narrow-leaf chalksticks

species: Kleinia cylindrica

common name: narrow-leaf chalksticks

family: Asteraceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2016?

These popular succulents are difficult to identify because sometimes they are placed in the Senecio genus and called Senecio vitalis; but since the Kleinia genus was created to distinguish succulents from the rest of the sunflower family, I am inclined to class them that way. Kleinia are also found in warmer climates such as the Canary Islands, Africa and the Middle East.

Chilean thornless mesquite

species: Prosopis chilensis

common name: Chilean thornless mesquite

family: Fabaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2018

The Prosopis genus is more familiarly known as mesquite, of which there are about 45 species. Most are found in Latin America, although a few are native to Africa and Asia. This one lives in the Ventura Botanical Gardens.

poinsettia

species: Euphorbia pulcherrima

common name: poinsettia

family: Euphorbiaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2018

Of course I've seen poinsettia plants my whole life, but it's rare to see them in their tree form. No one ever talks about it, but this very well known plant is named after Joel Roberts Poinsettia, the first U.S. Minister to Mexico. At one time Ventura was the "poinsettia capital" where the plants were cultivated on a large scale.

Chilean wine palm

species: Jubaea chilensis

common name: Chilean wine palm

family: Arecaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2016

The second largest species of palm by mass, the Chilean wine palm is distinguished by its hefty trunk. Within that trunk is a sugar-rich sap which is used to make wine. This specimen got scorched by the Thomas Fire, but otherwise seems to be surviving at the Ventura Botanical Gardens.

jade "Gollum"

species: Crassula ovata, "Monstruosa" cultivar

common name: jade, "Gollum" cultivar

family: Crassulaceae

where & when encountered: King City, CA - 2010

This succulent house plant is as intriguing to look at as it is hard to identify. It seems incredible that these tubular green leaves resembling string beans are a cultivar of the familiar jade plant, but they are. One problem is that are sometimes called "baby toes", thereby getting confused with Fenestraria succulents, which actually look more like a baby's toes than these tubular string beans.

Kalanchoe

species: Kalanchoe blossfeldiana

common name: Christmas kalanchoe

family: Crassulaceae

where & when encountered: Old Westbury, NY - 2010?

Kalanchoe is an interesting genus of succulents native mainly to Madagascar with over a hundred species. The one known as "Christmas" or "florist" Kalanchoe is a very popular houseplant - my mother had one, which is how I got introduced. What I did not know until recently is that Kalanchoe was one of the first plants to be grown in space.

date palm

species: Phoenix dactylifera

common name: date palm

family: Arecaceae

where & when encountered: Amargosa Valley, CA - 2014

I had previously seen date plantations in the Coachella Valley, but this was my closest and most memorable encounter. The farm was situated somewhere between Death Valley and Nevada. Date palms have a very long history of cultivation and are native to Mesopotamia. The bags protect the fruit from birds.

rainbow eucalyptus

species: Eucalyptus deglupta

common name: rainbow eucalyptus 

family: Myrtaceae

where & when encountered: Costa Rica - 2015

I had seen many eucalyptus trees in my life, but did not know this one even existed until I came face-to-face with it on a coffee plantation in Costa Rica. This is one of the rare species not native to Australia, but rather Southeast Asia - Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and the Philippines. It is the only one whose range extends north of the equator. It's a very unusual tree on multiple levels, the most obvious being the unbelievably bright colors of the bark, which sometimes look like paint.

rock purslane

species: Calandrinia grandiflora

common name: rock purslane

family: Montiaceae

where & when encountered: King City, CA - 2012

These popular succulents can grow stalks over two feet high with lovely magenta flowers. They are native to Chile and are commonly known as rock purslane. There are many related species which can cause confusion: Calandrinia spectabilis and Calandrinia umbellata are close relatives, also from Chile. Other species hail from Australia. To add to the confusion, the Calandrinia genus is sometimes called Cistanthe.

silver wattle tree

species: Acacia dealbata

common name: silver wattle

family: Fabaceae

where & when encountered: Greenfield, CA - 2011

Yet another Australian import to California, the yellow flowers are unforgettable once you've seen them. I was also fortunate enough to see them in their native habitat in southeastern Australia. This one lives behind a gas station is the Salinas Valley.

purple starthistle

species: Centaurea calcitrapa

common name: purple starthistle

family: Asteraceae

where & when encountered: Monterey County, CA - 2009

Although this is considered to be an invasive, unwelcome weed species, having traveled all the way from the Mediterranean, it looks quite nice here on the prairie. It is also not nearly as common as its relative, yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis). Members of this genus are sometimes called knapweeds.

