Wildflowers | Santa Barbara Hikes

Common name	Botanical Name
Periwinkle	Vinca major Cold Springs Trail Periwinkle is non-native. It has naturalized near creeks in our frontcountry. Usually when you see periwinkle it means that at some time in the past someone probably had a homestead there. blue, purple, shade
Phacelia	Phacelia ciliata Spring, Carrizo Plain blue, purple, shade, sticky, sun
Poison Hemlock	Conium maculatum Toro Canyon Looks like Queen Anne's Lace, but is Poison Hemlock. It really is poisonous. summer, white
Poison Oak	Toxicodendron diversilobum Spring Poison oak can be found almost anywhere, but particularly in moist shady areas under the trees. shade, yellow
Popcorn Flower	Borage, Cryptantha spp. Willow Springs Trail I think "Popcorn Flower" is a catch all name for tiny, fluffy white flowers. But apparently they are identified quite precisely by microscopic examinations. I didn't do any of that, of course. sticky, white
Prickly Phlox	Leptodactylon californicum Spring, Hurricane Deck and Lost Valley Trail junction five petals, pink, purple, sun
Prickly Phlox	Leptodactylon californicum Spring, East Camino Cielo Road five petals, pink, purple, sun
Prince's Plume	Stanleya pinnata May at Manzana Schoolhouse Camp sun, yellow
Purple Perez	Acourtia microcephala? Spring, Potrero Trail A botanist friend identified this. I have never seen the purple part. In summer it dries up and is very crunchy as you walk on or by it. It tends to grow under the Chamise. purple, shade
Purple Sage	Salvia leucophylla Spring, Potrero Trail Purple sage is quite common. pink, purple, sun
Purple Sage	Salvia leucophylla Jesusita Trail Purple sage is quite common. pink, purple, sun
Red Maids	Calandrinia ciliata Carrizo Plains The camera doesn't quite capture the electric red that these are. They look way too purple-pink here. five petals, pink, red, sun
Rock Rose	Helianthemum scoparium Cold Springs Trail This resembles deerweed in a way, and can be found growing next to it. five petals, summer, sun, yellow
Rose clover	Trifolium hirtum McMenemy trail April in the sun. pink, sun
Rose Snapdragon	Antirrhinum multiflorum Montecito Peak These flowers are a little sticky to the touch. pink, purple, sticky, summer, sun
Scarlet Bugler Penstemon	Penstemon centranthifolius Spring, Lost Valley Trail at junction with Hurricane Deck I waited a very long time to take a picture of the hummingbird. These flowers attract hummingbirds. red, summer, sun
Scarlet Larkspur	Delphinium cardinale Gibraltar Rd near Flores Flats Upper Cold Springs near Montecito Peak has lots of these, as does East Camino Cielo Road near the end of the pavement. Blooms around summer solstice. red, summer, sun
Scarlet Monkeyflower	Mimulus cardinalis Davy Brown Trail/Fir Canyon These grow near creeks. They don't have a lot of flowers in a bunch like regular orange monkey flowers. red, shade
Scarlet Pimpernel	Anagallis arvensis This little plant is usually considered a weed, and grows like one too. But it appears on wildflower lists all the time and has a respectable name. I have always loved these. I used to play with them when I was a child in Goleta. five petals, orange, peach, pink, summer, weed
Seep Monkey-flower	Mimulus guttatus Spring, Franklin Trail A reliable place to see these is on Happy Canyon Road just past the shooting range. They grow around springs. shade, summer, yellow
Shooting star	Dodecatheon Spring, Snyder Trail Shooting stars are one of the earliest spring flowers and prefer shady or north-facing grassy hillsides. pink, shade, sun
Slender Tarweed	Hemizonia fasciculata Malibu near the beach on a bluff five petals, summer, yellow
Snakeweed	Gutierrezia californica Snakeweed Lost Valley Trail. Has very tiny flowers. Bloomed in fall next to trail. Originally mistaken for Golden Bush (Ericameria ericoides). fall, sun, yellow
Sneezeweed	Helenium puberulum Red Rock upper swimming hole I don't know what this is. It was growing in a seep at a swimminghole at Red Rock. It has no petals. summer, sun, yellow
Snowdrop bush	Styrax officinalis West Camino Cielo Rd. I've seen these on the trail to the Playgrounds, too. Likes less than full sun. shade, six petals, sun, white
Soap plant	Chlorogalum pomeridianum Toro Canyon Finally I find out what bloomed from the distinctive, low-growing, long, narrow lily-like leaves I kept seeing on the trail. These are very tall. summer, sun, white
