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Larrea, te amo.

Last month, when the Santa Ana winds hit with 50+ mph gusts, several native plants I’ve cultivated—including Gobernadora also known as Creosote Bush (Larrea tridentata)—were uprooted. Rather than discard this powerful plant, I honored its medicine, allowing the leaves to dry in a sheltered space. Now, I’m harvesting and processing them for use.

Larrea is a staple in my home, just as it was for my abuelita. It’s an alterative herb, meaning it strengthens the body’s natural defenses and supports immunity when illness strikes. Used for millennia by indigenous peoples in the North American Southwest, it grows in every desert except the Great Basin.

Join me at @rootsandstarsbotanika for a hands-on workshop on how to ethically cultivate and use Larrea—without harming ecosystems or relying on a system that continues to fail us.

With healthcare access becoming more uncertain, it’s time to take back our health, build resilience, and reclaim ancestral knowledge. Stay tuned—details coming soon, register on my website for updates for upcoming events & workshops, giver @rootsandstarsbotanikaa follow, Chakra is an amazing person who has opened the first ever botanica in the high dez in Morongo Valley.

#everyleafspeakabotanicalstudies #rootsandstarabotanika

#larreatridentata #gobernadora #empoweryourself #plantallies #plantmedicine #herbalmedicine #desertmedicine #mojavedesert #growyourmedicine #sustainableherbalism #bioregionalherbalism #ethnobotany #herbalist #herbalismclasses #highdesert #morongobasin #morongovalley

New gig!

#tld #thelivingdesert #nativeplants

Wow. I am just so amazed by all of the growth I am seeing in the desert right now.😍

Correction, I meant to say that this individual is producing new vegetative growth, not reproductive.

Plants are flowering out of season. Species that should be dormant are leafing out and producing new vegetative and reproductive growth. We are seeing many annuals up and in flower, and many perennials leafing out and blooming too. It is a strange moment in the desert, and it really feels like spring is arriving early. If this is any sign of what is coming, spring is going to be incredible.

Here we are looking at silver cholla, Cylindropuntia echinocarpa. A fun fact that surprises a lot of people is that cactus spines are actually modified leaves. Those fleshy green structures you see at the tips of the cholla segments are also modified leaves. They are deciduous and will eventually be replaced by spines.

We are also looking at the fruit. As the fruit matures and dries, it can detach from the plant or break apart. Dispersal happens in a few different ways. Wind can move dried fruits and segments across the ground, and the barbed spines easily catch onto fur, feathers, clothing, and shoes. This hitchhiking strategy allows the plant to move across the landscape without actually going anywhere on its own.

This is why cholla is often called “jumping cactus,” but it does not jump. If you have ever walked through the desert and suddenly found one attached to you, you have experienced this dispersal strategy firsthand. It is not aggression, it is just plant ecology. Carrying tweezers while hiking is always a good idea. If not, a couple of sticks work well for removing a segment if you get tangled up.

Cacti do not jump at us. We just need to be mindful of where we walk, sit, and kneel. They are beautiful, resilient, and definitely a little gnarly.

If you have chollas on your property, it can be helpful to rake up fallen fruits and segments, especially after strong winds. This can help manage where new plants establish.

#everyleafspeaksbotanicalstudies #cylindropuntiaechinocarpa #silvercholla #goldencholla #mojavedesert #desertecology #botany #cacti

It has been such an unusual year in the desert. With all the rain we had from late summer through winter, plus the lack of hard freezes, we are seeing things I have never seen before. Annuals flowering as early as October, seed banks waking up, and perennials that are usually dormant right now still leafing out. It is shaping up to be a really special flowering year.

Today I lead folks out and taught about the different flowering head types in the sunflower family, Asteraceae: radiate heads with central disk flowers and outer ray petals, discoid heads with only disk flowers, and ligulate heads where all flowers have strap-shaped petals. We spent time with one of my favorite tiny annuals, belly flower (Eriophyllum wallacei), also called wallace’s woolly daisy, a little beaming ray of light.

When the climate of our current world feels overwhelming, distracting, frustrating, or heavy, returning to Mother Earth is the most grounding thing I know. I think we need more grounding right now, all over the world.

Closing with Yucca brevifolia, Western Joshua Tree. I have been seeing YUCBRE with reproductive buds since October, It makes me wonder if the yucca moth have emerged and are busy pollinating… will we see viable fruits so early in the year??? Only time shall tell.

#respectyourmother #pipescanyon #mojavedesert #eriophyllumwallacei #wildflowers #everyleafspeaksbotanicalstudies #protectmotherearth #bellyflowers #desertflora #californianativeplants

It’s been a minute since I last posted! Life’s been full, between teaching in the field, cat rescue and #TNVR work, and getting @mojavefelines set up as a 501c3, there’s been very little “me” time.

