Hulsea vestita A. Gray subsp. parryi (A. Gray) Wilken

Parry's Sunflower
Asteraceae

Found in the San Bernardino and San Gabriel mountains, Hulsea vestita ssp. parryi is a mountain rare plant. Distinctive characteristics include wooly leaves, and pumpkin orange to reddish inflorescence. The typical habitat for these plants includes talus slopes, gravel and sagebrush to fir forests.

Juniperus occidentalis Hook.

Western Juniper
Cupressaceae

Ranging in size from large shrub to trees, western junipers are beautiful and gnarly plants. Found growing between roughly 325-10500 ft. thought out the eastern edge of the state, western junipers can achieve an impressive height. The "berries" of this species are in fact modified, fleshy cones, as junipers are gymnosperms, and do not produce a true fruit like that of an angiosperm (flowering plant).

Western juniper, like most junipers, is classified by the California Poison Control System as being a minorly toxic plant.

Rhodiola integrifolia Raf.

Ledge stonecrop
Crassulaceae


Found in the mountains and fell-fields of the Sierra Nevadas, Rhodiola integrifolia Raf. is a perennial herbaceous plant. Like most Crassulaceae, this plant has a fleshy, succulent look.

Lycium andersonii A. Grey

Anderson's thorn bush
Solanaceae

A large, perennial shrub to bush found in the southern parts of California and beyond, Lycium andersonii A. Grey is a member of the nightshade family. Armed with true thorns, these plants are difficult to handle without injuring one's hands. The plants produce many white to lavender flowers in the spring, which mature into small, orange-red berries later in the year. Though the fruit is technically edible, getting to it is often not worth the effort (or injury).

Asclepias californica Greene

Milkweed
Apocynaceae

Found throughout most of southern California, Asclepias californica Greene is a perenial herbacious plant that is found growing in grassy flats, hillsides and low mountains. Aside from the showy flowers, one of the most distinctive characteristics of A. californica is that it's stems and the undersides of its leaves are densely tomentose, giving the plant a white appearance.


Flowers appear in April and usually last through July.

Frasera puberulenta Davidson

Inyo Frasera
Gentianaceae

Found in the Sierra Nevada, Inyo and White mountains, Frasera puberulenta Davidson is easy to miss, but an interesting plant none the less. Found in dry mountain woodlands, the leaves of these plants are highly puberulent on the underside and margin, giving them a soft, white edge. The flower stalk is not as large as some other Frasera, only reaching 1-3 decimeters in height.

Isoeteaceae Rchb.

Quillwort family

Among my favorite plants are the quillworts, or Isoetes. Though little known outside of botanist circles, the quillworts are a fascinating and unusual family of non-flowering plants.

Isoetes occidentalis L. F. Henderson thrives underwater

The family dates back to the early Carboniferous period, where they were the dominant plant type in many of the large swamp and woodland areas. After the late Devonian drying, the quillworts declined considerably. Today, they are comprised of a single genus, Isoetes, among which there are roughly 200 extant species.

In California, there are a total of 6 fully recognized species of Isoetes. Three of these are aquatic plants, and must be continually submerged under water. Two are found in vernal pool systems, and are able to survive desiccation during the hot summer months. One of the species is fully terrestrial, but is still found in mostly wet habitats.

Isoetes bolanderi Engelmann can survive out of water

The stem of an Isoetes plant is distinctive, in that it does not produce roots like euphylophytes (ferns, horsetails, conifers and flowering plants), but rather, uses modified leaves as its root structures. Also, the leaves themselves are interesting in that they are not homologous structures to the leaves of euphylophytes, but rather, were independently evolved (i.e. analogous structures).