Plant Guide to Self-Guided Nature Trail, Heise County Park

Plant Guide to Self-Guided Nature Trail, Heise County Park

This is a working list, about which we make no guarantees at all until we officially release it. Use at your own risk!

Some of the identifications below were based on dead plant remnants from the previous year, due to the drought in 2002.
Introduction and Explanation of Plant Trail Guides
Introduction
Highlights of This Trail
Fieldwork Dates and Summary of List Changes With Time
The Plant Guide
Comments On Specific Species
Introduction

This Self-Guided Nature Trail is an easy 0.8 mile round-trip loop with only 200 feet of elevation gain and loss at Heise County Park, one of the most beautiful San Diego County parks. There is no brochure for the trail; instead, 23 plants have posts with identifying labels on them.
Highlights of This Trail

This trail is a beautiful easy hike through an oak, pine and incense-cedar forest, with extensive areas of large old manzanitas.
Some of the botanical highlights of this trail are:

23 specimens labeled with their common and Latin names;
Many specimens of Eastwood Manzanita (Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. zacaensis) and Mexican Manzanita (Arctostaphylos pungens), some of which occur side-by-side;
Numerous samples of oaks: black oak (Quercus kelloggii), southern coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia var. oxyadenia), and interior live oak (Quercus wislizenii var. frutescens).
This trail is the only one in our database that contains Mexican manzanita (Arctostaphylos pungens), California barberry (Berberis aquifolium var. dictyota) and Palmer's ceanothus (or deerbrush, Ceanothus palmeri)

Fieldwork Dates and Summary of List Changes With Time

The following table gives the dates the trail was walked and taxa recorded. After each visit, the table gives the total number of taxa on the list and the breakdown of the taxa without positive identification. See Explanation of Plant Trail Guides to understand the symbols below.

Visit Date Visit # # taxa # "?" # "sp" # "~" # "ssp"
8/23/2002 1 33 4 0 3 3

The Plant Guide

This plant guide is unusual in that a number of species are listed twice. The first occurrence is listed and numbered, as always. In addition, all labeled species are listed as well, each time they occur. If the common name on the label differs from the one we use, it is given in parentheses in the entry for the labeled specimen. No subspecies or varieties are given on the labels.
Version for printing, without lines and other text on this page (4 pages)