Moreton Bay fig

species: Ficus macrophylla

common name: Moreton Bay fig

family: Moraceae

where & when encountered: Santa Barbara, CA - 2010

Another Australian import to California, this one is named for a bay in Queensland but native to much of the Australian east coast. The specimen seen here, located near the Santa Barbara train station, is said to be the largest in the U.S. with a width of 176 feet and a height of 80 feet. The story goes that the seedling for this tree was given to a girl by a sailor in 1876. In addition to its impressive size and age, it is a particularly striking tree.

red-flowering gum tree

species: Corymbia ficifolia

common name: red-flowering gum tree

family: Myrtaceae

where & when encountered: Pacific Grove, CA - 2013

Actually I had seen these trees for years before learning their name around 2013. It's a classic Australian import in the same family as Eucalyptus. The term "gum tree" refers to trees that exude a sticky sap-like substance. Their native range in the southwest corner of Australia is actually quite small.

hollyhock

species: Alcea rosea

common name: hollyhock

family: Malvaceae

 where & when encountered: Salinas, CA - 2012

Specifically this variety is called "nigra" or "Danish Black" hollyhock. It was pleasant to discover them growing alongside our house; the stalks get between six and ten feet tall. Hollyhocks were introduced to Europe from Asia over five hundred years ago and the original English name for them was "holyoke".

Schefflera puekleri

species: Schefflera puekleri

common name: mallet flower

family: Araliaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2018

A native of Malaysia with very distinctive fruits (above) - the reason for the common name "mallet flower". Now used for landscaping throughout California and the world.

Japanese angelica-tree

(photo courtesy Creative Commons)

species: Aralia elata

common name: Japanese angelica-tree

family: Araliaceae

where & when encountered: Garvies Point, NY - 2018

These striking but invasive trees are said to have displaced their close North American relative, devil's walkingstick (Aralia spinosa). Despite the name, they are native to large cross section of Asia including China, Korea and eastern Russia. In Japan and Korea, the shoots are used for food. 

trifoliate orange

species: Poncirus trifoliata

common name: trifoliate orange, Chinese bitter orange

family: Rutaceae

where & when encontered: Greenfield, CA - 2011; Old Westbury, NY

This is an interesting case. I encountered this distinctive citrus tree independently on the east and west coasts, not realizing they were the same plant. It is the most northern-growing citrus that I am aware of; it tolerates cold better than most citrus, which is how it survives in New York. The fruit is bitter, containing the chemical poncirin, but can be used to make marmalade.

Clematis

species: Clematis terniflora

common name: virginsbower

family: Ranunculaceae

where & when encountered: Old Westbury, NY - 2018

Native to northern Asia, but introduced to the US in the 19th century as an ornamental vine. It is by now thoroughly established in most eastern states. It blooms in the fall when most other flowers are done for the year. While going for walks, I was struck by these fluffy white masses randomly strewn across other foliage.

peacock flower

species: Caesalpinia pulcherrima

common name: peacock flower

family: Fabaceae

where & when encountered: Monterey County - 2014

I was struck by this flowering shrub for years before I identified it in 2014 at a garden center in Salinas. Possibly of Caribbean origin, this is the national flower of Barbados. Generally considered toxic, the roots have been used by indigenous Latin America to induce abortions. Nowadays it is a popular ornamental. 

telegraphweed

species: Heterotheca grandiflora

common name: telegraphweed

family: Asteraceae

where & when encountered: Monterey County - 2015

A ubiquitous "weed" of the southwest US, by why a weed if it is native? I guess because it does such a good job surviving and getting around, often on roadsides.

papyrus

species: Cyperus papyrus

common name: papyrus

family: Cyperaceae

where & when encountered: Santa Barbara & Ventura, CA - 2016

We have all heard of papyrus as an early form of paper used by the Egyptians. I hadn't really properly encountered the plant though until October 2016, where I saw it at the Ventura Mission (above) and Lotusland (below). This species of sedge is native to Africa.

chitalpa

species: Chitalpa tashkentensis

common name: chitalpa

family: Bignoniaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2016

The chitalpa tree is a hybrid of desert willow (Chilopsis linearis) and southern catalpa (Catalpa bignonioides). The name chitalpa was coined in 1991 at the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden. The hybrid itself was created in by a botanist in Uzbekistan in 1964.

