A quick trip through the greenbelt
THE GARDEN FANATIC
“Human subtlety will never devise an invention more beautiful,
more simple or more direct than does Nature ....”
-- LEONARDO DA VINCI
“Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, it is no
more distant than in the canyon.”
-- with apologies to
Ralph Waldo Emerson
To hike through James Dilley Preserve is a pleasant adventure into
a treasured wilderness ... the center of 15,000 acres that compose
the Laguna Greenbelt. We were blessed with a glorious blue sky and a
gentle breeze; a perfect opportunity to visit plants and animals that
live in the wild.
The path to the nature cart held a certain interest for me. I had
helped to clear the overgrowth from it a couple years earlier. The
Laguna Greenbelt is in the coastal sage plant community, a narrow
band along the California coast. California sagebrush, Artemisia
californica, is the most dominant plant in the preserve. Fragrant and
drought tolerant, many species of insects, birds and mammals rely on
these hardy shrubs.
Continuing up the Bea Whittlesey Nature Trail, we immediately
encountered late-blooming sticky monkey flowers, Diplacus
aurantiacus. This blazing, yellowish-orange wildflower brightens both
the natural and home landscape during the spring through early fall.
Our path was lined with many familiar faces ... laurel sumac, Malosma
laurina; lemonade berry, Rhus integrifolia; and toyon, Heteromeles
arbutifolia. These rugged shrubs have been introduced into many
Laguna gardens with excellent results. Tolerant of seacoast
conditions, the hardy trio are also a common sight along ocean
cliffs.
As we continued toward Laguna Lake, the terrain became steeper and
drier. Prickly pear cactus, Opuntia littoralis, kept us wary with
its numerous spines. Catharine also spotted coast cholla, Opuntia
prolifera, with even sharper spines than the former. As the guidebook
warned, never try to touch this plant with your hands.
Surrounded by bulrush, Scirpus sp., cattail, Typha sp., and black
willow, Salix goodingii, Laguna Lake is the only natural lake in
Orange County. The water is clear, thanks to restoration efforts, and
is an oasis in the preserve. We spotted coots, grebes and duck on
this particular day. The lake is also home to herons and cormorants
during the year.
The return trip found us on the Barbara Stuart Lakeside Nature
Trail. This path had been well traveled by nature lovers. We stopped
briefly to exchange greetings with fellow hikers and then returned to
Catharine’s brisk walking pace. The only odd moment of our trip was
encountering two mountain bikers, who are not allowed on the pristine
trail.
We returned to Laguna smiling. The refreshing solitude of being
outdoors had nourished our souls ... and as always, had brought out
the best in us. Keep it wild and see you next time at “Jim Dilley’s
Dream.”
* STEVE KAWARATANI is the owner of Landscapes by Laguna Nursery,
1540 S. Coast Highway in Laguna Beach. He is married to local artist
Catharine Cooper and has three cats. He can be reached at (949)
497-2438 or by e-mail at plantm@lagunanursery.com.
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