Thanks in large part to El Niño, we’ve had a slighter wetter than average winter here in Southern Oregon. Now we’re starting to get sunny, warm spells and those, along with the extra moisture, are getting our wildflower season off to a roaring start. The usual suspects for wildflower locations are the Jacksonville Woodlands, Lower Table Rocks, the Stirling Mine Ditch Trail, and the Applegate Valley – a lot of other prime spots (like Mount Ashland Meadows) look like they’ll be under snow for a few more weeks. So last week, while I was having a lot of fun doing three hikes & bikes in the Applegate Valley west of Medford, I was also keeping an eye out for early season blooms. Below are some that I saw, along with my efforts to identify them. I took botany back when giant ferns ruled the Earth, so no problem if true wildflower folks want/need to correct these identifications!
Oregon Fawn Lily (E. oregonum)
Oregon Fawn Lily (E. oregonum)
Prairie Star (L. parviflorum)
Manzanita (A. patula or A. viscida)
Manzanita (A. patula or A. viscida)
Henderson Shooting Star (D. hendersonii)
Buckbrush (C. cuneatus) – very fragrant blooms
Blue Dicks (D. capitatum)
Great Hound’s Tongue (C. grande)
Filaree (Erodium sp.)
Desert Parsley (Lomatium sp.) – with bug
Goldfields (L. californica)
Milkmaids (C. californica)
The ever popular Grass Widow (O. douglasii)
Snow Queen (S. reniformis)?
Scarlett Fritillary (F. recurva)
Upland Larkspur (D. nuttallianum) – because of their lighter blue color
Western Buttercup (R. occidentalis) ?
Narrowleaf Mule’s Ears (W. augustifolia)
Pretty Faces (Triteleia sp.)
Common Rabbitleaf (L. ramosissima)
Fiddleneck (A. menziesii)
Great Blue-Eyed Mary (C. grandiflora)
Bleeding Hearts (D. formosa)
Henderson’s Fawn Lily (E. hendersonii)
Miniture Lupine (L. bicolor)
Dwarf Hesperochiron (H. pumilus)
Rosy Plectritis (P. congesta)
Siskiyou Onion (A. siskiyouense)
Dwarf Woolly Meadowfoam (L. floccosa spp. pumila) – the hairless subspecies found only on the Table Rocks
Dwarf Woolly Meadowfoam (L. floccosa spp. pumila)
The often under-appreciated beauty of the grasses – whose identification rises into the realm of the truly initiated…
And last, but not least, an old favorite…
Poison Oak (Toxicodendron diversilobium)
While I was crawling around on the forest floor trying to photograph flowers the size of 3-hole punch dots, it occurred to me that I might not be alone down there… Just a reminder to take your eye off the viewfinder once in a while.
BOOTS on the TRAIL 