Madagascar palm

species: Pachypodium lamerei

common name: Madagascar palm

family: Apocynaceae

where & when encountered: Montecito, CA - 2016

A delightful plant, the kind of unique material we expect from Madagascar. If this is a palm, it has passed through the imagination of Dr. Seuss. Technically it is a type of succulent, and when mature produces fragrant white flowers.

grasstree

species: Xanthorrhoea genus

common name: grasstree

family: Asphodelaceae

where & when encountered: Montecito, CA - 2016

One of the rare and exotic specimens at Lotusland in Montecito, CA. This one hails from Australia  and is not something you see every day. The Aborigines have had multiple uses for this plant, with different parts used for making spears, brewing tea, plugging leaks (with the resin), even giving directions (the north-facing flowers bloom first).

golden medallion tree

species: Cassia leptophylla

common name: golden medallion tree

family: Fabaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2017

The golden medallion tree is a native of Brazil but now a very popular street tree in Southern California. When not in bloom this tree has very long pods.

fiddle-leaf fig

species: Ficus lyrata

common name: fiddle-leaf fig

family: Moraceae

where & when encountered: Santa Barbara, CA - 2010

This strikingly exotic-looking plant has exotic origins: tropical west Africa. The large leaves are fiddle-shaped, hence the name.

apricot mallow

species: Sphaeralcea ambigua

common name: apricot mallow

family: Malvaceae

where & when encountered: Red Rock Canyon State Park, CA - 2018

What mustard flowers are to most California roadsides, these beautiful apricot mallow plants are to the Mojave Desert - with the difference that they are native.

false spirea

species: Astilbe arendsii

common name: false spirea

family: Saxifragaceae

where & when encountered: Old Westbury, NY - 2018

Species of the Astilbe genus have been extensively cultivated and hybridized for ornamental purposes. The cultivar seen here is very striking.

ostrich plume

species: Astilbe thunbergii 'Straussenfeder'

common name: ostrich plume

family: Saxifragaceae

where & when encountered: Old Westbury, NY - 2018

At a glance these flowers remind me of tamarisk. Members of the Astilbe genus however are deliberately cultivated for gardens. Another name for ostrich plume is Japanese Astilbe, indicating its origin. The species is named for Carl Peter Thunberg, the father of South African botany.

black acacia

species: Acacia melanoxylon

common name: black acacia

family: Fabaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2018

Another Australian native, prized for its wood (which is used for boats, furniture and musical instruments), seen in Ventura's Plaza Park.

"true" myrtle

species: Myrtus communis

common name: myrtle

family: Myrtaceae

where & when encountered: Ventura, CA - 2018

Known as the "true" myrtle I suppose because it was the original European species, native to the Mediterranean, after which many other species were named. The Myrtus genus was coined by Linnaeus in 1753.

tea tree

species: Melaleuca alternifolia

common name: tea tree

family: Myrtaceae

where & when encountered: Australia - 2017

I credit Wilsons Prom National Park for clarifying what tea trees look like. The Melaleuca genus also includes a common street tree in California that looks very different (Melaleuca quinquenervia), but the primary source of the famous tea tree oil are these these gnarled looking trees seen growing all over the Prom.

mayten

species: Maytenus boaria

common name: mayten

family: Celastraceae

where & when encountered: Monterey county - 2008

I used to confuse these with pepper trees (Schinus molle) but maytens are a touch less shaggy and even more like weeping willows. Both trees - pepper and mayten - come from Latin America.

linden

species: Tilia americana

common name: linden

family: Malvaceae

where & when encountered: Old Westbury, NY - 2013

I must have walked by this very common tree hundreds of times before really examining it. It is the leaves of lindens that are distinctive and beautiful. Lindens are also common in Europe, but this is their American counterpart.