Mile # id? Labeled Common Name Latin Name #here #all
0.00 North trailhead between campsites 83 and 84. Parking for trail use is at campsite 77, 0.10 miles south.
0.00 1 southern coast live oak Quercus agrifolia var. oxyadenia / 3
0.00 Display board: mentions Canyon Oak Trail and Desert View Trail, but not this Self-Guided Nature Trail! Take Desert View Trail to the right of display board.
0.00 2 ~ creeping snowberry Symphoricarpos mollis / 3
0.00 3 California black oak Quercus kelloggii / 3
0.00 Check for wild oats here
0.00 4 ssp blue wildrye Elymus glaucus / 5
0.00 5 *ripgut brome Bromus diandrus / 13
0.00 6 hollyleaf redberry Rhamnus ilicifolia / 12
0.00 7 Palmer's ceanothus Ceanothus palmeri / 1
0.01 8 ~ Eastwood manzanita (young plant) Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. zacaensis / 3
0.01 9 ? clarkia sp.?
0.01 10 interior live oak Quercus wislizenii var. frutescens / 4
0.01 11 ? ashy silk tassel Garrya flavescens / 4
0.01 12 canyon live oak Quercus chrysolepis / 9
0.02 13 toyon Heteromeles arbutifolia / 13
0.03 Cross small drainage
0.03 14 Coulter pine (young plant) Pinus coulteri / 5
0.03 15 ssp chamise Adenostoma fasciculatum / 12
0.04 16 x Mexican manzanita (10' tree) Arctostaphylos pungens / 1
0.04 x Eastwood manzanita Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. zacaensis /
0.04 x Coulter pine Pinus coulteri /
0.09 17 southern honeysuckle Lonicera subspicata var. denudata / 11
0.09 Post without sign. The honeysuckle is immediately behind the post, and the lower branches of a huge canyon live oak are close by.
0.10 x ashy silk tassel Garrya flavescens /
0.10 Cross small drainage
0.12 18 birch-leaf mountain-mahogany Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides / 9
0.12 Trail turns 90 degrees left.
0.12 19 chaparral yucca Yucca whipplei / 7
0.12 Trail turns 90 degrees right.
0.12 20 squawbush Rhus trilobata / 7
0.13 x hollyleaf redberry Rhamnus ilicifolia /
0.13 x southern honeysuckle (honeysuckle) Lonicera subspicata var. denudata /
0.13 Trail curves 90 degrees right.
0.15 x chaparral yucca (our lord's candle) Yucca whipplei /
0.17 Bench without back.
0.20 Trail splits; Desert View Trail to left, our trail straight ahead.
0.21 21 ? unk. per. grass
0.22 22 x white sage Salvia apiana / 11
0.22 White sage was nearly hidden behind sign on 8/23/02; high point on trail; descend and immediately turn 90 degrees right.
0.24 23 x virgin's bower Clematis lasiantha / 2
0.24 Latin name on sign misspelled as Clematis lasinatha
0.25 24 x whorledleaf penstemon (summer bush penstemon) Keckiella ternata var. ternata / 2
0.25 Trail turns 90 degrees right, then immediately 90 degrees left.
0.28 25 x California barberry Berberis aquifolium var. dictyota / 1
0.28 Sign gives previous Latin name of Berberis dictyota. Trail turns 90 degrees right, and now parallels drainage on left.
0.29 26 *rattail fescue Vulpia myuros var. myuros / 3
0.29 Post on left without sign has squawbush behind it.
0.29 x Palmer's ceanothus (deer brush) Ceanothus palmeri /
0.31 x California black oak Quercus kelloggii /
0.31 Cross drainage, which now parallels trail on the right.
0.34 x California barberry Berberis aquifolium var. dictyota /
0.34 Sign gives previous Latin name of Berberis dictyota.
0.35 Large field of blue wildrye. Trail goes through large patches of snowberry.
0.38 Large tree trunk across trail. Beware the left side of it, which is rotting away.
0.39 Trail diverges from this drainage.
0.41 27 ~ narrowleaf bedstraw Galium angustifolium ssp. angustifolium / 14
0.42 Trail turns 90 degrees right.
0.42 28 ? *pampas grass Cortaderia selloana / 2
0.43 Cross next drainage.
0.43 x creeping snowberry (snowberry) Symphoricarpos mollis /
0.49 Cross creekbed.
0.50 x southern coast live oak Quercus agrifolia var. oxyadenia /
0.51 x canyon live oak Quercus chrysolepis /
0.51 29 x California coffeeberry Rhamnus californica ssp. californica / 4
0.54 Cross small drainage
0.55 30 x incense-cedar Calocedrus decurrens / 7
0.56 31 x poison oak Toxicodendron diversilobum / 9
0.57 32 x Sierra gooseberry Ribes roezlii var. roezlii / 5
0.57 Cross drainage
0.59 x birch-leaf mountain-mahogany (mountain mahogany) Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides /
0.60 x poison oak Toxicodendron diversilobum /
0.60 33 ssp mountain California-fuchsia Epilobium canum ssp. latifolium / 6
0.62 End Nature Trail at campsite 75. Trailhead parking at campsite 77 is 0.07 miles north.

Comments On Specific Species

Adenostoma fasciculatum. Need to check for var. obtusifolium.

