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Spring Wildflowers and Wild Roses
By Jerry Schad — May 28, 2011, 9:17 a.m.
Spring Wildflowers may have largely dried up in most areas of San Diego County, but in the cooler coastal enclaves such as Cabrillo National Monument and Torrey Pines State Reserve, several kinds remain. Look for paintbrush, purple nightshade, coreopsis, sea fig, popcorn flower, and red monkey flower, among others. Wild ... 2 comments
Rabbits, and Rodents, and Raids — Oh, My!
By Jerry Schad — May 19, 2011, 2:00 a.m.
The rabbit and rodent population is peaking in the canyons and hillsides of coastal San Diego County. In many neighborhoods, car headlights illuminate the rear ends of scampering cottontail rabbits making raids on succulent garden vegetation. On the fringes of suburbia, sleek coyotes are sometimes spotted slinking about in pursuit ... Post a comment
Wildflowers, Silk Oaks, Chamise, Buckwheat, and Agaves
By Jerry Schad — May 5, 2011, 4:33 p.m.
San Diego's Coastal Wildflower Bloom continues practically unabated this year owing to late-season rains and cooler weather during April. On north-facing slopes and in shady canyon bottoms, where the sun's drying effects have not yet taken hold, look for native red monkeyflower, blue-eyed grass, wild hyacinth, and nonnatives such as ... Post a comment
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Grunion Running, Snakes Emerging
By Jerry Schad — May 1, 2011, 5:01 p.m.
Grunion Runs are predicted to occur during the late evening hours (generally after 10 p.m. and before 1 a.m.), following the nocturnal high tide, on May 3 though May 6. The small, silvery grunion tend to spawn on wide, gently sloping beaches such as Silver Strand, Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, ... Post a comment
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Jacarandas, Mustard Plants, and Locust Trees
By Jerry Schad — April 29, 2011, 9:54 a.m.
Blue-Blossoming Jacaranda Trees have already produced a first wave of color along the streets of San Diego. By early or mid-May, warm weather permitting, this Brazilian import could put on a dazzling show. The larger jacarandas, which in full bloom are leafless, or nearly so, display myriads of delicate, trumpet-shaped ... Post a comment
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Lyrid Meteor Shower to Peak Saturday
By Jerry Schad — April 21, 2011, 1:53 p.m.
The Lyrid Meteor Shower, which takes place annually, peaks on the morning of Saturday, April 23. This relatively minor meteor shower (20 meteors per hour at peak) will take place mostly after midnight. The moon, just short of third-quarter phase, will significantly interfere with observations this year. Post a comment
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Monkey Flowers, Star Jasmine, Black Oaks, and Desert Agaves
By Jerry Schad — April 19, 2011, 9:02 a.m.
Monkey-Flowers /of various species are putting on an excellent display this month around San Diego. Look for these low, shrub-like plants with tubular yellow, orange, or red flowers wherever native vegetation clothes the landscape -- from the coastal bluffs to the lower slopes of the mountains. As you drive Interstates ... Post a comment
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Grunion Runs
By Jerry Schad — April 17, 2011, 8:48 a.m.
Grunion Runs are predicted to occur during the late evening hours (generally after 10 p.m. and before 1 a.m.), following the nocturnal high tide, on April 17 though April 20. The small, silvery grunion tend to spawn on wide, gently sloping beaches such as Silver Strand, Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, ... Post a comment
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Coastal Wildflowers, Fremont Cottonwoods, and Bracken Ferns
By Jerry Schad — April 7, 2011, 1:26 p.m.
Warmer Temperatures and less rain coincide with the subtle onset of coastal San Diego's spring season. By April's end, the intermittent showery periods, Santa Ana winds, cold nights, and crystal-clear, sun-drenched days of winter will likely be distant memories. The nocturnal, low overcast hugging the coast, which may linger until ... Post a comment
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Sunday's Saturn and Sun Opposition
By Jerry Schad — April 1, 2011, 6:54 a.m.
