Fremont's Monkeyflower (Diplacus fremontii) Formerly called Mimulus fremontii. Native, annual plant in the Lopseed (Phrymaceae) family that grows 1-20 cm (up to 7.5 inches) tall. Leaves are opposite, narrowly elliptic (obovate). Inflorescence: one tubular flower per node. Corolla is magenta to dark red-purple, generally darker at mouth, with 2 yellow folds. Peak bloom time: March-June.
Jepson eFlora (with botanical illustration) https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=99052
Calflora (with species distribution map in CA): https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=13468
Link to confirmed observations nearby: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/48920208 https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/211389448 and https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/118026655
Compare to Purple Mouse Ears (Diplacus douglasii) https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/151885689
Monterey County Wildflowers: (species not listed)
Native American Ethnobotany: Traditional Native Plant Uses (U.S. plants for medicines, fibers, tools): http://naeb.brit.org/ (no uses listed for this species)
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PLANTS (Annotated References)
Endangered Species Fact Sheets (85+ species in Monterey County) http://www.elkhornsloughctp.org/factsheet/
Calflora (CA native plants, includes species distribution maps, plant communities, links) https://www.calflora.org/search.html
Jepson eFlora (CA native and naturalized plants with botanical illustrations, some videos) https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/
Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell ,2015 (2300+ species)
Monterey County Wildflowers (photographic guide of wildflowers, shrubs and trees) https://montereywildflowers.com/index/
Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016 (950+ species with photos)
Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California , David Styer, 2019 (includes peak bloom times)
Native American Ethnobotany: Traditional Native Plant Uses (U.S. plants for medicines, fibers, tools): http://naeb.brit.org/
Leaf Terminology: Simple Diagrams/Definitions: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Leaf_morphology.svg
Plant Identification Terminology: An Illustrated Glossary, 2nd ed., by James G. Harris and M. Harris, 2022.
Flora of North America http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Main_Page (search by scientific name)
CNPS Rare Plant Inventory: https://rareplants.cnps.org/Home/
CNPS Calscape--7934+ Native CA Plants for Gardens: https://calscape.org