Hillside walk, 07 April 2018
Although the hillsides look predominantly green, they have a widespread sprinkling of wildflowers, about as good as they get in a typical year. It's the peak of the spring season! We now have a multitude of strigose lotus (Acmispon strigosus) on the mid north hillside; the bluebells (Phacelia minor) are in masses, especially on the lower north hillside; the black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa) of Canyon 6 has a multitude of flowers; the miner's lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata ssp. mexicana) of Canyon 5 has masses of bloom; the common fiddleneck (Amsinkia intermedia) at the top of the west hillside is in full bloom; the fuchsia-flowered gooseberry (Ribes speciosum) continues it's heavy flowering in multiple locations; the spiny redberry (Rhamnus crocea) on the north hillside is flowering at last; and so on.
All of the ferns continue to be green, too, with goldenback fern (Pentagramma triangularis) in Canyon 6 being about as large as I've seen it here. It never gets more than a few inches high before it disappears in the summer dryness.
Overall, the hillsides are highly attractive right now.