Plant Guide to Brown Mountain Fire Road, San Gabriel Mountains This is a working list, about which we make no guarantees at all until we officially release it. Use at your own risk!
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
Highlights of This Trail The botanical highlights of this trail are:
Number of Unique Taxa On This Trail
The following histogram gives the number of trails in our database that contain each taxon on this trail. We had 38 trails in our database when this histogram was made. A number of "1" means the taxon has only been found on this trail among the trails in our database.
Number of Trails
Containing A TaxonNumber Of Taxa
On This Trail% of Taxa
On This Trail1 9 9% 2 7 7% 3 16 16% 4 10 10% 5 4 4% 6 5 5% 7 6 6% 8 1 1% 9 7 7% 10 3 3% 11 4 4% 12 3 3% 13 2 2% 14 4 4% 15 5 5% 16 2 2% 17 7 7% 18 3 3% 19 1 1% 20 3 3% 21 1 1% Total Taxa 103 100% We found 19 additional species not in the above table, since they have not been identified yet. The unidentified ones are marked with ? or sp in the id? column in the guide.
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" 1/30/2002 1 122 18 15 1 2 1/9/2003 2 122 14 11 5 0
The Plant Guide
Mile s # id? Common Name Latin Name #here #all 0.00 Guide begins at northeast corner of Millard Campground parking lot, taking the path northwest of the paved entrance road. 0.00 r 1 coast live oak Quercus agrifolia var. agrifolia / 17 0.00 r 2 ~ *slender wild oats Avena barbata+ / 9 0.00 r 3 *common chickweed Stellaria media / 4 0.00 r 4 sp miner's lettuce Claytonia sp. / 0.03 r 5 *redstem filaree Erodium cicutarium / 14 0.00 r 6 ~ *bur chervil Anthriscus caucalis / 3 0.00 r 7 *Australian brass-buttons Cotula australis / 3 0.00 l 8 *smilo grass Piptatherum miliaceum / 9 0.00 l 9 *black locust Robinia pseudoacacia / 4 0.00 r 10 *Aleppo pine Pinus halapensis / 2 0.00 ~ (~Canary Island pine, ~Pinus canariensis) 0.00 l 11 *petty spurge Euphorbia peplus / 2 0.00 l 12 ? unk "like Crete weed leaves" 0.00 l 13 California bay Umbellularia californica / 4 0.00 l 14 *henbit Lamium amplexicaule / 3 0.00 l 15 common bedstraw Galium aparine / 5 0.01 l 16 poison oak Toxicodendron diversilobum / 16 0.01 l 17 mule fat Baccharis salicifolia / 17 0.01 r 18 *shortpod mustard Hirschfeldia incana / 20 0.01 Cross small drainage. 0.01 r 19 branching phacelia Phacelia ramosissima var. latifolia / 7 0.01 l 20 ? unk brassica like at lower arroyo seco. 0.01 l 21 *white goosefoot Chenopodium album / 7 0.00 l 22 *shepherd's purse Capsella bursa-pastoris / 3 0.01 23 ? *smooth cat's ear Hypochaeris glabra / 6 0.02 r 24 *Bermuda buttercup Oxalis pes-caprae / 3 0.02 l 25 California buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum var. foliolosum / 21 0.00 l 26 mugwort Artemisia douglasiana / 14 0.03 l 27 white alder Alnus rhombifolia / 4 0.03 l 28 *Mediterranean pygmy-weed Crassula tillaea / 3 0.03 r 29 California poppy Eschscholzia californica / 9 0.00 r 30 ~ *windmill pink Silene gallica / 6 0.04 l 31 laurel sumac Malosma laurina / 16 0.04 l 32 tarragon Artemisia dracunculus / 14 0.05 Jct. with road into Millard Campground. 