Star Lily or Death Camas	Zigadenus fremontii Spring, Rattlesnake Trail green, six petals, white
Star Thistle	Centaurea solstitialis East Camino Cielo Rd. Invasive weed, grows everywhere. Is easily confused with Tocolote, but has longer thorns and is generally taller. Seems to grow at lower elevations than Tocolote can. invasive, summer, yellow
Sticky Phacelia	Phacelia viscida May, Hurricane Deck These like full sun and poor soil. I found them in gypsum-rich soil. blue, purple, sticky, sun
Stinging lupine	Lupinus hirsutissimus Spring, Aliso Trail The ID for this is a guess. The only similar photo I found was much bluer than this one. Lupines are members of the pea family, as is the yellow flower in the background. pink, sun
Stinging Nettle	Urtica dioica Manzana River Stinging nettle hurts very much. It often cloggs the trail at river crossings, forcing you to brush against. it. Avoid it if you can. green, summer, sun
Stinging Nettle	Urtica dioica Davy Brown Trail Stinging nettle hurts very much. It often cloggs the trail at river crossings, forcing you to brush against. it. Avoid it if you can. green, summer, sun
Stream Orchid	Epipactis gigantea Found near streams. You may find it where you also find horse tails. It is a true orchid, and despite the "gigantea" in the name, it is very small. The flowers are about an inch or less in size. spring, brown, green, shade
Suncups	Camissonia bistorta Carrizo Plain Low growing spring flower. four petals, sun, yellow
Tall stephanomeria or Wand chicory	Stephanomeria virgata Arroyo Burro Trail Summer blooming. Likes sun and can be seen growing along East Camino Cielo Rd. fall, pink, purple, summer, sun, white
Tamarisk or Saltcedar	Tamarix ramosissima Red Rock Invasive, non-native weed. Drinks too much water and can suck water resources dry, depriving other plants of water. pink, summer, sun
Thick-leaved Yerba Santa	Eriodictyon crassifolium Romero Trail These are common wherever sunny, sagey places are. It looks just like Yerba Santa only with white flowers instead of purple. silver, white
Thistle	Circium vulgare Near 19 Oaks There are many kinds of thistles that look similar to this one. The heads on these are about 1 inch across. pink, purple, red, summer, sun, weed
Tidy Tips	Layia platyglossa Spring, Camuesa Connector sun, yellow
Tocolote	Centaurea melitensis East Camino Cielo Rd. Invasive weed, grows everywhere. Is easily confused with Start thistle, but has shorter thorns and is generally a shorter plant. It also seems to have a larger range including higher altitude than star thistle. invasive, summer, yellow
Toyon	Heteromeles arbutifolia 19 Oaks This is the fruit. Fruit at Christmas. Flowers are white. Common chaparral shrub. red, sun, winter
Tree Tobacco	Nicotiana glauca Romero Trail These grow everywhere like weeds. Most people see them that way and rip them out. They bloom almost all year, and one year I was entertained daily by all the hummingbirds who fought over their tobacco tree. Very attractive to hummers. summer, yellow
Turkish Rugging	Chorizanthe staticoides Cold Springs Trail There is a good patch on the dirt road at the powerlines on Cold Springs Trail. pink, summer, sun
Twining snapdragon	Antirrhinum kelloggii West Fork Very small and really looks like a snapdragon, so it's easy to identify. purple, summer, sun
Unknown little white flower	Carrizo Plains Grew under a juniper bush. five petals, shade, white
Unknown small purple flower	Toro Canyon This small flower grew in the shade. five petals, purple, shade, summer
Unknown tiny purple flower	Unknown flower Very short flower about 1 inch high. Grew on dirt road in sandy clay soil at about 4-5000' elevation above Carrizo Plains. five petals, purple, sun
Venus Thistle or Red Thistle	Cirsium occidentale var. venustum Davy Brown Trial Likes sun, blooms in summer. red, summer, sun
Verbena	Verbena lasiostachys Gaviota Hot Springs I can't remember if we went during Spring or Summer. This flower is quite common in disturbed areas. purple, shade, summer, sun
Wedge-leaf horkelia	Horkelia cuneata Toro Canyon A member of the rose family. Grew next to a dirt road in a spot that would probably have shade at least half the day. five petals, summer, white