FLORA NEAR SANTA BARBARA. 19 



fungi, besides ferns, equisetums, Selaginella, Chara, Azolla, 

 Marsilia, and some other cryptogams. 



If a person wishes to know the flora of even a limited area, 

 it must be visited often during the year, and for more than, 

 one year. The flora changes with the season; while there are* 

 many perennials that are always in bloom, there are many 

 plants that bloom and disappear, or cease blooming, and 

 others take their places, so that several species of plants may 

 occupy the same ground during the same year. 



Plants that are abundant one year do not always appear 

 the next year, or in succeeding years. This fact may be one 

 reason why botanists visiting a certain locality, may find 

 plants that some previous or succeeding visitor has failed to 

 find. 



Each plant seems to know its own season for appearing. I 

 have often noticed that when the rains were late, many species 

 which can be found when we have early rains do not appear 

 at all, and some later plants do not appear when we have only 

 early rains. 



During the present year (1886), we had both early and late 

 rains in large quantity, and it has been very favorable for 

 botanizing. Not since 1874 has the flora been so abundant 

 and so perfect. I have found several species in large quantity 

 that I had not seen, except occasional specimens, since 1878. 

 In some places that I had looked over pretty thoroughly in 

 previous years, I have found plants that I had never seen 

 before. I have added over thirty species to my collection that 

 I had not before obtained. 



Many plants have been introduced here both from semi- 

 tropical and temperate latitudes, and several have escaped 

 from cultivation. 



Many of our native plants are beautiful and have been cul- 

 tivated in gardens in this country and Europe. Many less 

 attractive plants are nevertheless very interesting. My 

 attention has been especially called to some plants of the 

 order Niadacea?, which are found in the sea, growing upon 

 small rocks near low tide marks. When the tides run very 



