Wildflowers in Shell Ridge

May 20, 2004

In spite of the recent warm spell, this is a late year, mostly because of the cool rainy weather in February. Therefore, normal blooming is about 2 to 3 weeks overdue. Yet, there are tens of millions of flowers on these hills we will walk today. The trouble is there are only a few different kinds of flowers. Our walk took us from the Sutherland entrance (off of Walnut Blvd.) to Shell Ridge, taking the road to the right past Bramhall Pond, up the hill to Ginder Gap, up the narrow footpath to the crest of Shell Ridge, along the summit, down the switchback, near Indian Valley school, down the hill to Indian Pond and back to the entrance again. This is about a four-mile walk and will take about 90 minutes.

			(1) (2)(3)
Common Name	Color	Scientific Name	Peterson Refs.	Where Seen
Sagebrush	-------	Artemisia californica	K87	Top of SR
Wally baskets	Blue	Triteleia laxa	352	A few dried ones
California Poppies	Orange	Eschscholzia californica	224	Spread around
Curly Dock	Pink	Rumex crispus	276	Lower fields
Red stem Storks Bill	Pink	Erodium cicutarium	286	Roads
Vetch, Winter	Pink	Vicia villosa	326	All over—yet to bloom
Whorled Dock	Pink	Rumex conglomeratus	276	Near Ginder Gap
Canada Thistle	Purple	Cirsium arvense	328	Road Sides
Elegant Brodiaea	Purple	Brodiaea elegans	258	Saw one plant!
Elegant Clarkia	Purple	Clarkia unguiculata	272	Many thousands--all over
Filaree—storksbill	Purple	Erodium moschatum	286	Roadsides
Geranium	Purple	Geranium dissectum	284	Saw one plant!
Mint	Purple	Mentha arvensis	314	All over ridge top--many
Salsify, Common	Purple	Tragopogon porrifolius	384	Roadsides--hundreds
Slender Clarkia	Purple	Clarkia gracilis	272	Saw one plant--switchback
Bedstraw	White	Galium aparine	100	Ridge Top Trail???
Buckeye	White	Aesculus californica	K48	At their best right now
Morning Glory	White	?????????	70	Few on Lower road sides
Poison Oak	White	Toxicodendron diversilobum	K112	Top of SR
Shepherd's Needle	White	Scandix pecten-veneris	66	Trailsides--perhaps?
Wavy leaf Soap Plant	White	Chlorogalum pomeridianum	12	All over-blooms in PM
Yarrow, Common	White	Achillea millefolium	108	Ridge Top Trail
Bellardia	White/Pink	Belardia trixago	310	Saw one plant!
Common Sow Thistle	Yellow	Sonchus oleraceus	218	Road Sides
Mule Ears, Green	Yellow	Wyethia glabra	184	Top of SR
Mustard	Yellow	Brassica geniculata	140	Spread around
Pineapple Weed	Yellow	Matricaria matricarioides	210	Middle of all roads
Sweet Fennel	Yellow	Foeniculum vulgare	170	Lower road sides
Telegraph Weed	Yellow	Heterotheca grandiflora	214	Ridge Top Trail
Yellow Star Thistle	Yellow	Centaurea solstitialis	210	Ridge Top--a few

(1) Peterson's "Pacific States Wildflowers" (2) Keater, "Plants of the East Bay Parks