily burrow into flesh and are very difficult to remove. 

Coast Cholla

Aside from the potential for great bodily harm, the plant is very attractive. The grey to green cylindrical joints make for stems that are four to six feet in height and may be thought of as treelike. Reddish purple flowers, with rounded blossoms about an inch in diameter, will normally bloom from April through June.

A First!

The Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden chose my Tidy Tips photo for the cover of their magazine.

Wildflowering LA

It illustrates the article "Wildflowering LA". I have to say I think that is pretty cool. 

The kicker is that there is also an article on Julius Shulman. This is an added plus for me. He was a photographer whose work I have admired for decades. Little could I have dreamed when I was in my teens that something I shot would ever appear in such close proximity to his photographs. (Not that I am in his league.)

Even so, here is my latest attempt at architectural photography:

A Bar at Walter's

California Dodder

One of the sites I refer to when preparing to write about a plant I encounter in my rambles is maintained by the Consortium of California Herbaria  which provides information about California vascular plant specimens that are housed in participant herbaria. One can search on just about any plant and obtain a list of accessions from around the state.

California Dodder (Cuscuta californica), hits close to home as it has records dating from 1897 to 2009 for specimens found in and around Claremont. Two of these are housed in the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden herbarium. One was collected from the Bernard Field Station, just to the east. The other was found along Thompson Creek, where Holly and I often pass by the plant.

California Dodder

Cuscuta californica, also called Chaparral Dodder, is an annual parasitic herb or vine that is native to California. It is also found outside of California, but is confined to western North America. Dodder is readily identified by its threadlike, hairless, yellow, orange, or red shoots which twine around host plants eventually creating a tangled mat. One notable feature is that it does not usually have roots that reach the ground. Instead, knoblike organs along the shoot (haustoria) penetrate the host stem. Shoots either lack leaves or have very tiny red, yellow, or orange scalelike leaves pressed close to the stem. It tends to bloom from May through October. The white flowers are tiny, only about 3 to 6 millimeters wide. The fruits are even smaller.

Dodder once had its own family, but it is now consigned to CONVOLVULACEAE, the Morning Glory Family. The epithet Cuscuta seemingly comes from Cuscu'ta a name of Arabic derivation meaning "dodder”. The common name, Chaparral Dodder, tips us to one of its habitats. It is also found through out the state in many other plant communities such as forests and grasslands. And, of course, “the City of Trees and PhDs”.

Summer Holly

Summer holly (Comarostaphylis diversifolia) is found in coastal chaparral from Santa Barbara County southerly into Baja California. There may be populations on the Channel Islands as well. Some sources cite that the geography makes for two subspecies: Comarostaphylis diversifolia ssp. diversifolia in coastal Southern California and Baja; and Comarostaphylis diversifolia ssp. planifolia on the Channel Islands and the Transverse Ranges north of Los Angeles. It is not very common, but not yet listed as rare.

A slow‐growing, evergreen shrub or tree to 20 ft. tall. Attractive features include shiny leaves, white flowers, red berries and shredded bark. While the flowers are urn-shaped similar to the more familiar manzanita, the red berries are warty or wrinkly rather than smooth. That feature also distinguishes it from toyon. Summer holly is a member of Ericaceae, commonly known as the heath or heather family, a family of flowering plants found most commonly in acid and infertile growing conditions.

At the Falls

At the Falls
Originally uploaded by The Marmot

Eaton Falls

“Hither come the San Gabriel lads and lassies, to gather ferns and dabble away the their hot holidays in the cool water, glad to escape their commonplace gardens and orange-groves.”

- The Mountains of California by John Muir

About the beginning of August 1877, the naturalist John Muir made a trip into the San Gabriel Mountains to the northeast of Los Angeles. The world has changed quite a bit since then as the range no longer overlooks the vineyards and groves he describes. Today, there are “seventy-two suburbs in search of a city” as some other author has famously written. However, somethings do remain the same as my daughter, granddaughter, and I discovered this past weekend.

Muir’s ramble, as described in The Mountains of California (in a chapter called The Bee-Pastures), took him through Pasadena and up the boulder strewn bed of Eaton Creek into Eaton Canyon. The three of us, starting off at the Nature Center, probably did not exactly follow in his footsteps as flood, fire, and human intervention over the intervening years have altered the landscape. Our path began as a fairly easy, sun-baked, 1.1 mile amble along a fire road through the Eaton Canyon Wash, which has some commendable live oaks, to the Mt. Wilson Toll Road bridge. After that it got a little more interesting.

Passing under the bridge the path narrows, enters the mouth of the V-shaped gorge that is the proper canyon, and follows the creek bed for the most part. The going is not too rough, although there is some boulder-hopping and/or wading involved in several stream crossings. The less agile, such as myself, may have to scramble in a couple of steep places. Afoot & Afield Los Angeles County by Jerry Schad calls this a "Moderate" hike,i.e., suitable for all physically fit people. Becca, collegiate athlete that she is, bounded right along and got only one foot wet the entire hike. I was in the water so often that I was very glad to have worn my “canyoneering” shoes and shorts. I have little doubt that I was the oldest hiker out there that afternoon and people of all ages, shapes, and sizes make the trip. And, about a half mile past the bridge, we all see what Muir saw.

The cascade of Eaton Falls still plunges through a notch in a ledge and falls some thirty-five or forty feet into a pool. The face of the cliff still has ferns and mosses. Even though there are no more orange groves to escape from, people still come to seek relief from the summer heat and enjoy the sound of the crashing water.

While it was more than a little crowded, we enjoyed sitting around watching people and dogs splash and frolic in the roundish pool which seems to be about three feet in depth at its deepest. I took a few photos and we returned the way we came arriving at the parking lot some two and a quarter hours from our original starting time.

I highly recommend this hike to anyone who wishes to see what might be the finest waterfall in the San Gabriels. Just Google map your way to the Eaton Canyon Nature Center at 1750 North Altadena Drive, Pasadena, CA and take the Eaton Canyon Falls Trail.

Ramble

The American Heritage Dictionary defines “ramble” as to walk about casually or for pleasure; or to move about aimlessly. As a noun, it can mean a leisurely, sometimes lengthy walk.

While I prefer the first and third definitions, it was more likely the second usage that was intended in the Laugh-Out-Loud Cats cartoon that inspired my thoughts on this word. In it, Pip says - “Hobos don’t go on quests. We rambl (sic).”

That and my love of Steinbeck, specifically Travels with Charlie, gave me the idea to call this blog Rambles with Holly (also, Travels with Holly was already taken). This is supposed to be a place to talk about the trips and little adventures that I intend to take with my terrier mix. However, with my schedule now tied up between volunteering at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden and taking an English class at Pomona College it looks like we will be doing a lot more rambling than traveling for the foreseeable future.

The “ramble” is also a classic form of nature writing according to Lori Litchman in an article in The Writer’s Chronicle - Volume 42 - Number 3, December 2009. This form of writing is marked by a “perfect balance” between the natural history and the presence of the author. She cites John Burroughs and Annie Dillard as being good examples of this craft.

Well my English class has really underscored the fact that my prospects as a writer are severely limited. However, I am not going let that stop me from trying my hand at it as far as these pages are concerned. I have a dog, as a certified Nature Interpreter I have a proven faculty for natural history, and can make the time to write - so we shall see where this takes us.