The Planet Saturn lies at opposition to the sun on Sunday, April 3. Look for this creamy white planet rising over the east horizon as evening twilight gathers. Saturn stays in the sky all night, setting at sunrise on this date. It will remain a good telescopic target for the ... Post a comment
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Yuccas, Orchid Trees, and Citrus Blossoms
By Jerry Schad — March 30, 2011, 8:50 p.m.
Yuccas of two varieties are in bloom in San Diego County from now through May. Year after year, the Mojave yucca (Yucca schidigera) sends up a blunt flower stalk of white, waxy blossoms from the same base -- a rosette of dagger-like leaves. The shimmering white exclamation point that unfolds ... Post a comment
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The Big Dipper, the Planet Venus
By Jerry Schad — March 26, 2011, 4:25 p.m.
The Big Dipper, an abbreviated version of the larger constellation known as Ursa Major (the Great Bear), hovers nearly straight overhead during evening hours from March through June. The seven stars of the dipper -- all but one classified as "second magnitude" in brightness -- can be distinctly seen on ... Post a comment
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African Daisies, India Hawthorn, and Sage
By Jerry Schad — March 22, 2011, 10:05 a.m.
The Annual Green-to-Golden Transition of San Diego's wild grasslands typically starts during early April &mdash though this year, early rains in winter followed by abundant sunshine may accelerate the process. North-facing hillsides and canyon slopes retain the green color longer, as they are less exposed to drying sunshine. Locally, most ... Post a comment
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The Moon, the Tides, and the Vernal Equinox
By Jerry Schad — March 17, 2011, 12:07 a.m.
The Moon, just past full phase, rises into the darkening eastern sky at around 7:25 p.m. on Saturday, March 19, some 25 minutes after the sun sets. About twelve hours later, you can watch the moon sink into the Pacific Ocean while the sun is about to come up on ... Post a comment
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Borrego in Bloom
By Jerry Schad — March 15, 2011, 11:07 a.m.
The Anza-Borrego Desert State Park flowers best this month, with peak blooms expected early in the month in low-lying, warm areas like Borrego Valley, the Borrego Badlands, Coyote Canyon, and along Highway S-2 in the south end of the park. Among the many annually appearing wildflowers you'll find in the ... 2 comments
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Daylight Savings Time Begins This Weekend
By Jerry Schad — March 11, 2011, 12:15 p.m.
Pacific Daylight Time, or "daylight saving time," starts on Sunday morning, March 13, at 2 a.m. No time is "saved" by advancing our clocks by one hour. This sneaky trick in civil time is designed to rouse us out of bed an hour earlier so that we can enjoy what ... Post a comment
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Wind, Mexican Coral Trees, and Ornamental Peach Trees
By Jerry Schad — March 3, 2011, 9:33 a.m.
March Is the Proverbial Windy Month here in San Diego, as it is in many places. From midday to late afternoon, sun-warmed air expands and rises over the county's interior, drawing in an influx of cool air from the coast to replace it. These afternoon sea breezes will continue at ... Post a comment
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Ocean Temps, Ice Plant, Ceanothus, and Hummingbirds
By Jerry Schad — February 24, 2011, 12:07 a.m.
Ocean Water Temperatures, of late in the 50s Fahrenheit, are finally on the upswing this month as the daylight hours lengthen and the sun arcs higher overhead in the sky each day. It will take about five months of spring and summer sunshine before the local ocean’s enormous mass and ... Post a comment
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Manzanita Shrubs Coming into Bloom
By Jerry Schad — February 21, 2011, 7:54 a.m.
Manzanita Shrubs are starting to bloom this month in the foothill areas of the Cleveland National Forest. The various manzanitas, characterized by smooth, reddish bark and tough, leathery leaves, bear myriads of tiny, white to pinkish-white, urn-shaped blossoms. Large (decades-old) manzanitas can be seen around Julian and in parts of ... Post a comment
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Tree Height Measuring Ideal Today
By Jerry Schad — February 18, 2011, 7:50 a.m.
Tree Heights can be easily measured this week if the sun shines at midday. On or near Friday, February 18, at or very near 12 noon, the sun as seen from San Diego County stands at an altitude of 45 degrees above the horizon. Under those conditions, the length of ... 1 comment
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