If you walk along Foothill Blvd to the field station, you may be enjoying the masses of Common Fiddleneck (Amsinckia intermedia) and Distant Phacelia (Phacelia distans) blooming in the parkway, spurred on by the unusually rainy winter. Both Common Fiddleneck and Distant Phacelia are characteristic annuals of California Sage Scrub – a native plant community […]
Parkway flowers nurture both passersby and native insects Read More »
As noted in the previous post, Sahara Mustard (Brassica tournefortii) has been a focus of volunteer efforts this semester, and here are a few photos from our first Sahara Mustard removal day on January 19. Thanks to Gerardo Vitale for some great pictures!
More Sahara Mustard photos Read More »
The first two volunteer workdays of the spring semester have been all about mustard – specifically two winter-blooming mustards – Brassica tournefortii (Sahara Mustard) and Brasscia fruticulosa (Mediterranean Cabbage). Brassica tournefortii has been discussed before in these pages. This particularly nasty mustard has displaced native vegetation in large areas of Joshua Tree National Park and
Two nasty mustards get the heave-ho Read More »
