Occasional notes on the wildflowers of 91011
Serious wildflower enthusiasts and botanists have a name for flowers that are so small that most hikers miss them altogether. They’re called belly flowers, for the obvious reason that you pretty much have to get down on your belly to see them.
There are several such flowers at Cherry Canyon and elsewhere around La Cañada, but none has the amazing shimmering red color that you’ll find on Red Maids (Calandrinia menziesii) — IF you find it at all! Not that Red Maids is a rare plant: there are thousands of observations from all over California. But throughout the nearby Verdugo Mtns. and the San Rafael Hills (where Cherry Canyon is situated), there are but FIVE reliable records — and only one of those is in Cherry Canyon. So if and when you find it (see the hints below), count yourself lucky.
Sure, it’s a very small flower. The plants at Cherry Canyon are at most maybe ten inches tall, and the flowers range from a quarter-inch to maybe half an inch across. But, oh, what color! Despite their name, “Red” Maids are really a shocking, glossy, lipstick pink. They look almost metallic or iridescent, like the throat of one of our local hummingbirds if you catch it just right in the sun. In fact, the mesmerizing color of Red Maids derives from the unusual presence of betalain pigments, which are found more commonly in bright pink or red cactus flowers as well as in certain cactus fruits, such as the strikingly red dragon fruit. Oh, also this: betalain pigments (good antioxidants, by the way) are found in beets!
Red Maids along the flat upper stretch of Liz’s Loop
Where and when to find it. It’s possible, elsewhere in California, to find Red Maids as a bright and large patch out in a pasture, or sprinkled among the poppies at the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve. But at Cherry Canyon, Red Maids have been found in only one place, namely, straddling the flat section of trail near the top of Liz’s Loop. The flowers thrive in the grasses of a 100′ section, more on the north side of the trail than on the south (though that could change if the colony continues to expand). For Cherry Canyon, late March through late April seems to be the best time to catch these in bloom. However, this species seems to bloom in multiple waves, so if instead of open blossoms all you find are their deep pink buds, try to return in a week or so to see if they’ve opened up. In any case, however you find them, be sure to drop down on your belly, or at least to your knees, to see these shining beauties up close!
Red Maids still in bud, looking ready to open . . . soon
- For more about Red Maids, visit Wikipedia.
- For information about growing Red Maids in your yard, visit Calscape.org.
- For distribution maps, taxonomy, and more photos, visit Calflora.org.
- And go here to read other occasional notes on the wildflowers of 91011.
