Foothill
and Mountain Plant Photos |
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Sierra
Nevada Plants
Foothill Plants
Northern California
Flowers
Oak Trees
Conifers
Other
Links to More Photo Albums |
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New
photos here April 10, here
April 16, here May 15, here
May 22 and here June 6, 2024 (captions in red) |
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Click photo for a larger
view (pictures open in a new window) |
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Sierra
Nevada |
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![](images/tsierra140.jpg) |
![](images/tpostpi05.jpg) |
![](images/tpostpi02.jpg) |
A lone
lodgepole pine |
Corn lilies |
Nature's rock garden |
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![](images/tsierra127.jpg) |
![](images/tsierra107.jpg) |
![](images/tsierra063.jpg) |
Sierra junipers |
Red Leaves |
Gnarled roots |
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![](images/tsierra22.jpg) |
![](images/tsierr115.jpg) |
![](images/tsierr138.jpg) |
Monster Tree |
Dead Manzanita on carpet of live
plants |
Chinquapin |
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![](images/tsierr201.jpg) |
![](images/tsierr204.jpg) |
![](images/tsierr134.jpg) |
Shooting Star |
Sugar Pine Cones |
Red leaves near Rock
Creek |
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![](images/tnelder37.jpg) |
![](images/tsierra421.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif730.jpg) |
Dogwood Leaves, Nelder Grove, Sierra
National Forest |
Lilly
Pond, Old Wishon Road |
Shooting
Star in meadow near Stargazer Rock |
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![](images/tcalif722.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1050.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder044.jpg) |
Mushroom,
Sierra National Forest |
Returning
to the earth |
Azalea
in Nelder Grove |
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![](images/tsierra347.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif981.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1515.jpg) |
Cattail,
Sierra Nevada |
Dead
lodgepole pines near Mammoth Lakes CA |
Life
on a rock |
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![](images/tcalif1519.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1522.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1535.jpg) |
California's
green and gold |
Fiesta
flowers |
Rusty
fern |
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![](images/tcalif1659.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1673.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif5059.jpg) |
Lichen
on granite creates rock art |
These
succulents are common in high rocky areas |
Large
fern by Lewis Creek |
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![](images/tcalif5393.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif5451.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif2615.jpg) |
"Just
right" tangy apples in a mountain orchard (J. Neely) |
Elderberries
in Sequoia National Park |
Snow
plants are so-called because they often emerge when snow is still on
the ground |
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![](images/tcalif2612.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif2619.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif2617.jpg) |
Growth
of a single plant, mid-June |
Bunched
together, they create a
brilliant red spot in the landscape
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Up
close |
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![](images/tcalif9114.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif6960.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7220.jpg) |
Aspens
reflected in Silver Lake, eastern Sierra Nevada |
Mountain
mahogany on Panum Crater near Mono Lake |
Dogwood
near California Creek,
Sierra National Forest
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![](images/tcalif7243.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder224.jpg) |
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Close-up
of dogwood leaves |
Inside
a hollow redwood stump in Nelder Grove
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Big
striped leaf thistle |
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![](images/tcalif8380.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif8551.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif9123.jpg) |
Wildflowers
gone to seed |
Ripening
manzanita berries |
Dried
seeds near June Lake |
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![](images/tyosem547.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif5469.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif9091.jpg) |
Bear
clover AKA Mountain Misery
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Bear
Clover in bloom |
Hillside
above Mono Lake |
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![](images/tcalif9094.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif9090.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif9095.jpg) |
High
desert plants near Mono Lake, eastern Sierra Nevada |
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![](images/tcalif12712.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif12159.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif12154.jpg) |
This
bush provides a spot of bright
fall color near Kaiser Pass |
New
growth rising out of the
destruction of the 2015 Rough Fire |
Gooseberries
- ripe and juicy, but covered with stickers |
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![](images/tcalif13156.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder356.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder334.jpg) |
Dogwood
near California Creek
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Pine
needles carpet the Chimney
Tree Trail in Nelder Grove |
Ferns
fading away, with mossy log segments in front |