Yesterday, I was back at JOTR with Tasha in the herbarium, keying out collections and verifying IDs. I spent some time on Cryptantha, patiently trying to get at the nutlets, the tiny diagnostic parts that help in ID. Carefully, carefully… trying not to break them, or send them flying off the stage of the scope. Tasha’s tip to mount them on tape. Even then, some still went flying!

Photo # 1: Cryptantha pterocarya var. pterocarya

Photo # 2: Aristida purpurea var. nealleyi

Botany is bitchin

#joshuatreenationalpark #botany #herbarium #desertbotany

I came upon a recently uprooted Yucca schidigera, commonly known as Mojave yucca. This species is protected under the California Desert Native Plants Act. All agave species are protected under this act. There are no takes allowed without a permit for scientific or educational purposes, and although some local jurisdictions issue permits, most takes are done illegally.

Mojave yuccas are slow growing and incredibly long lived. They reproduce from seed and also from their root system. Their clonal rings expand outward as older central stems die, and field studies estimate many of these clones to be centuries old. In some study areas they averaged three to six hundred years, with many older than five hundred years. Stem growth is very slow, often only about an inch per year depending on precipitation.

Uprooting this individual has immediate local impacts and broader ecological consequences. Removing a mature plant releases biomass that would otherwise remain living and slowly cycling carbon. When it decays, that stored carbon returns to the atmosphere. Long lived native plants and well developed root systems are important parts of desert carbon storage, and destroying them reduces the landscape’s ability to retain carbon over the long term.

There is also the special ecological relationship between Mojave yucca and the yucca moth. They have an obligate mutualism. The moth actively pollinates the plant and then lays her eggs so the larvae can feed on some of the seeds. Removing a plant like this takes out one more link in that relationship. It is also one fewer source of seed, fruit, and shelter for wildlife.

It is really disheartening to see the lack of value that people place on Earth and on animals. It is heartbreaking.

#mojavedesert #yuccaschidigera #mojaveyucca #respectmotherearth #desertdefender

Hey folks follow me at @mojavefelines_tnr 🎨 It’s weekend two of the Highway 62 Art Tours✨

The tours run from 10 to 5 pm, and I’ll be popping in to join my friend Steve in Morongo Valley at Studio 146 (48908 Palo Verde Rd).

Steve is an amazing mixed media artist who creates incredibly realistic landscape portraits that capture the soul of the desert. This weekend we’re helping support him and his partner Clay as they raise money for medical bills for their sweet dog Penelope. 💛

I’ll be offering tuna (prickly pear fruit shrubs) made with locally sourced fruit from @farmerinthedale_morongovalley@farmerinthedale_market_ 🌿 Proceeds from the sales of the prickly pear shrubs will go toward helping Steve and Clay cover Penelope’s medical care.

My friend Debra will also be there offering tarot and aura readings with a suggested donation of 25 dollars, which will also go toward this good cause. Debra has such a kind, gentle energy, and she often donates her time and readings to help support senior and special needs cats.

Come by, support local art, sip something herbal, get a reading, and help out a kind neighbor and fellow artist. 💚

These shrubs are nonalcoholic and low glycemic, made with a whole lot of love.✨

#hwy62arttours #moval #tarotforacause #animallovers #adoptdontshop #seniordog #seniorcats #mojavedesert #mojavefelinestnr #tnrsaveslives #catrescue #tnr #dogs

Hey folks 👋
I’ve started a new page: @mojavefelines_tnr 🐾

I’ve been knee deep in cat rescue, back to back hoarder cases, TNR, and searching for displaced cats. It’s taken over my life and I can’t do it alone.

What we need here in the Morongo Basin is a network:
✨ Trained trappers for TNR
✨ Fosters for cats recovering after surgery
✨ Volunteers for transport and search and rescue
✨Fosters

Right now I’m working with @thek9woman on a tough case in Yucca Valley. The owner passed away, the next of kin wants the animals gone, and some dogs have already gone to the kill shelter. She’s pulling the dogs and I’m helping with the cats. There are 4 cats left and I need fosters this week.

I’m independent and currently going through the process of becoming a 501c3. For now, I rely on the community. If you’d like to support, links are on this pagedonations and an Amazon wishlist with food, litter, supplies, and vetting needs.

This work is fueled by personal loss and done in memory of my tortie Monotropa, who is the kitty in my logo. Many of the photos and videos I share are rescues I’ve worked on, along with wildlife caught at my feeding stations.

Thank you for following and supporting 💛

Coyote at one of my feeding stations, they apparently will eat cat food.

I am helping search for a displaced cat named Peter. He was caught on cam at a feeding station last week. Sadly he has not been back for a visit.

#SARforacat.

