Today I drove down the Sunrise Highway from Cuyamaca Lake to I-8, stopping at a number of locations. The Lagunas are pretty dry right now, and many things are in seed, thus somewhat difficult to identify. The purpose of this trip was to photograph the Machaeranthera asteroides var. lagunensis that Tom Chester reported several days ago. This taxon has been on my top priorities list for some time and I'm glad to have finally seen it, although the excitement factor was definitely lessened by the fact that it looked so similar to typical Machaeranthera canescens. Southern California species of Machaeranthera are being divided among four genera: Machaeranthera, Arida, Dieteria and Xanthisma. The Jepson Manual 1st edition suggested that M. asteroides may not in fact be separate from M. canescens, but the 2nd edition will apparently retain the separation with Dieteria canescens and D. asteroides being recognized. Thus the taxon under consideration here, which is a rare one previously called Machaeranthera lagunensis, will receive the taxonomic appellation of Dieteria asteroides var. lagunensis. I have decided for practical reasons not to change the names in my website until the 2nd edition is published. An upside-down V next to the common name below indicates a taxon that was new to me when I photographed it on this field trip.

Southern mountain woolstar
Eriastrum densifolium ssp. austromontanum
Polemoniaceae

Laguna Mountains goldenbush ^
Ericameria cuneata var. macrocephala
Asteraceae

Wand wirelettuce
Stephanomeria virgata ssp. pleurocarpa
Asteraceae

Indian Valley bush mallow
Malacothamnus aboriginum
Malvaceae

California goldenrod
Solidago californica
Asteraceae

California buckwheat
Eriogonum fasciculatum
Polygonaceae

Foothill penstemon
Penstemon heterophyllus var. australis
Scrophulariaceae

Basin sagebrush
Artemisia tridentata ssp. tridentata
Asteraceae

Birch-leaf mountain mahogany
Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides
Rosaceae

California black oak
Quercus kelloggii
Fagaceae

Parish's Jacumba milk-vetch
Astragalus douglasii var. parishii
Fabaceae

Willow-herb
Epilobium ciliatum ssp. ciliatum
Onagraceae

Leafy daisy, Fleabane-aster
Erigeron foliosus var. foliosus
Asteraceae

Wright's buckwheat
Eriogonum wrightii var. membranaceum
Polygonaceae

Golden stars
Bloomeria crocea
Liliaceae