3 



leaves of Megarrhiza California, already referred to as among the earliest 

 blossoms. 



The alfilerilla now occurs more frequently, and, in the absence of 

 grasses, forming a thick mat, gemmed with its small pink flowers, blooming 

 through the winter far into the spring; and however dwarf they may have 

 remained through poverty of sustenance, invariably, if not too closely 

 cropped, put on at length their obliquely-arranged tufts of crane-billed seed 

 vessels. The long slender divisions of this crane-bill are wound spirally 

 upon the carpophores, and, when ripe, they are still more violently twisted, 

 perhaps by hygrometric absorption and drawing the seed from its seat, 

 lifts it aloft radiantly from the center of support, and offer it a prey to the 

 winnowing winds, which scatter it far and near. 



The lovely little Gilia dianthoides spreads its carnation-colored, 

 fringed petals to our admiring gaze, covering the ground with its 

 delicate tints of fairy beauty. A few ranunculaceous plants appear, among 

 them an indigo-blue larkspur, but no showy yellow buttercups adorn the 

 mead. Here the small Linaria Canadensis lifts its dark blue flowers, and 

 Calandrinia Menziesii, with brilliant red petals, stars the greenery of its sur- 

 roundings. 



The caper shrub, already referred to, soon appears, and clumps of arte- 

 misia, with fine-cut leaves, become more abundant. The Spanish dagger 

 (Yucca Mojavensis), flat-leaved cactus or prickly pear, and the club cactus 

 or cholla, become more abundant as we leave the bay or descend into shel- 

 tered arroyas or dry water courses. In Cholla valley, the most remarkable 

 of these protected localities, the cholla cactus (Opuntia prolifera) attains 

 a height of 6 feet, and forms large clumps of impenetrable chapparal. The 

 cactus frequently gives place to abundant growths of shrubs, among them 

 Arctostaphylos, Ceanothus, Rhus and Eriodyction; over these frequently 

 trail the long vine of a pea, which hangs out its grand racemes of large 

 crimson blossoms. A brilliant purple lupine appears at the foot of stony 

 cliffs. Pale astragalus, with bladder-like legumes, occur at intervals, and 

 a large red-flowered monkey-plant (Mimulus), adorns the dry arroyas; 

 while the roadway is often lined with dense and tall growths of a bright 

 yellow-flowered Amsinckia, which encroaches upon the wheat fields of this 

 fertile vale. Such is the scene in March. In April new flowers appear; 

 among the more beautiful, sheltered among the bushes, are Collinsia bicolor, 

 two species of. monkey-olants, the fuchsia-flowered gooseberry, and other an- 

 nuals or perennial flowers. The yucca, in favored situations, displays a 

 magnificent mass of rich purple buds and creamy lilies, bursting into beauty 

 from amidst its forbidding clusters of dagger-pointed leaves. On stony 

 slopes the low spherical Echinocactus, and a Cereus, occasionally appear. 

 On these middle heights above the bay the ground is often yellow with a 

 bright OEnothera, and the yellow violet, intermingled with the pale tint of 

 the wild onion, and blue liliaceous plants, among which Biodiaea capitata is 

 conspicuous; while composite flowers, such as Senecio California and Pen- 

 tachaeta aurea, cover thousands of acres. 



The botanist can scarcely take a step without treading upon a plant un- 

 known to him in his eastern fields. Now he sfopg to gaze with admiration 

 upon the spread of Dodecatheon, or to throw up his hands with delight as 

 he pauses beside a half. acre of California poppies, which at midday resem- 

 bles beaten gold, the most brilliant and the most fascinating of California 

 flowers. Nature is here in her loveliest mood, and robed in her brightest col- 

 ors. She has spread her tapestries until they rival the gorgeous carpets of 

 Persian looms, and has hung the hillsides in draperies that outshine Elan! 

 King Harry's "Field of the Cloth of Gold." 



