April 8, 2013—We were a good 90 minutes into our wildflower walk when news of a rare find tore through the group like a blaze through a parched, ecologically sensitive preserve. "That white is all meconella californica!" someone announced, pointing to a shady slope. "Ooh!" another person squealed. "Meconella: poppy," chimed in a third, thoughtfully providing a hint for the novices in the group.
Excited murmurs and a rustling of khaki followed as two dozen plant enthusiasts, most in sunhats and many bearing tiny, powerful cameras that caused them to spend a lot of time on one knee photographing things on the ground, approached the scene. I followed, but all I saw were small, plain white flowers dotting the grasses. Nope, no poppies here.
Of course, I gradually figured out that those plain white flowers were the poppies (common name: fairypoppy). They were, in fact, lovely. And the reason for the excitement stemmed from the fact that you don't see them very often in Santa Cruz County. In fact, Santa Cruz natural history guru Randall Morgan, who was leading this California Native Plant Society field trip, confirmed it: the only other place in the county where he knows meconella californica to grow is Berry Creek Falls in Big Basin. (Meconella Californica photo by Barry Breckling/Creative Commons)
Our Sunday morning wildflower walk at Lucille's Court Meadow, just outside Boulder Creek, yielded other seldom-seen treasures: frothy-looking, moisture-loving meadowfoam (one swale of just two in the county of which Morgan is aware), gray-eyed owl's clover, a silverleaf manzanita (rare outside the sandhills, but then again, we were on an outcropping of the Santa Margarita formation, so it's not like anyone could really claim to be surprised), even a Ben Lomond spineflower (shyeah! Crazy). Due to all the owl's clover in bloom we were also visited by copious quantities of adela flammeusella, or longhorned moth.
Most of these flowers were of the small, simple-looking, easily overlooked variety. From what I can tell, members of the Santa Cruz Chapter of CNPS don't really go in for the Las Vegas showgirls of the plant kingdom. Hearts were not set racing over the gorgeous purple-and-white sky lupine that blanketed sections of the meadow or the pert buttercups dotting the scenery. The discovery of a few late-season shooting stars, which are definitely more Ginger than MaryAnne, botanically speaking, caused a mild ripple through the group, but much of the discussion focused on whether it was species clevelandiior hendersonii (bingo—you can tell by the red stem). (Sky Lupine photo by Hilltromper)
No, for this crew the highest good is rarity—and the Lucille's Court Meadow, actually a private piece of property with a landlord who kindly allows occasional access, really delivered. The notice on the CNPS site said this about Lucille's Court: "There is no richer assemblage of rare and uncommon flowering plants to be found in such a small area in this county." No wonder everyone was excited.
And the thing about little flowers? They're spectacular. You just have to slow down and look a little more closely—and, of course, eavesdrop on the many people who know more than you do.
(Cranesbill and Adela Flammeusella photo by Hilltromper)
Spring 2014 update: On Monday, May 12, Danny Slakey and CNPS-Santa Cruz chapter president Deanna Giuliano will discuss last spring and summer's Rare Plant Treasure Hunt on the Central Coast. They speak at 7:30pm at the UCSC Arboretum Horticulture Building, High St. near Western Drive, Santa Cruz. On Saturday, May 17, Val Haley leads a Bonny Doon Sandhills walk at 11am. Learn more on the CNPS–Santa Cruz Chapter website.
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