Walks Among Wildflowers
When Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark set out on their Voyage of Discovery across the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase over two centuries ago, they surveyed the plants and animals found west of the Mississippi. One of the wildflower specimens Clark brought back to President Thomas Jefferson was a unique flower subsequently named “clarkia” in his honor that was among those featured at a Clarkia festival held May 17 at UCLA’s Mathias Botanical Garden.
One species of Clarkia that is among the expedition’s botanical collection in Philadelphia has a unique wheel- or spoke-like arrangement that is the symbol of the festival held at UCLA in late spring. Clarkia blossoms also come in cup-shaped blossoms in mauve to pink to white, often with blotches of contrasting color. Friends of mine in Los Angeles frequently walk the paths in UCLA’s Mathias Botanical Garden and take me with them virtually. When they shared images of Clarkia species native to California this May, I was inspired to find sources of seeds that I could start in pots for my patio garden, or simply sow with hope and abandon here and there in open patches of soil around the yard.
After a bit of online research, I found assorted nursery and seed collectors not just in California, but from GA, OH, Iowa as well. After placing orders for different varieties of this gorgeous wildflower that I could not resist, I began receiving packets of the tiny seeds that now fill a small basket await attention so I can have their flowers blooming by mid-June.
Lately, I’ve been taking walks in nature preserves in my own neighborhood and along trails around Nevada County. A five-minute walk from our driveway, there is a magnificent woods in our Deer Park neighborhood filled with tall pines that soar skyward, a sprinkling of magical dogwoods, and occasional gnarly trunks of old oaks. Native wildflowers and wild berries grow along dirt trails that lead this way and that way, inviting visitors to experience the space with nothing but the sound of birds and crows perched in the treetops. It is a sanctuary where I walk alone each morning before the day fills with the stuff of life that can clutter the mind.
In this woods I find tiny plants to inspect, giant rock formations to marvel over, and signs left by earlier walkers pointing out the pathways maintained for visitors who come to meditate in the heart of the woods. It is a treasure where it is possible to walk for 45 minutes without encountering a single person, dog, or vehicle.
Another walk I have just discovered is but 15 minutes from Kit’s Lodge in Grass Valley. Last week my neighbor Carol and I took a 2.6 mile walk on the Wildflower Ridge Trail and along the Rough and Ready Ditch Trail—both part of the Wildflower Ridge Preserve established in 2023 to be protected forever as part of the Bear Yuba Land Trust.
The trust’s mission protects and defends the working and nature in the Bear and Yuba River watersheds and empowers a healthy resilient community through nature access and education. Maintenance of the trails is the work of amazing volunteers like Carol who support the BYLT’s mission to preserve such spaces through community conservation and stewardship for visitors now and forever.
Signs next to various species of wildflowers credit the indigenous peoples who understood the value of preserving botanicals whose uses were essential to their lives. UCLA’s Botanical Garden has a similar mission to share the beauty of native wildflowers through festivals and education programs for adults as children alike.
Wherever such places exist in cities as well as within quiet pockets tucked here and there along country roads, one can find moments of quiet and beauty that surround the soul and fill us with wonder. I am blessed to have such places just a walk or short drive away here in the foothills of the Sierras in Nevada County.