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.