New Plants to Love in California's Coastal Sage Scrub

California is a large state, spanning 10 degrees of latitude and over 1,000 miles from north to south.  It covers just over 163,000 square miles and elevations range from 282 feet below sea level at Badwater Basin in Death Valley to about 14,500 feet atop Mt. Whitney (that number varies by about ten feet depending on who you ask).

Needless to say, though I've traveled to all four corners of the state, up it's rugged coast and down it's spectacular spine (the Sierra Nevada) I haven't even begun to scratch the surface in terms of visiting every little nook and cranny, every hidden gem our diverse state has to offer the intrepid naturalist.

I've been traveling recently (thanks to a cousin's wedding), and found myself in a new-to-me part of our state: San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties.  And of course, as is always the case when visiting new places, there are new natural wonders to behold: new birds (like Scaly-breasted Munias - stay tuned), new plants (see below)... and one mysterious insect with a very painful sting (another story for another day). 

We hiked predominately in the coastal sage scrub (soft chaparral) plant communities of Montana de Oro State Park, around Morro Bay and the hills around the La Purisima Mission in Lompoc.  I've written before about Coyote Brush (Baccharis pilularis) and it's role in the chaparral and northern coastal scrub plant communities of northern California.  But south of Big Sur, northern coastal scrub grades into coastal sage scrub, which differs slightly from its northern counterpart in that it includes sages (Salvia spp.). 

Two common plants of coastal sage scrub: sticky monkeyflower (orange flowers in background)
and black sage (purple flowers in foreground)

Sticky monkeyflower (Diplacus aurantiacus) 

Here, in the coastal sage scrub, sages (Salvia spp.) mingle with sticky monkeyflower (Diplacus aurantiacus) to create a display of blooms that rival any garden display (above), and morning glories (Calystegia macrostegia) ramble through coyote brush in pale pink profusion. 

Morning glories twine amongst coyote brush and other shrubs of coastal sage scrub



Morning glories (Calystegia macrostegia)

California lilac (Ceanothus spp.) and manzanita (Arctostaphylos spp.) cover the hills, punctuated by the fragrant gray-green foliage of California sagebrush (Artemisia californica) and buckwheats (Eriogonum spp.). 

The view from the top of an ancient sand dune above La Purisima Mission, Lompoc.

But, amidst all these familiar faces, I discovered a beautiful flowering plant, entirely new to me: Prickly Phlox (Linanthus californicus).

Prickly Phlox

Though I had never before made the acquaintance of this lovely plant, it was immediately recognizable as a member of the phlox family (Polemoniaceae).  From there, all it took was a quick search on Calflora to confirm its identity.

Prickly Phlox, growing on ancient sand dunes in Lompoc

A beautiful fragrance alerted me to the presence of another new plant, and it was easily love at first whiff.  Horkelia (Horkelia cuneata) is a rather inconspicuous little perennial herb in the rose family (Rosaceae) which grows along the coast of central and southern California in association with coastal strand (dune) plant communities, as well as chaparral, northern coastal scrub and coastal sage scrub, perfuming the air with its enticing fragrance.  Seriously, I wish there was a way you could smell the photo below...

Horkelia: inconspicuous flowers, incredibly fragrant foliage!

If you're interested in botany and would like to learn how to identify plants in the wild, I highly recommend starting by learning the characteristics of a few of our most common plant families.  This was the method I was taught while studying botany in college, and it's the method I use every time I go out.  In fact, I do this now without even thinking about it!  I could tell you at a glance that the Horkelia above is in the rose family (Rosaceae) without even thinking about numbers of petals or stamens; it just has the "feel" of a member of the rose family. 

You probably don't need to know the Latin name of every plant or wildflower you encounter, but being able to tell what family it is in will go along way to help you identify the plant to species (or at least genus) if you so desire.

I recommend starting with a few of the most common plant families in California (not including the grasses and sedges, which are pretty tricky):
Aster/Sunflower
Pea/Legume
Snapdragon
Mustard/Brassica/Cabbage
Rose
Mint

Then you can add a few more families, like:
Poppy
Evening-primrose
Lily
Mallow
Buckwheat
Heather
Carrot/Parsley

Clearly this topic deserves its own post (I can get carried away with botany...)  But once you learn the characteristics of the world's major plant families, you will be able to identify new plants you find anywhere you travel, from city parks to wilderness trails all across the globe. 

For now, I'll leave you with a book I enjoy and recommend: California Plant Families: West of the Sierran Crest and Deserts

Happy botanizing!

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