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![](images/tcalif13029.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13027.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13037.jpg) |
The red trunks of a manzanita
forest
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Late
in the season, the bark peels off in curls
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Reeds
add a bright spot to Chiquito Creek
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![](images/tnelder336.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder377.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder373.jpg) |
"Tuck
and roll" moss in Nelder Grove |
Even
in fall, moss remains bright green |
The
last of the black oak leaves |
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![](images/tnelder386.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13133.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder359.jpg) |
Fascinating
fungus in Nelder Grove |
A
clump of grass and seed pods in a mountain creek |
Colorful
leaves carpet the ground in Nelder Grove |
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![](images/tcalif11950.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif11949.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif11951.jpg) |
Unique
succulents like this are found
in many Sierra Nevada mountain
locations |
Blossoms
appear late in the summer |
A
rugged-looking fern |
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![](images/tcalif14944.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif15673.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif16083.jpg) |
Ancient mossy log
and large ferns on the Lewis Creek Trail |
How many of these seeds
will germinate next year? |
Big
leaf maple in Feather River Canyon |
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![](images/tcalif16950.jpg) |
![](images/tyosemite770.jpg) |
![](images/tyosemite766.jpg) |
Ripe
elderberries in Kings Canyon Park |
A
perfect combination of sun and shadow
on the Wawona Meadow Loop
Trail |
Multiple
colored leaves carpet
the Wawona Meadow Loop Trail |
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![](images/tyosemite756.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif19190.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif19470.jpg) |
Ripe
berries, awaiting a hungry bird or bear |
Cliff
side plant along the road from Black Rock to Wishon |
Five
weeks into fall, big leaf maple
changes from green to gold |
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![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tnelder518.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tnelder523.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tnelder487.jpg) |
Dogwood
in the woods... |
...and
close-up |
Dogwood
branch on the forest floor |
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![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tyosemite1004.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tnelder591.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif19566.jpg) |
Ferns
turning yellow as fall arrives in Yosemite |
A
6-inch dogwood leaf in Nelder Grove |
Wild
strawberry plants in Buffin Meadow (Wes Thiessen_ |
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![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif19608.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif19609.jpg) |
![](images/tnelder797.jpg) |
Bay
leaf on a hilltop near Highway 168 in the Sierra |
Bear
clover surrounded by fallen black oak leaves |
Fern in California Creek near
Nelder Grove |
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![](images/tgraysmtn07.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif21723.jpg) |
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An
unusual mushroom near Willow Creek |
This determined reed
made
its way out from under a big log |
An unusual chlorophyll-free plant
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![](images/tcalif23548.jpg) |
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Corn lilies, AKA skunk cabbage
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Not
sure what it is, but it provides
a nice contrast among the green |
"Fuzzy" fungus near
Wawona Meadow
(by Susan Crandall)
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![](images/tcalif24304.jpg) |
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Brilliant red dogwood leaves by the
meadow
(by Wes Thiessen)
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Fungus
by the Wawona Meadow Loop Trail |
Drying grass near Auberry and Bald
Mountain Roads
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Foothills
(Sierra & Coast Mountains) |
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![](images/tsierra043.jpg) |
![](images/tsierra072.jpg) |
![](images/tsierra116.jpg) |
Yerba
Santa, AKA wild peach |
Lace pods |
Buckeye in fall |
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![](images/tsierra121.jpg) |
![](images/tthistle2.jpg) |
![](images/tthistle%204.jpg) |
Yellow & orange lichen; spring
grass |
Thistle
blossom |
Thistle
ready to re-seed |
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![](images/tmullein%202.jpg) |
![](images/tmullein06.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif692.jpg) |
Jennifer
& the mullein from Star Trek (J. Neely photo) |
Mullein
seed head |
Spring
grass at Sawmill Flat Camp above
Pine Flat Reservoir, Fresno County
CA |
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![](images/tcalif858.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1474.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1862.jpg) |
Soft
& fuzzy grass in Mariposa County |
Wild
cucumber |
Beautiful
flowers, but their smell
caused us to call this stinkweed |
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![](images/tcalif1749.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1768.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1824.jpg) |
Gnarled
but still-living Manzanita above Napa Valley |
Manzanita
close-up |
Fall
berries near Hensley Reservoir, Madera County |