0.05 l 33 *nasturtium Tropaeolum majus / 3 0.05 34 *little horseweed Conyza bonariensis / 5 0.05 35 common sunflower Helianthus annuus / 4 0.06 r 36 naturalized Aeonium hybrid Aeonium hybrid / 0.06 r (jade plant, Crassula ovata) 0.07 r 37 short-leaved cliff-aster Malacothrix saxatilis var. tenuifolia / 4 0.07 r 38 golden yarrow Eriophyllum confertiflorum / 4 0.07 r 39 California chicory Rafinesquia californica / 4 0.07 r 40 southern wild-cucumber Marah macrocarpus var. macrocarpus / 13 0.07 r 41 wild sweetpea Lathyrus vestitus var. vestitus / 3 0.07 r 42 bicolored everlasting Gnaphalium bicolor / 9 0.07 r 43 California brickellia Brickellia californica / 15 0.07 r 44 bush monkeyflower Mimulus aurantiacus / 18 0.07 45 hollyleaf redberry Rhamnus ilicifolia / 18 0.07 r 46 prickly phlox Leptodactylon californicum / 2 0.07 r 47 sp farewell-to-spring clarkia sp. / 0.08 r 48 ? goldback fern Pentagramma triangularis ssp. triangularis / 6 0.08 r (California sagebrush, Artemisia californica) 0.08 r (rosette of lvs that is probably horseweed) 0.08 49 *Chinese elm Ulmus parvifolia / 1 0.09 r 50 *eupatory Ageratina adenophora / 3 0.09 r 51 hillside gooseberry Ribes californicum var. hesperium / 2 0.09 Cross small drainage. 0.10 r 52 white nightshade Solanum douglasii / 6 0.11 r Jct. signed "Sunset Ridge Trail 12W18; Jct. Mt. Lowe Road 0.8 mi [right]; Jct. Echo Mountain Trail 3.3 mi [right]; Millard Falls [left]". 0.11 l Sign: "Angeles National Forest Campground: Millard". Enter Millard Campground. 0.12 l 53 *African Sumac Rhus lancea / 1 0.13 r Angeles National Forest Map 0.13 r Toilets. 0.14 r Trailer for campground host; plantings here ignored for this guide. 0.15 r Jct. Trail to Millard Falls 0.16 Cross stream from waterfall. 0.16 l 54 *Spanish broom Spartium junceum / 3 0.16 l 55 *greater periwinkle Vinca major / 4 0.16 l 56 *tree tobacco Nicotiana glauca / 7 0.17 r 57 coffee fern Pellaea andromedifolia / 10 0.17 r 58 California polypody Polypodium californicum / 3 0.17 r 59 ? fern like lace fern, but with short petioles 0.17 r 60 sp *creeping woodsorrel Oxalis corniculata / 1 0.18 61 *common beggar-ticks Bidens pilosa var. pilosa / 1 0.18 l 62 canyon live oak Quercus chrysolepis / 11 0.18 r 63 California sagebrush Artemisia californica / 20 0.18 r 64 ~ erect goldenaster Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp. fastigiata / 3 0.18 r 65 birch-leaf mountain-mahogany Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides / 10 0.19 r 66 heartleaf penstemon Keckiella cordifolia / 11 0.19 r 67 telegraph weed Heterotheca grandiflora / 15 0.19 l erect goldenaster Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp. fastigiata+ / 0.19 l 68 white everlasting Gnaphalium canescens ssp. microcephalum / 17 0.19 l 69 sp needlegrass Nassella sp. / 0.19 l 70 sp fescue Vulpia sp. / 0.19 l hollyleaf redberry Rhamnus ilicifolia+ / 0.20 Jct. private road on left; our road turns right 90°. 0.21 r 71 California suncup Camissonia californica / 5 0.22 r 72 black sage Salvia mellifera / 18 0.22 r 73 San Gabriel Mtns. leather oak Quercus durata var. gabrielensis / 1 0.22 r 74 long-stemmed buckwheat Eriogonum elongatum var. elongatum / 8 0.22 r 75 ~ narrowleaf bedstraw Galium angustifolium ssp. angustifolium / 19 0.24 r 76 deerweed Lotus scoparius var. scoparius / 10 0.26 l 77 sp dodder Cuscuta sp. / 0.26 horseweed Conyza canadensis+ / 12 0.26 78 *red brome Bromus madritensis ssp. rubens / 17 0.26 79 *tocalote Centaurea melitensis / 17 0.26 80 *horehound Marrubium vulgare / 11 0.26 Cross under telephone and power lines. 0.26 l Jct. trail. 