Guest author, OCCNPS Director, and Plant Science Chair Ron Vanderhoff, reports on local botanical science highlights from the past month.

The hills and canyons are blooming, Be sure to get outside and enjoy, learn, and protect our local native plants:

• Two uncommon invasive Fumaria species showed up recently. Fumaria parvifolia was detected and recorded at Fairview Park by Bequi Howarth on Jan 29, and again on Feb. 1 by Ron Vanderhoff near Saddleback College. Then, on Mar. 5, a first county record for Fumaria capriolata was recorded at Crown Valley Community Park in Laguna Niguel by Kristal Watrous.

• The rare annual Lasthenia ssp. glabrata coulteri was detected once again at Fairview Park in Costa Mesa on Feb 12 by Ron Vanderhoff and Bequi Howarth. This may be one of only two OC colonies.
• The rare species, Astragalus brauntonii and Hesperocyparis forbesii were documented at Coal Canyon on Feb. 14 and Mar. 3 & 4.
• The rare and tiny little fern Ophioglossum californicum, was recorded in Lake Forest by Caleb Martinez in February.

• Sandy Leatherman made a detection of a small patch of highly invasive Dittrichia graveolens above the Arroyo Trabuco on Feb. 19 at a new location.
• The tiny little annual Sagina decumbens var occidentalis was detected on and recorded Feb. 25, 2026 by Caleb Martinez in Lake Forest.
• Joan Miller made a rare detection of the invasive plant, Centaurea benedicta at Casper’s Wilderness Park on Mar 3.

• Management by the Irvine Ranch Conservancy of highly invasive perennial Euphorbia terracina has ramped up in early March. The patches treated were detected last year by Bob Sill in the area near Laguna Cyn. Rd. and Lake Forest Drive.
• Isolated detections of the highly invasive grass, Ehrharta calycina were reported and were mapped on Feb. 22 by Elizabeth Wallace and Ron Vanderhoff near Vera’s Sanctuary, adjacent to Rose Canyon. This is a first detection for the Santa Ana Mts.

• Ron Vanderhoff, Fred Roberts, Diane Ikeda and Caleb Martinez performed Mar. 3 plant surveys in the closed Airport Fire burn area along N. Main Divide Road and the Blue Jay and Falcon Camp areas of the Santa Ana Mts. Then, they conducted additional surveys in the Elsinore Peak and San Mateo Wilderness area of South Main Divide Road on Mar 15.