Wiki Additions -- Fritillaria, Diuris
Diana Chapman (Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:56:41 PDT)

Dear John:

Yes, it is protected. The Nature Conservancy bought about about 30 acres
where the major display is. Grazing is still allowed, but the ranchers are
supposed to remove their cows when the plants are in growth. I have seen
them in there, however, with a lot of plants chewed down to the ground soon
after they finished bloom. This Fritillaria used to be common, but grazing
has devastated most populations, also true of other bulbs. Where grazing is
intense, both on the eastern and the western sides of the Central Valley,
there are few bulbs except in areas of scrub where the cows can't get at
them. One saving grace for some of these areas is that the only water for
the cattle is from streams that often dry up before the plants themselves
have dried and scattered their seed, necessitating the removal of the herds.
This is probably why Bear Valley, where F. pluriflora grows, still has
magnificent displays of wild flowers, as does Table Mountain on the east
side of the Central Valley.

Diana Chapman
----- Original Message -----
From: "John Grimshaw" <j.grimshaw@virgin.net>
To: "Pacific Bulb Society" <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Thursday, March 27, 2008 8:25 AM
Subject: Re: [pbs] Wiki Additions -- Fritillaria, Diuris