Boyle Ravine

 I took a short hike up Boyle Ravine this afternoon to see what I could see.  I could have produced a slide show of many species titled "Almost Blooming."  Maybe next week most of them will be blooming.  When I explored a patch of Lemmon's Wild Ginger that I visit every year, I expected to take a few photos of the leaves and stems, but I was pleasantly surprised to find many of them blooming.  I imposed my left hand in the first photo to show the size of the flowers.  A half-inch across at most.  Very beautiful, but you have to look really closely to appreciate them.  You aso have to lift up a few leaves to find them.  They always grow from the base of the plant and are shaded by the large, heart-shaped leaves.  The technical name is Asarum lemmonii, and they are in the same family as the Dutchman's Pipevine found in the lower canyon, Table Mountain, and Bidwell Park.  That would be the Aristolochiaceae.

 I pushed a few top leaves aside so you can see how the flower grows from the base of the stem.

 I find the hairy leaves attractive, too.  They tend to stay green through the winter, even under the snow.

 A first for this season, there was a large patch of Stream Violet, Viola glabella.  leaves look a bit like those of the ginger except they are not glossy.

 The Bedstraw were almost ready to bloom.  Lots of white buds on most of the plants.  Bedstraw is Galium aparine in the Family Rubiaceae.  This is an attractive plant that some people plant in shady gardens that will be kept watered.  Grab a handful of the these plants and you'll think they are covered in sticky stuff like glue but that affect is actually achieved by many tiny spines that behave more or less like Velcro.

 The Oregon-grape are blooming everywhere around here, both in the forest and in yards.  A great choice for native landscaping.

The young leaves of California Black Oak are pretty and dainty at this early stage.