RESEARCH REPORT FROM THE FIELDJune 2021ByMichael Powell Assisted by Marsha Neill, Bob Waidner and Patty Waidner
At first blush, this past spring was a very uneventful wildflower season with almost no spring flowers to see and reward the few visitors and volunteers alike who ventured forth to the Reserve this year. With the Reserve closed last spring due to COVID19, the timing of this drought year couldn’t have been worse; two lost seasons in a row. This has certainly happened in the past, so it’s an opportunity to learn patience. The enthralling wildflower displays will return.With the volunteer researchers focus on observing the natural ebb and flow of the Reserve’s ecology, this season was not a complete loss because it gave an opportunity to gain a better understanding and appre-ciation, for the adaptability of Mother Nature and how that adaptability allows the natural community to maintain itself. This year is not the first, nor will it be the last time, extreme winter weather conditions have limited the spring wildflower displays. Within nature’s adaptability, however, there is always the abil-ity to recover. Winters of extreme weather, be it extremely wet winters or extremely dry winters, help to emphasize the observable limits of nature’s adaptability.This past winter/spring was the second driest over the last twenty four years as seen in the plot. The red line is the average seasonal rainfall over the last twenty four years.
The plot clearly shows the extreme variability in the seasonal rainfall the Poppy Reserve receives each winter/spring. This wide rainfall variability forces the Reserve’s various plant species to adapt quite dif-ferent complex survival strategies.If you are interested in a discussion of the researchers’ spring observations on the Reserve’s natural adaptability, I invite you to see the longer posting by selecting this link: June 2021 Research Report from the Field. The earliest part of this spring season was discussed in the last website posting, where this posting covers the entire wildflower season: March 13 2021Research Report from the Field As always, I end with encouraging everyone to continue to visit the Poppy Reserve. You won’t see much blooming except the rattlesnake weed and, maybe, the few growing turkey mullein plants but the new growth on the Joshua trees carry the promise for future, better wildflower displays in the coming years.
What does the Poppy Reserve look like right now? View the LIVE CAM.
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