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![](images/tcalif3163.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif3612.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif1750.jpg) |
Yerba
Santa is taking over this rarely used pavement |
Rural
Madera County garden |
More
gnarly manzanita |
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![](images/tcalif2651.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif2114.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif4417.jpg) |
Buckeyes
near Oakhurst CA |
Miner's
lettuce near Hensley Lake |
Wild
grass seed near Millerton Lake |
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![](images/tcalif4421.jpg) |
![Remains of a manzanita killed in the fire](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif4707.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif4708.jpg) |
Buckeye near
Millerton |
Remains
of manzanita killed in
1981 fire at San Joaquin Gorge |
Close
up of the base |
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![](images/tcalif5070.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif5071.jpg) |
![Miner's lettuce after seed formation](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif6428.jpg) |
Fremontia,
also known as Flannel Bush |
Waves
of wild grain |
Miner's
lettuce after seed formation
|
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![](images/tcalif6252.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif6258.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif6510.jpg) |
Nature's
artistry - South Fork, Merced River |
Don't
be tempted to pick these pretty poison oak leaves |
Buckeye
blossoms along Trimmer Road, Fresno County |
|
![Typical "candle" shape of buckeye](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif6513.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7097.jpg) |
![](images/tneely807.jpg) |
Typical "candle"
shape of buckeye
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A
variety of buckwheat
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Jalapeños
in the Neely garden, Summer, 2014 |
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![](images/tcalif7199.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7183.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7141.jpg) |
The
bones of a long dead bush |
Buckeye
adds some color to the fall palette
|
Lots
of tall dead grass |
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![](images/tcalif7989.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7909.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7835.jpg) |
New
shoots of an elderberry bush |
Rare
white shooting stars |
Poppies
next to Pine Flat Lake |
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![](images/tcalif8013.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif8064.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif8198.jpg) |
This
rocky hill top is covered with flowers
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Dead
plants have beauty too |
This spectacular
4-inch flower
near
Pine Flat Lake is known as Blazing Star
|
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![](images/tcalif8086.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif8084.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif8092.jpg) |
Redbud
along the Merced River Canyon
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Redbud
close-up |
Redbud
and ponderosa pine |
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![](images/tcalif8091.jpg) |
Redbud
in the Merced River canyon near the confluence with the South Fork |
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![](images/tcalif7567.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7535.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7845.jpg) |
Mushroom
near Hensley Lake |
Lone
lupine at Hensley Lake, February 2015
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Popcorn
flowers near Pine Flat |
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![](images/tcalif7900.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif7925.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif8278.jpg) |
Wild
oats going to seed near Pine Flat Reservoir |
Spring
scene near Pine Flat |
As
a kid I thought of these as miniature orange trees |
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![](images/tcalif9039.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif9031a.jpg) |
![Germinating buckeye seed](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif9995.jpg) |
Another
mutant mullein, near Oakhurst
|
An
ancient, upside-down tree stump |
Germinating buckeye
seed |
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![](images/tcalif10471.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10480.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10539.jpg) |
Lupines and fiddlenecks between
Trimmer Springs
Road and the Kings River (by Wes Thiessen) |
A
perfectly designed scene at Edison
Point by Pine Flat Lake (Thiessen) |
Leafless
tree and poppies at Pine Flat Lake (Thiessen) |
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![](images/tcalif10484.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10499.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10481.jpg) |
Poppies
up close |
Along
the Edison Point Trail at Pine Flat |
Blue
Dicks, one of the most common flowers in the foothills |
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![](images/tcalif10514.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10276.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10281.jpg) |
Filaree blossoms and seed
pods
|
Wind-blown
bush lupine on Pincushion Peak |
Lupines
and poppies on the steep side of the peak |
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![](images/tcalif10420.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10095.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10295.jpg) |
A massive field of fiddlenecks
near
Dry Creek in Tulare County |
Another
patch of poppies |
Poppies
