LARGE-LEAVED FILAREE

Erodium macrophyllum

 

By Ian Gillespie, Rare Plants Co-coordinator

 

Large-leaved filaree is a small native plant with purple to pink flowers. When most people hear the word “filaree” or “Erodium” they immediately think of the invasive plants that are commonly found throughout California. But no, large-leaved filaree is one of the two native species of Erodium in California (the other is Erodium texanum). Unlike its common relatives, E. macrophyllum is quite rare.

 

Large-leaved filaree is an annual plant in the geranium family (Geraniaceae). It germinates in the fall or winter at the onset of the winter rains. It leaves are reniform in shape and typically have reddish veins and the flowers are usually born on umbels and typically stay open for a single day. The leaves are about 10-15 cm (4-6 inches) long. The flowers have 5 petals and 5 stamens, but the petals are often dropped by midday. Each flower forms a fruit made up of 1-5 seeds which when mature, dispersing them by flinging them from the parent plant. An awn attached to each seed coils and straightens in response to moisture and can effectively screw the seed into the ground if moisture levels fluctuate enough.

 

Large-leaved filaree is found in heavy clay soils, usually in grasslands or coastal sage scrub. Population sizes are usually small, but in some areas they can have more than 1,000 individuals. There have been approxi mately 100 documentations of large-leaved filaree. Many of these documentation were made before 1980 and may or may not still be extant. Large-leaved filaree is found from northern Baja California to southern Oregon with its highest density of populations occurring on the eastern side of the coast ranges in central California. In western Riverside County there are about a half-dozen known populations.

Wildflowers!!!

 Hotlines and Websites

 

Anza-Borrego Wildflower Hotline

 

760-767-4684

 

www.California-desert.org/start_main.html

 

Joshua Tree National Park

 

760-367-5500 – Press 1, then 9 for wildflower info recording

 

www.joshua.tree.national-park.com

 

Theodore Payne Foundation Wildflower Hotline

 

818-768-3533 – Recorded wildflower reports for Southern California, March through May. Updated on Thursdays.

Further Budget Cuts in Weed Programs

 

From Jake Sigg, 415-731-3028

 

Although all programs should be required to sacrifice to deal with the state budget deficit, two of the programs of most direct concern to CNPS--CA Dept of Food & Agriculture's Biological Control Program and its Weed & Vertebrate Program (aka Weed Eradication Program)--have taken disproportionate hits in the free-for-all budget cutting in Sacramento. Of all CDFA's programs, those which addressed weed problems in wildlands were singled out for decimation.

 

The Weed & Vertebrate Program is devoted to eradicating incipient infestations of pest plants and animals before they become problems. The Biological Control Program researches biological agents to control weeds such as yellow starthistle and tamarisk (saltcedar) that are too widespread to be controlled by other means. Both programs have already taken severe administrative hits in the 2002-03 budget and now the governor's 2003-04 budget proposes further hits, reducing both programs to skeleton staffs.

 

This is a nightmarish scenario. When you consider the economic and ecological devastation caused by invasive plants and animals, the thought of the consequences ensuing from the gutting of these programs is too awful to think about. The programs were already underfunded, new organisms are being introduced into California almost daily, and old weeds are becoming more aggressive and moving around faster.

 

What would be lost if the cuts go through? Certainly much of the biocontrols release and monitoring work, such as that on yellow starthistle, purple loosestrife, bull thistle, and spotted knapweed. Also, cooperative biocontrols projects with cooperating scientists worldwide, including researchers for the International Broom Initiative, will be endangered. Another serious loss would be the state's ability to eradicate early infestations of A-rated weeds around the state. The crew of district biologists will have gone from eight to as low as two -- statewide! Incipient populations of spotted knapweed, leafy spurge, and scotch thistle coming into northern counties from Oregon and Nevada will become full-fledged invasions. There will be less, if any, assistance coordinating local weed efforts and providing mapping support. (For more detail on the activities of CDFA's weed programs, see http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/ipc/)

 

This cut cashes in on one of the most cost-effective investments we can make in keeping our land healthy for the future. The weeds we don't control now will cost us exponentially more in the future, both in control costs and in losses to agricultural production and ecosystem services. Whatever small amount is saved in this year's

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