Pop-up Field trip with Larry Ballard

Saturday, June 1, 9:00 a.m. to noon

This field trip is full.
Participation is limited to 20.
Registration opens at 9 a.m. on May 1 for members and on May 15 for nonmembers at syvnhs@syvnature.org or 805/ 693-5683.
Members $10 / Nonmembers $25 / Children $5

Join naturalist Larry Ballard for a botany-focused field trip amid the rolling terrain of the historic Gregersen Ranch on Saturday, June 1, from 9:00 a.m. to noon. He’ll take us on a leisurely hike of 2 to 3 miles, with modest elevation gain and loss. Although relatively close to Solvang, this Ballard Canyon ranch feels like a world apart. The property is sometimes referred to by its former name of Rancho San Carlos de Jonata, which was a 26,634-acre Mexican-era land grant. The ranch would later be subdivided, and part of it became the home to one of Solvang’s founding fathers, Jens Gregersen.  Jen’s grandson, Erik, is the current owner and is committed to protecting the ranch from development.

On our hike, we’ll have a chance to see two special shrub species that are typically found in very different environments. The first is Palmer oak (Quercus palmeri), which is uncommon in this area and more often seen in desert-edge vegetation of transmontane California. The second is California false indigo (Amorpha californica), a handsome arboreal shrub that is generally more abundant in cooler and/or higher-elevation habitats above the immediate floor of the Santa Ynez Valley. The ranch’s mosaic of plant communities includes oak woodlands, grasslands, and chaparral. As usual, the geology story plays a role in the flora here. The ranch is located on a remnant of ancient stabilized sand dunes, and its suite of plants is slightly different than on the nearby Paso Robles formation that dominates the valley. We can expect to still see some interesting annuals and perennials in bloom.

Larry Ballard is a natural history educator with a field emphasis on botany. He has been a popular field trip leader for the SYVNHS and other organizations for over 25 years. He has led field trips in the Santa Ynez and San Rafael mountains, given tours of the famous collection of trees at UCSB, and offered educational walks to introduce the trees of Alameda Park in Santa Barbara and the street trees in the valley communities of Los Olivos, Santa Ynez, and Solvang.