El Dorado CNPS Home • Nature Notebook

Just for fun, let's look at the name of California's best known mountain range. The Spanish word sierra has several meanings. In a general way, the word means a saw used to cut, as in sierra de mano, handsaw, or sierra circular, buzz saw. In a geologic sense, sierra means simply a "jagged mountain range". Since nevada is a Spanish adjective formed from the word nieve, snow. The name Sierra Nevada simply means "snowy jagged mountain range."

In other words, Sierra Nevada is already plural.

The Pine Hill Reserve is one of the western slope's most easily visited places to find rare flowers. It is also one of the most threatened as new home construction continues to wipe out native vegetation in a small area that supports an amazing eight Rare, Threatened, or Endangered plants! To add to the frustration, it is easy to presume that those doing the building are unaware of the special plants they are almost certainly wiping out as they prep their property for landscaping.

Snow Plant: Read this article about the bright red plant that always gets noticed! Popping up in early Spring, snow plants have the distinction of being one of the most eye-catching objects to be found in the forest. They never get all that tall (12" is big so you need to get down on your knees to see the interesting flowers. You'll be surprised to learn that these plants are related to Manzanita; both are members of the Ericaceae family.

Bassi Falls: So near, yet far! Located in the nearness of the Eldorado National Forest, only a few miles from the popular Ice House Resort, Bassi Falls is almost too easy to visit. So why is that a problem? Because too many visitors treated it as a 4x4 playground and a spot for bonfire parties. In Summer of 2002, the USFS took action and blocked vehicle access to Bassi Falls. Things are already much improved.

Clark's Nutcracker and the Whitebark Pine: How would you like it if you only had a few weeks to gather your groceries for most of the coming year, running from the store with only a few bags at a time, hiding them in places that only you would find, then go back for more? And now add the fact that you had to remember exactly where each of those grocery stashes had been put -and do it without a map, relying simply on your ability to recognize the surroundings months later?

Butterfly gardening in the foothills is different from butterfly gardening in the Central Valley. Find out how to plant gardens that attract local butterflies.

Note that planting for Nature as well as your own aestetic is very important. With increased development in the area, property owners need to do their part to provide habitat for birds, bugs, and other wild forms of life.

Toyon. Learn a little something about this attractive winter shrub. Often taken to be some sort of holly, Toyon is an attractive winter shrub as well as providing nice white flowers in Spring. Well represented along roads in Placerville to Camino, it's easy to find one to enjoy up close.