Grapevine Creek

Potentilla thurberi	Aconitum columbianum	Viguiera dentata	Allium bisceptrum

Coordinating Botanist: Sue Smith

Status: In Progress

Started: 2010

Taxa List

Grapevine Creek is an upper tributary to Big Bug Creek on the east flank of the Bradshaw Mountains, southwest of Dewey in the Prescott National Forest. The area is designated a special Botanical Area, due to its perennial creek fed by 12 springs. These support a Mixed Conifer/Deciduous Woodland in an area otherwise dominated by a Chaparral shrubland biotic community, where one finds a uniquely diverse mix of plant species. The Prescott National Forest manages this 880 acre Botanical Area. The management boundary begins just upstream from where the access road ends, and ranges up to the top of Big Bug Mesa (seen in the picture above). To reach the area, head south from Dewey on Highway 69, past Poland Junction, then turn west on USFS Road # 87A just after mile marker #274. The road is graded for all vehicles for the first two miles; at this point there is a small parking area. High clearance vehicles may travel another several miles on the left hand fork, heading south along the drainage (dry). This road ends where Trail #4 begins, and the perennial stream is found 1/4 mile up at the beginning of the Botanical Area.

A working list based on observations and collections in the area contains 229 species of vascular plants, of which 175 have been documented with voucher collections so far. At this point, fieldwork is targeted on filling the known gaps, the 4 remaining spring sites (3 have been documented so far), and the higher elevation mesa tops.