Updated 2/12/12
Santa Monica Mountain National Recreation Area just published a new wildflower report for 2/12/12. The new postings include overall comments, the Zuma/Trancas Canyons-Backbone Trail and the Las Virgnes View Park-New Millennium Trail . Below are the reports:
Overall comments
“I have not had a chance to get out into the field much the last couple of weeks. We continue to see incremental increases in the variety and numbers of the annuals blooming but it is still too early to say we’ve entered the wildflower season. Seems like every time we get a bit of rain it is followed by a significant drying-out event. It’s been hard on the flowers so far this year.”
Las Virgnes View Park New Millennium Trail 2/6/12
I was hiking on the New Millennium trail yesterday and was surprised to see a lot of Caterpillar Phacelia (Phacelia circutaria var.hubbyi) growing on the hillside. Just a few of them are blooming right now, but in couple of weeks they should be putting on a decent show. I didn’t see much else on the trail, a few Red Maids, a few Indian Paintbrush and a couple of lupine.
To reach the Caterpillar Phacelia, hike the New Millennium trail 1.2 miles to the “T” junction. Turn right, and go about another quarter of a mile. This is a nice trail that not a lot of people know about. In a good year it can have spectacular wildflowers. Jim Garafalo.Zuma/Trancas Canyons Backbone Trail 2/3/12
Kanan Dume to about halfway to Encinal Canyon. Red stem filaree, wild cucumber, blue larkspur, shepherd’s purse, common groundsel, wishbone, Indian warrior, milkmaids, chaparral current, chickweed, bur clover, mule fat, wild sweet pea (one), hummingbird sage (one), purple nightshade, California everlasting, black mustard, cliff aster, tobacco tree, bush lupine (one and more close to blooming), Spanish broom, green bark ceanothus, big pod ceanothus, sticky monkey flower, and deer weed. Barbara & John
Go to their website to see all of their reports: http://www.researchlearningcenter.org/bloom/
Natural History Wanderings 
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