Category Archives: Native

Cardinal catchfly

Crimson flares from the underbrush. Cardinal catchfly (Silene laciniata) is such a bright red that it messes with the eye a little bit; the flowers pictured here seemed especially bright when spotted in the serpentine chaparral on a foggy Mt. Tamalpais hike.

This glorious little native is in the Caryophyllaceae family, which also houses the classic carnation. But the intense color and extravagant petals that are lobed into a fine fringe put the tame storebought blooms to shame. It grows throughout California, and ranges south as far as Texas. Native Americans used it medicinally as a poultice for burns and ant bites (as well as a treatment for mad dog or coyote bites).  

From a distance, certain pastures have a tinge of orange atop the green of spring grass. If you stop for a closer look, you’ll see millions of small orange flowers unfolding on coiling stalks. This is most likely common fiddleneck (Amsinckia intermedia), also known as rancher’s fireweed, which can be found growing across much of the state.

This is a gorgeous flower en masse; there is something particularly beautiful about the way it captures the sunlight. Part of this effect might be because each coiled stem is densely covered with bristly white hairs that give the plant the appearance of a halo when the light is right. I saw this particular display on the Point Reyes-Petaluma Road in Marin, around the intersection with Hick’s Valley Road.

Common fiddleneck is in the Boraginaceae family, along with common borage, popcorn flower, houndstongue, and forget-me-not. There are numerous species of fiddleneck–orange and otherwise–so you have to look close & use a key to know which is in front of you. This species has sepals that are NOT partly conjoined; it also often has small darker orange or red dots on its five petals.