Natural History Wanderings

We spent the whole day in the White Mts. between Big Pine and about two miles past Schulman Grove. The flower bloom is almost the opposite of last year at this time. Flowers the whole way up and stopping once you are about a mile above Schulman Grove. Last year the flowers didn’t really start until we were near Schulman Grove.

The first mile where there is usually milkweed has been mowed. However, we did get to see a Greater Road Runner run across the road.  At 1.3  miles there were nice blooms of Yellow Spider Plant/Cleome lutea. We also found our first Skeleton Plant and wire lettuce plants.  

At. 3.2 miles we found Prince’s Plume, which was in bloom for several miles. Also in bloom are Brittlebush, Eriastrum, Indigo Bush, Buckwheat/Eriogonum ovalifolium and Inflated Buckwheat. 

Continuing up the road we passed Evening Primrose, Prickly Poppy, probably Penstemon palmeri and Panamint Penstemon (a large pink plant P. floridus).

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As we continued we saw bright Red Scarlet Penstemon, bright yellow Sulphur Buckwheat, Bolander’s Locoweed, Calochortus bruneaunis (lots), Red Paintbrush, Lupine  and a large shrubby White Buckwheat.

Further along we found yet two more Buckwheats (one yellow and one with tiny foliage), Prickly Pear Cactus in flower, Erigeron and a lot more Calochortus. Displays of a small pink mimulus. There was  the purple  Westgard Penstemon that we first found along the Nature Trail and then in very large numbers at Grandview  Campground. Also on the nature trail were an Erigeron and Heller’s Bird’s Beak/Cordylanthus kingii spp. kingii. 

At the Schulman  Grove  and very beginning of unpaved road there was a lot of Cushion Phlox/Phlox  condensata, Blue Flax,  Sulphur-throated Forget-me-not/Cryptantha flavoculata, and Lemmon’s Goldflower/Hymenoxys lemmonii. Also seen were Beadpod/Lesquerella kingii,  and Ruby Buckwheat.