All that's left of native Deer Grass (Muhlenbergia rigens, Poaceae) after the White Fire
This is all that's left of a remarkable clump of native Deer Grass (Muhlenbergia rigens) in the Poaceae plant family after the White Fire came through last May. It's a large perennial bunch grass - three feet tall and twice that across - now reduced to a mound of ashes. I wouldn't recognize it, except that I knew it was here.
I put my "walking stick" in the photo for scale. My cane is about 3 feet long, which gives an idea how large the mound is. See this photo of the same grass before the fire. I'm curious about the distinctive gray ashes of this plant. I wonder if they have a special use? (Aliso Canyon trail, Paradise, Santa Ynez River, 5 January 2014)
This grass does grow on San Marcos Pass in a few secluded places, but it's more common in the interior backcountry. It likes a well-watered spot by a creek, but not in the creek. It was an important plant for native American basketry, and it's widely used as a landscaping plant.
I don't need my cane, but it helps me avoid false steps which aggravate my sciatica pain. It's a sturdy oak cane that I found second-hand in Glide, Oregon last summer when I really needed it. I wonder what it's history is.
All that's left of native Deer Grass (Muhlenbergia rigens, Poaceae) after the White Fire
This is all that's left of a remarkable clump of native Deer Grass (Muhlenbergia rigens) in the Poaceae plant family after the White Fire came through last May. It's a large perennial bunch grass - three feet tall and twice that across - now reduced to a mound of ashes. I wouldn't recognize it, except that I knew it was here.
I put my "walking stick" in the photo for scale. My cane is about 3 feet long, which gives an idea how large the mound is. See this photo of the same grass before the fire. I'm curious about the distinctive gray ashes of this plant. I wonder if they have a special use? (Aliso Canyon trail, Paradise, Santa Ynez River, 5 January 2014)
This grass does grow on San Marcos Pass in a few secluded places, but it's more common in the interior backcountry. It likes a well-watered spot by a creek, but not in the creek. It was an important plant for native American basketry, and it's widely used as a landscaping plant.
I don't need my cane, but it helps me avoid false steps which aggravate my sciatica pain. It's a sturdy oak cane that I found second-hand in Glide, Oregon last summer when I really needed it. I wonder what it's history is.