0.28 r (narrow-leaf four-wing saltbush, Atriplex canescens ssp. linearis) 0.29 r (chamise, Adenostoma fasciculatum) 0.29 r 81 creek senecio Senecio flaccidus var. douglasii / 5 0.29 r 82 chaparral yucca Yucca whipplei ssp. parishii / 7 0.30 r 83 narrow-leaf four-wing saltbush Atriplex canescens ssp. linearis / 1 0.32 84 saw-toothed goldenbush Hazardia squarrosa var. grindelioides / 15 0.32 r 85 southern honeysuckle Lonicera subspicata var. denudata / 17 0.33 b 86 sugar bush Rhus ovata / 13 0.34 87 elegant rock-cress Arabis sparsiflora / 2 0.35 l 88 toyon Heteromeles arbutifolia / 20 0.36 89 *bush spurge Euphorbia characias / 1 0.37 90 white sage Salvia apiana / 15 0.37 r 91 shadscale Atriplex confertifolia / 1 0.38 Cross small drainage. 0.39 r 92 *castor bean Ricinus communis / 6 0.39 l 93 *rosemary Rosmarinus officinalis / 2 0.39 r 94 arroyo willow Salix lasiolepis / 17 0.40 Road curves right 90° 0.43 l 95 gray sage Salvia apiana X S. mellifera / 1 0.44 Road curves left 90°; cross drainage. 0.44 96 *common sow thistle Sonchus oleraceus / 9 0.46 97 ? *common Mediterranean grass? Schismus barbatus / 3 0.47 r (giant needlegrass, Achnatherum coronatum, upslope.) 0.49 l 98 bristly goldenaster Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp. echioides / 4 0.50 r 99 giant needlegrass Achnatherum coronatum / 12 0.50 l Turnout in road. 0.54 l 100 hoaryleaf ceanothus Ceanothus crassifolius / 7 0.54 l Turnout in road. 0.54 r 101 chamise Adenostoma fasciculatum / 15 0.58 102 sp common phacelia Phacelia distans / 2 0.58 *slender wild oats Avena barbata+ / 0.58 103 chaparral whitethorn Ceanothus leucodermis / 9 0.59 Cross small drainage. 0.59 104 ? unk annual grass like wheatgrass or italian rye 0.59 Can see Channel Islands, San Joaquin Hills, Signal Hill from here 0.71 Turnout in road. 0.77 105 ? annual like catchfly 0.77 Local high point on road 0.79 106 sp Mariposa lily 0.85 r Jct. road to "beehives" area. 0.86 Another hybrid sage? 0.87 107 California buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum var. polifolium / 11 1.04 Jct. El Prieto Road. Sign: "Millard Campground 1 mi; Sunset Ridge 2 mi" (directed along the way we've come so far). 1.10 108 ? small-flowered melica Melica imperfecta / 14 1.11 109 ? unk scroph 1.12 110 sp goldback fern sans goldback 1.13 111 southern California dudleya Dudleya lanceolata / 9 1.13 112 ? peppergrass or bitter cress? 1.13 113 *milk thistle Silybum marianum / 3 1.17 114 California wood fern Dryopteris arguta / 3 1.18 115 giant wild rye Leymus condensatus / 12 1.18 116 sp snowberry Symphoricarpos mollis? / 1.18 117 ? unk fern like goldback 1.25 118 knobcone pine Pinus attenuata / 3 1.25 119 California blackberry Rubus ursinus / 7 1.25 120 ? unk cedar 1 1.25 121 ? unk cedar 2 1.26 Jct. side road to ??; take it to water tank. 1.27 122 sp unk willow
Comments On Specific Species Avena barbata. The id comes from the specimen at mile 0.58; the id for the specimen at mile 0.00 still needs to be determined.
Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp. fastigiata and Conyza canadensis. The second entry for each of these species will only be counted as a separate new species if the previous specimens turn out to be different species.
Rhamnus ilicifolia. The first occurrence wasn't located on 1/9/03, so the next occurrence was noted.
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Copyright © 2002-2003 by Jane Strong and Tom Chester.
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Comments and feedback: Jane Strong | Tom Chester
Updated 10 January 2003 (added off-trail Pinus canariensis on 10/8/07, thanks to Michael Charters)