Natural History Wanderings

DesertUSA  Reports:

The Leona Valley area is indeed an area aflame in flowers. I was in Antelope Valley (Palmdale Boulevard east to about 170th Street East on Easter Sunday, and there were quite a few areas where the flowers were blooming. I was, however, looking for Oenothera deltoides (birdcage evening primrose) and found that, although it is not blooming yet, it is in bud in a very big way — every stem had a fat bud on it. The average plant height at the location I checked, about 12 miles east of Palmdale, is around six to seven inches. Later, I went to Leona Valley and south on Bouquet Canyon Road. Before turning south I took some pictures of the flowers I found there, even including what I believe is that seriously noxious weed, Saharan mustard

.I also went to the location where Valyermo Road crosses the San Andreas Fault near the USFS Work Center, thinking I might find Oenothera hookeri griseus (Hooker’s evening primrose) in bloom along the road, I did not find it in bloom. Only a few large (10 to 16 inch diameter) rosettes of basal foliage were to be seen in nearby native-plant landscaping.

See photos for above report and others for the Lancaster/Antelope Valley Area Desert Wildflower Reports for Southern California by DesertUSA