Last year’s rainy winter proved to be an exciting time for mushrooms. Instead of wildflowers, mushrooms became my passion. Armed with a few books, I set out to identify the different kinds of mushrooms and took numerous pictures. I soon found that Sunset Valley in Davy Brown was an excellent place to find mushrooms—very large [...]
The California Turkey Vulture Returning home one evening I noticed a dead pine tree with several large black “lumps.” As I drove closer, I realized the “lumps” were actually several roosting turkey vultures. I thought they’d make an interesting photo, so as soon as I got home I grabbed my camera and drove right back [...]
The Toads of Figueroa As winter turns into spring I never know where my next article will come from. My neighbor, who lives about four miles from me, called to say she had frogs procreating in her pond and if I hurried I could watch them. I couldn’t leave at that moment so she took [...]
Ladybeetles As we head into spring here on Figueroa Mountain, one beetle that is very popular is the ladybug. In the winter we have always had them in big numbers by the creek off Davy Brown Trail, at the headwaters along Bierbent Creek, and in the canyon behind our corrals. The word ladybug is a [...]
Before we know it January will be here and the new wildflowers will be coming up. For 2011 I would like to focus on two plants, one being the Hummingbird Sage (Salvia Spathacea) and the other the Fuchsia-Flowered Gooseberry, (Ribes Speciosum). Both of these plants are drought-toleratant and attract hummingbirds. The Hummingbird Sage is a [...]
As the summer months speed by, I have been spending some time around our pond, cutting down weeds and observing the insects that fly in and around the habitat. Around here the prettiest insects we see is the blue damselfly; we spot them near streams and ponds. It has an oblong head with bulging eyes [...]
The wonderful thing about living on Figueroa Mountain is you never know what you may experience. As recently as October we had a young grey fox in an oak tree near our back door. It seemed strange to us, but in doing a little research I think I know why this beautiful and elusive creature [...]
From Figueroa Mountain. The wonderful thing about living on Figueroa Mountain is you never know what you may experience. As recently as October we had a young grey fox in an oak tree near our back door. It seemed strange to us, but in doing a little research I think I know why this beautiful [...]
Chia — long valued by early Native Americans, the health benefits of Chia seeds have become mainstream news. This year, various magazine articles touted the benefits of Chia seeds: keep you full, excellent source of nutrients and inexpensive to boot. The only thing that came to my mind were Chia Pets. Little did I know [...]
Red-winged blackbird— Many people in the Santa Ynez Valley notice the different birds that come during the winter months and leave in the late spring for the northern regions. One of these species of special interest to me is the Red-winged Blackbird. For years I have seen them on the Chamberlin Ranch, but for the [...]