Visit Date	Visit #	# taxa	# "?"	# "sp"	# "~"	# "ssp"
8/23/2002	1	33	4	0	3	3

Mile	#	id?	Labeled	Common Name	Latin Name	#here	#all
0.00				North trailhead between campsites 83 and 84. Parking for trail use is at campsite 77, 0.10 miles south.
0.00	1			southern coast live oak	Quercus agrifolia var. oxyadenia	/	3
0.00				Display board: mentions Canyon Oak Trail and Desert View Trail, but not this Self-Guided Nature Trail! Take Desert View Trail to the right of display board.
0.00	2	~		creeping snowberry	Symphoricarpos mollis	/	3
0.00	3			California black oak	Quercus kelloggii	/	3
0.00				Check for wild oats here
0.00	4	ssp		blue wildrye	Elymus glaucus	/	5
0.00	5			*ripgut brome	Bromus diandrus	/	13
0.00	6			hollyleaf redberry	Rhamnus ilicifolia	/	12
0.00	7			Palmer's ceanothus	Ceanothus palmeri	/	1
0.01	8	~		Eastwood manzanita (young plant)	Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. zacaensis	/	3
0.01	9	?		clarkia sp.?
0.01	10			interior live oak	Quercus wislizenii var. frutescens	/	4
0.01	11	?		ashy silk tassel	Garrya flavescens	/	4
0.01	12			canyon live oak	Quercus chrysolepis	/	9
0.02	13			toyon	Heteromeles arbutifolia	/	13
0.03				Cross small drainage
0.03	14			Coulter pine (young plant)	Pinus coulteri	/	5
0.03	15	ssp		chamise	Adenostoma fasciculatum	/	12
0.04	16		x	Mexican manzanita (10' tree)	Arctostaphylos pungens	/	1
0.04			x	Eastwood manzanita	Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. zacaensis	/
0.04			x	Coulter pine	Pinus coulteri	/
0.09	17			southern honeysuckle	Lonicera subspicata var. denudata	/	11
0.09				Post without sign. The honeysuckle is immediately behind the post, and the lower branches of a huge canyon live oak are close by.
0.10			x	ashy silk tassel	Garrya flavescens	/
0.10				Cross small drainage
0.12	18			birch-leaf mountain-mahogany	Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides	/	9
0.12				Trail turns 90 degrees left.
0.12	19			chaparral yucca	Yucca whipplei	/	7
0.12				Trail turns 90 degrees right.
0.12	20			squawbush	Rhus trilobata	/	7
0.13			x	hollyleaf redberry	Rhamnus ilicifolia	/
0.13			x	southern honeysuckle (honeysuckle)	Lonicera subspicata var. denudata	/
0.13				Trail curves 90 degrees right.
0.15			x	chaparral yucca (our lord's candle)	Yucca whipplei	/
0.17				Bench without back.
0.20				Trail splits; Desert View Trail to left, our trail straight ahead.
0.21	21	?		unk. per. grass
0.22	22		x	white sage	Salvia apiana	/	11
0.22				White sage was nearly hidden behind sign on 8/23/02; high point on trail; descend and immediately turn 90 degrees right.
0.24	23		x	virgin's bower	Clematis lasiantha	/	2
0.24				Latin name on sign misspelled as Clematis lasinatha
0.25	24		x	whorledleaf penstemon (summer bush penstemon)	Keckiella ternata var. ternata	/	2
0.25				Trail turns 90 degrees right, then immediately 90 degrees left.
0.28	25		x	California barberry	Berberis aquifolium var. dictyota	/	1
0.28				Sign gives previous Latin name of Berberis dictyota. Trail turns 90 degrees right, and now parallels drainage on left.
0.29	26			*rattail fescue	Vulpia myuros var. myuros	/	3
0.29				Post on left without sign has squawbush behind it.
0.29			x	Palmer's ceanothus (deer brush)	Ceanothus palmeri	/
0.31			x	California black oak	Quercus kelloggii	/
0.31				Cross drainage, which now parallels trail on the right.
0.34			x	California barberry	Berberis aquifolium var. dictyota	/
0.34				Sign gives previous Latin name of Berberis dictyota.
0.35				Large field of blue wildrye. Trail goes through large patches of snowberry.
0.38				Large tree trunk across trail. Beware the left side of it, which is rotting away.
0.39				Trail diverges from this drainage.
0.41	27	~		narrowleaf bedstraw	Galium angustifolium ssp. angustifolium	/	14
0.42				Trail turns 90 degrees right.
0.42	28	?		*pampas grass	Cortaderia selloana	/	2
0.43				Cross next drainage.
0.43			x	creeping snowberry (snowberry)	Symphoricarpos mollis	/
0.49				Cross creekbed.
0.50			x	southern coast live oak	Quercus agrifolia var. oxyadenia	/
0.51			x	canyon live oak	Quercus chrysolepis	/
0.51	29		x	California coffeeberry	Rhamnus californica ssp. californica	/	4
0.54				Cross small drainage
0.55	30		x	incense-cedar	Calocedrus decurrens	/	7
0.56	31		x	poison oak	Toxicodendron diversilobum	/	9
0.57	32		x	Sierra gooseberry	Ribes roezlii var. roezlii	/	5
0.57				Cross drainage
0.59			x	birch-leaf mountain-mahogany (mountain mahogany)	Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides	/
0.60			x	poison oak	Toxicodendron diversilobum	/
0.60	33	ssp		mountain California-fuchsia	Epilobium canum ssp. latifolium	/	6
0.62				End Nature Trail at campsite 75. Trailhead parking at campsite 77 is 0.07 miles north.

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Plants of Southern California: Trail Guides

Copyright © 2002 by Tom Chester and Jane Strong.
Permission is freely granted to reproduce any or all of this page as long as credit is given to us at this source:
http://tchester.org/sd/plants/guides/heise_park/nature_trail.html
Comments and feedback: Tom Chester | Jane Strong
Updated 22 October 2002.