Spring Arrives Colorfully

I was out checking today and was struck by the beginning of some color spring blossoms besides the pawpaws, which had been blooming for a few weeks.

Now milkweeds, greeneyes, piriqueta, helianthemum, Britton's beargrass and snakeherb are blooming and Alicia appears close to blooming.

I also noticed that in response to last year's prescribed fire on the north end of the tract, Clitoria mariana is sprouting in places I had never seen it before.

I checked on the Clitoria fragrans, but haven't seen much change from the minuscule number of plants that have always been in the southeast corner of the north tract.
I'm also seeing some expansion of Praxelis. I'll have to keep an eye on it.
Earlier this week I spent a few hours digging cogon grass in the southeast section.

While I was out today, I saw a lot of insects buzzing around a blooming Hercules club, whose flowers were nearly spent and less fragrant than they area at their prime.
In the same area I noticed some Brazilian pepper have returned.
It will be cooler later this week so I can attack them then.
I also want to restore a narrow path around the bayhead for monitoring purposes.
Ridge Rangers 25th anniversary event is next Saturday. I have been asked to speak. Hope we have a good turnout. It will be good to see my friends.
 

A new plant species appears after fire

I have been searching the area that was burned last year for the emergence of wildflowers that the fire might have encouraged to sprout after some dormancy.
I have seen some species in new places as a result of the fire, but this week found a species I had never recorded here.
It is Early Blue Violet (Viola palmata), a fairly widespread species that I have been seeing occasionally this year, but never in great numbers as the other violet species around the area.

More Cogon Grass Appears

While I was out today collecting some trash and checking on the status of lupine seedlings I noticed a new patch of Cogon Grass.
It was growing at the edge of the scrub along an area that had been bush-hogged earlier this year.
I don't know whether it arrived via the mowing equipment or blew in from a nearby infestation along Recker Highway.
I need to deal with it before it expands.

Lupine Season Slowly Begins

Scrub Lupine seedlings are beginning to appear at the preserve.
I checked today following a rainy weekend to collect more small pieces of trash in the disturbed sand.
I brought flags in case some lupines had emerged.
When I checked last week, there was little to see.

One surprise was to find some seedlings in the area north of the planting area that had been disked a few months ago
I also found two seedlings in the area where I discovered lupines from an old seed bank unrelated to the seedlings from Bok Tower that make up the main body of the lupine population.
Meanwhile, last week additional seedlings and pots containing seeds were brought to the preserve.
There are no mature plants in the preserve now, so there will be no flowers or new seeds this year.

Picking Up The Pieces

The combination of the recent disking of the fire lane in the perimeter and down the middle of the north tract and recent rainfall has created an opportunity to collect small pieces of debris.
I filled two five-gallon buckets  in the initial run of part of this section.
As I expected, most of it consisted of broken glass.
However, I also found some old auto parts.
It's raining again today.
I'll return when the sun returns to see what else I can find.
While I was out there, I noticed one of the benches needed to be repaired.
I took care of that, too.

Rare plants recovering from management mishap

A couple of years ago while the fire lane on the south tract was being maintained or something, the tractor tires dug deep ruts into an area that had the highest concentration of  an endangered plant species called Polygonella basiramia that had been flagged in hopes the area might have been treated more gently.
There had been about 300 plants in this area.
Last year I checked the site and didn't find any plants there.
I checked recently and located a handful of plants, so perhaps they are gradually coming back.
I'll have to recheck next year to see what the status is.

Cleaning Up Cogon Infestation Again

One of the ongoing management challenges here has involved the control of isolated patches of cogon grass that have sprung up in a few locations inside the preserve.
Some have been successfully herbicided by FWC staffers, but some persist despite previous efforts.
One lies along the edge of the fire lane in the south tract.
I have resorted to periodically digging up the plants--it is important to remove the roots--and hauling them away for proper disposal.
Now that the weather has cooled, I have resumed the work.
The other day I filled two garbage cans with plants. I will come back to check on any stragglers I may have overlooked.