#coyote #mojavedesert

#sar #searchandrescue #catrescue

Tribulus terrestris, Puncture vine, is a low growing summer annual with opposite, finely divided compound leaves. Bright yellow flowers appear one at a time in the leaf axils. But the real problem is the fruit, a gnarly spiny, hard capsule. These burrs can injure animals, people, and easily puncture bike tires.

It’s invasive in California and many other states. A single plant can produce 200 to 5,000 seeds in one growing season, depending on moisture and conditions. Seeds that don’t sprout stick around in the soil and add to the weed load the next year.

If you catch it early, pull the entire plant, root and all. If it hasn’t flowered or fruited, you can leave it onsite. But if it’s started reproducing, bag it. Thick contractor bags work best and tie them tight. Even after pulling, flowers and fruits can still mature and spread.

While it’s a menace ecologically, Tribulus has a long history of use in traditional medicine, especially in Chinese and Ayurvedic systems. It’s native to southern Europe, the Mediterranean, parts of Africa, and western and central Asia. It was introduced to North America in the early 1900s and has since spread in disturbed and arid areas.

Herbalists have used it to support cardiovascular and urinary health. It may reduce blood pressure, improve circulation, ease angina, and help flush uric acid, useful for gout and certain kidney stones.

It’s also known to influence hormones like DHEA and testosterone, often used in libido and vitality blends. In men, it may enhance erectile response.

Traditionally, it’s also used topically and internally for inflammatory skin issues like eczema, psoriasis, and heat based allergic reactions, thanks to its astringent and anti inflammatory properties.

These are the kinds of plants I don’t mind harvesting, as long as they haven’t been sprayed. We will be doing the environment a favor!

Learn more about flora in your region using tools like CalFlora - What Grows Here and @cal_ipc to learn more about invasive plants in CA.

#tribulusterrestris #goatshead #puncturevine #invasivespecies
#protectbiodiversity #everyleafspeaks #calipc #invasiveplants #medicinalplants #mojavedesert#morongovalley

This memory popped up and I felt like sharing. I took this photo back in 2017 while solo backpacking in the Sierra National Forest, Western Sierra side. I used to head out on solo treks every year and I really miss it. My soul definitely needs a reset.

Lately, I’ve been knee-deep in cat rescue. It’s incredibly disheartening to learn firsthand just how catty some folks in this realm can be, but there are good-hearted humans out there too, like @davidloop65 and @forgottenfelines2023and I’m trying to focus on that.

I don’t do rescue as a full-time thing, just when I can, but lately it’s been heavy. My heart hurts seeing how often people fail these innocent beings, and how broken the system is that’s supposed to protect them.

I hope to get back on the trail again soon for a multi-day trek, because nature has always been where I come back to myself. For now, I’m here, staying in service to the voiceless, whether it’s Mother Earth or her creatures.

Thanks to those who’ve been kind and supportive. That energy really matters. 🌿🐾

#sierranationalforest #wanderlustingencelia #solobackpacker #westernsierra #wanderlust #lovemotherearth

🐿️ Have you ever seen an albino ground squirrel? They’re incredibly rare, but we have one in our area! I actually spotted what I believe is the same one last year, and just recently, it showed up again.

I’ve been working on creating a micro-ecosystem by introducing native flora, although I do have some species of plants that are not regionally native, but are drought tolerant that have been planted in part of my medical plant garden. This space has transformed into a habitat for wildlife to forage, drink, and cool off.Because water is scarce, I have set up several watering holes on the property, several are set up to a drip irrigation system that I have connected to a timer. It keeps both the plants and some of the water stations going, especially useful while I’m away. Others I still fill manually, and while away I set up a water-hose connected to atimer for when I am away.

I regularly clean out all the water spots to prevent buildup of algae and slime.

When I first moved here, the land had been scraped bare except for the perimeter. Since then, I’ve been reintroducing native flora. The nopales in the reel aren’t native, but they serve as food, medicine, skin and hair care, and they also benefit the local fauna. They offer pollen for pollinators, shelter for rodents, and food for wildlife.

This little albino squirrel, who I’ve named Monotropa, after #monotropauniflora (a ghostly, otherworldly wildflower I fell in love with while studying in the PNW), seems to be thriving. I really hope it decides to stay. There’s plenty of cover, fresh water, and food here. And unlike many around here, I don’t trap, kill, or relocate the rodents.

This land is their home, and I am a guest.

If any wildlife biologists out here know more about albino ground squirrels please share some insight.

#mojavedesert #wildlifephotography #wildlife #groundsquirrel #nopales #growyourmedicine #nopalitos #albinosquirrel #albinogroundsquirrel #supportbiodiversity #xericgarden #medicinalplantgarden #everyleafspeaksbotanicalstudies