A descriptive plant survey was conducted of Golden and Silver Falls State Natural Area in the Coast Range northeast of Coos Bay in Coos County, Oregon, during 1988, 1990, and 1997. The 63.6 ha natural area was established in 1936 to preserve an old-growth stand of Pseudotsuga menziesii surrounding the area of two scenic waterfalls. Vascular flora consisted of 241 specific and infraspecific taxa in 162 genera from 61 families, of which 70 taxa (29 %) were exotics. The five plant habitats were steep coniferous mountain slopes (Pseudotsuga menziesii-Tsuga heterophylla/Acer circinatum/Polystichum munitum association) and (Pseudotsuga menziesii-Tsuga heterophylla/Gaultheria shallon/Polystichum munitum association), sandstone cliff escarpments, lowland valley hardwoods (Acer macrophyllum-Umbellularia californica/Polystichum munitum association), ruderal, and riparian floodplain (Alnus rubra/Rubus spectabilis/Oxalis oregana association).

We present a summary of a database documenting levels of affinity to ultramafic (“serpentine”) substrates for taxa in the California flora, USA. We constructed our database through an extensive literature search, expert opinion, field observations, and intensive use of accession records at key herbaria. We developed a semi-quantitative methodology for determining levels of serpentine affinity (strictly endemic, broadly endemic, strong “indicator”, etc.) in the California flora. In this contribution, we provide a list of taxa having high affinity to ultramafic/serpentine substrates in California, and present information on rarity, geographic distribution, taxonomy, and lifeform. Of species endemic to California, 12.5% are restricted to ultramafic substrates. Most of these taxa come from a half-dozen plant families, and from only one or two genera within each family. The North Coast and Klamath Ranges support more serpentine endemics than the rest of the State combined. 15% of all plant taxa listed as threatened or endangered in California show some degree of association with ultramafic substrates. Information in our database should prove valuable to efforts in ecology, floristics, biosystematics, conservation, and land management.

This note addresses the identification and California distribution of Psorothamnus fremontii (A. Gray) Barneby s.l. and P. arborescens (A. Gray) Barneby s.l. Both plants are generically known as indigo bush. Psorothamnus fremontii, sometimes called Fremont's indigo bush, can only be distinguished from P. arborescens by analysis of the seed pods, which differ in size, arrangement and exudates of their glands. The distribution of P. fremontii is very limited in California, restricted to the Grapevine Mountains, in Death Valley National Park, near the Nevada border, and the Providence Mountains, California State Recreation Area and nearby Lavic. Psorothamnus arborescens is much more common in California and occurs throughout the Mojave Desert and barely into the Great Basin Desert, from near Mount San Jacinto to the White Mountains.

For an old-growth forest edge in the Sierra Nevada, we quantified the extent of edge effects from a group selection harvest. Across transects from the interior of the old-growth forest through the group selection opening, we quantified changes in resource availability (light, soil moisture, and seedbed) and vegetation composition (cover, richness). We found a steep change in light availability and community composition from the intact old-growth to the group selection. Both parametric and non-parametric multivariate analyses indicated two distinct plant associations, old-growth and group selection, with little indication of an edge association. Understory plant species richness normalized to a total area sampled of 0.25 ha was significantly greater in the group selection (74 species) than in the old-growth (55 species). Chimaphila umbellata and Carex brainerdii were the most abundant species in the old-growth and group selection respectively. Tragopogon dubius was the most abundant of six exotic species found in the group selection while there were no nonnative species found in the old-growth forest.

Large pollen grains are difficult to quantify accurately. In order to ensure none have escaped, the anther must be removed and preserved before it is fully mature, leaving the pollen grains somewhat fragile and cohesive. Any method of quantification requires that they be separated into discrete grains, a difficult process, in part, due to their immature state. A probe sonicator can effectively disperse pollen grains from an opened anther in a petri dish partially filled with water. If the grains are too large to readily remain in suspension they can be allowed to settle in the petri dish and then quantified. As long as the grains are uniformly distributed in the petri dish, a compound microscope can be used to count the pollen grains in a field of view, and the contents of multiple fields of view can be used to extrapolate the total number of pollen grains.