and fallen bull pine branch |
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![](images/tcalif10188.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10232.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10125.jpg) |
A fine example of miner's lettuce |
New
leaf buds on buckeye bush |
An
interesting orange mushroom |
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![](images/tcalif10140.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10349.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10420.jpg) |
Nature's planter box |
Massive
crop of lace pods, Spring 2016 |
Brilliant
orange field of fiddlenecks |
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![](images/tcalif10976.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif10711.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13397.jpg) |
Wild
cucumber seed pod |
Grass
at Pine Flat Lake, Spring 2016 |
Strikingly
beautiful mushrooms at the San Joaquin Gorge |
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![Succulent in the moss on a rocky bank near the San Joaquin Gorge bridge](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif13387.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13384.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13532.jpg) |
Succulent
in the moss on a rocky bank
near the San Joaquin Gorge bridge |
Old
dead limbs and new green grass make a nice picture |
Dramatic
dead manzanita on the San Joaquin River Trail |
|
![](images/tcalif13531.jpg) |
![Dried wild cucumber seed pods](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif13530.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13635.jpg) |
Mushrooms
on a rotting log0 |
Dried
wild cucumber seed pods |
Dead
plant stands out against the gray of Pine Flat Reservoir |
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![](images/tcalif13628.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif13680.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif14425.jpg) |
Last
year's tall grass, beaten down by heavy rainfall
|
Dramatic
old sycamore by
Millerton Road in Fresno County |
The
brilliant red of poison oak leaves
makes you want to pick some
|
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![View into the San Joaquin River Gorge](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif14720.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif14722.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif14817.jpg) |
View
into the San Joaquin River Gorge |
Redbud
above the San Joaquin |
Along
the Bridge Trail at the San Joaquin Gorge |
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![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif17029.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif17388.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif2654.jpg) |
Milkweed
seed pod and guests |
Dry mullein stalks by Old
Yosemite Road |
Mullein,
bent but unbroken |
|
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif2639.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif2640.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif2641.jpg) |
Giant
puffball mushrooms, above
Road 620 in Madera County |
Big
enough to use as a football |
My
favorite foothill tree, the manzanita |
|
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif3023.jpg)
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![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif17455.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif17741.jpg) |
Wild
oats at Hensley
|
A
lot of buckeye seeds, all lined up |
Sycamore
tree near the Bear Wallow
Trailhead by the Kings River |
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![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif17777.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif18105.jpg) |
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Poison
oak leafing out |
A
huge sycamore by the Kings River |
Sycamore near the Upper Kings
River
|
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![](images/tcalif19703.jpg) |
![](images/tcalif19740.jpg) |
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Colorful
blue oak near the upper Kings River |
A forest of leafless buckeye
trees |
Hanging garden above Mill Flat
Creek
|
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![](images/tcalif20550.jpg) |
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![](images/tcalif20903.jpg) |
An excellent mullein near
Oakhurst |
Roots of a very determined manzanita
|
Muted
fall colors near Sky Harbor on Millerton Lake |
|
![](images/tcalif20919.jpg) |
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![](images/tcalif21167.jpg) |
Buckeye by Old Yosemite Road near
Oakhurst |
New leaves on sycamores
|
Last
year's thistle blossom |
|
![](images/tcalif21979.jpg) |
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![](images/tcalif24409.jpg) |
Golden
leaves |
Dew on new grass at San Joaquin Gorge,
February 2023
|
Filaree,
gone to seed; you can see why
this plant is sometimes called storkbill |
|
![](images/tcalif24421.jpg) |
|
![](images/tcalif24548.jpg) |
Fern
above Pine Flat Lake |
Fluffy grass at Lake Millerton
|
Grass,
pounded down by a hard rain storm the night before |
|
![](images/tcalif24552.jpg) |
|
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I've
heard this called a caterpillar plant |
Buckeye at Pine Flat Reservoir
|
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|
Northern
California |
|
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif18979.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif19004.jpg) |
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif19005.jpg) |
Probably
some type of maple, in McArthur-Burney State Park |
A
very thorny sticker bush in Lava Beds National Monument |
Another
unidentified plant in the Monument |
|
![](http://www.dickestel.com/images/tcalif18982.jpg) |
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Spider
webs in a tree in McArther-Burney |
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