First published in 1964, The Four Seasons (1964-2017) is an occasional journal devoted to natural history, biology, ecology, conservation, botany, and horticulture, with emphasis on the native plants of California and the California Floristic Province. The Changing Seasons (1979-1982)  was self-published by the founding director of the Botanic Garden, James B. Roof.

As of January 2025, there are three issues of The Four Seasons actively in process. Check this page for updates. If you are a Friends member, you will receive notification when the next issue is available.

Back issues of The Four Seasons

You can purchase individual issues, if available, as follows:

• $25.00 each starting with the first full color issue (Volume 13, Number 2, 2008 and continuing through Volume 14, Number 4, 2017). 

• $3.00 each for earlier black-and-white issues (Volume 1, Number 1, 1964 to Volume 13, Number 1, 2007). Volume 6, Number 3, 1981 Includes an index to the first five volumes of The Four Seasons 1964-1978.

Back issue prices include postage to U.S. addresses. Postage cost for foreign orders provided on request.

Contact us at BGarden@ebparks.org to confirm availability before sending your order.

The Four Seasons Table of Contents 1964-2017

Volume 14, Number 4. November 2017. The Pipevine Connection or Follow the Butterfly! by Bert Johnson. Exploring Isla de Cedros in Baja California, Mexico: A Walk from Punta Norte to Pico Gill by Michael Uhler. California Oaks and the Origin of Species by Richard O'Donnell. Requiem for Isla de Cedros Siempreviva by Michael Uhler.

Volume 14, Number 3. December 2013. Sunol-Ohlone Regional Wilderness: Botany, Geology, and History by Katie Colbert and Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 14, Number 2. December 2012. The Hanging Gardens of 3-9-5: Part 5: Hanging from the Gardens of Convict Creek by Michael Uhler. Jewel Flowers: Species Complexes of the Genus Streptanthus Nutt. in the California Coast Ranges by Richard O’Donnell. Prehistoric Oops and Updates by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 14, Number 1. October 2011. Glorious Walker Ridge Photographs by Stephen W. Edwards, Andrew Fulks, Roman Gankin, Richard O’Donnell, Wayne Roderick, Celia Ronis, Susan Rosenthal, Vernon Smith, Craig D. Thomsen, Philip Van Soelen, and James T. Vale. Introduction by Stephen W. Edwards. Maps by Gregory Gallaugher.

Volume 13, Number 4. December 2010. The Genus Hesperolinon (Linaceae): An Introduction by Richard O’Donnell. Plant Explorations in the San Francisco Estuary by Bert Johnson. Calochortus clavatus in San Joaquin County by Stephen W. Edwards. Second Addendum to the Bear Valley-Walker Ridge Plant List by Stephen W. Edwards and Christopher Thayer. A New and Spectacular Manzanita Groundcover by Joseph Dahl. A Discovery of Palmer Oak in Solano County, California by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 13, Number 3. December 2009. Beyond Object: The Intangibles of California Indian Basketry by Beverly R. Ortiz. California Indian Religions in the Age of the Ethnographers: Firm Foundations for Native Plants and Animals by Stephen W. Edwards. 

Volume 13, Number 2. December 2008. The Last Days of Livermore by Stephen W. Edwards and Christopher Thayer. Plant Explorations In and Around the Carquinez Strait by Bert Johnson. 

Volume 13, Number 1. December 2007. Botany and Related Pursuits at Pt. Reyes National Seashore by Stephen W. Edwards. The Napa-Lake Area of Endemism: A Work in Progress by Richard O’Donnell.

Volume 12, Number 4. December 2006. An Introduction to the Botany of the Fort Bragg Region (part 2) by Stephen W. Edwards. Preliminary MacKerricher State Park Plant List by Teresa Sholars. The Arctostaphylos bakeri Species Complex from Sonoma County, California by Gregory A. Wahlert, V. Thomas Parker, and Michael C. Vasey.

Volume 12, Number 3. December 2005. Edaphic Infidelity Along the Oat Hill Mine Trail by Richard O'Donnell. Howell’s Tauschia Found in the Northern Sierra Nevada by Stephen W. Edwards and Christopher Thayer. Distribution and Reproduction of Dirca occidentalis (Western Leatherwood) by William R. Graves. Observations on the Flora of the Oat Hill Mine Trail Region and Supplement to the Partial Plant List by Richard O’Donnell. A New Cultivar of Pitcher Sage, Lepechinia calycina ‘Rocky Point’ by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 12, Number 2. December 2004. Paleobotany of California by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 12, Number 1. December 2003. The Ferns and Seed Plants of Nevada County, California by Gordon H. True, Jr. Introduction by Stephen W. Edwards and Robert Brostrom. The Evolution of a Botanist by Gordon H. True, Jr. Torrey’s Buckwheat Found Again by Gordon H. True, Jr. Rare and Endangered Plants of Nevada County. The Ferns and Seed Plants of Nevada County, California by Gordon H. True, Jr. Four Seasons Oops and Updates by Stephen W. Edwards covering errors and omissions from different issues between Vol. 8(2) and Vol. 11(4).

Volume 11, Number 4. December 2002. A Botanical Exploration of the Tilden Park Area of San Pablo Ridge, Contra Costa County, CA by Stephen W. Edwards. Botanical Side Trips from the Oat Hill Mine Trail in Napa and Lake Counties by Richard O’Donnell.

Volume 11, Number 3. December 2001. The Oat Hill Mine Trail in Napa County by Richard O’Donnell. Mimulus cardinalis ‘Santa Cruz Island Gold’ by Glenn Keator. Survivors of the Soil – Rare Plants of the Ione Chaparral by George Hartwell. Autumn Harlequin – The Vine Maple by James B. Roof.

Volume 11, Number 2. October 2000. Joaquin Murietta Country by Stephen W. Edwards. The Franciscan Region: Transcript of a Lecture by James Roof ca. 1975 with an Introduction by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 11, Number 1. December 1999. An Introduction to the Botany of the Fort Bragg Region (part 1) by Stephen W. Edwards. The Trailing Bearberry in California by Bertram G. Johnson. Napa Fremontia in Marin by Richard O’Donnell. Local Burning Bush Confirmed by Stephen W. Edwards. Three New Cultivars from the Regional Parks Botanic Garden by Stephen W. Edwards. Nodding Needlegrass on Mt. Diablo by Stephen W. Edwards. The 1940 Annual Report, with an Introduction by Stephen W. Edwards. 

Volume 10, Number 4. December 1998. Exploring the Donner Sierra by Stephen W. Edwards. The Saga of the Santa Cruz Tarplant by Grey Hayes. Notes on the Bear Valley Plant List by S.W. Edwards and Christopher Thayer. Further Notes on Rancholabrean Ecology by S.W. Edwards. El Niño Spring by Wayne Roderick. The 1946 Annual Report by James B. Roof with an Introduction by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 10, Number 3. December 1997. Through Other Eyes by Marjorie Schmidt. A Meditation on East Bay Natural History at First Contact by Stephen W. Edwards. Vascular Plants of Bear Valley, Walker Ridge, and Surrounding Areas, Colusa and Lake Counties, California compiled by George M. Clark and David L. Magney with a final note by Stephen W. Edwards. Seed Longevity of Non-Fire-Recruiting Chaparral Shrubs by Jon E. Keeley. Notes on Serpentine Ecology and the Origins of Serpentinites in the Region East of San Francisco Bay by Stephen W. Edwards. Digger, Gray, Foothill, Ghost, or None of the Above? by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 10, Number 2. December 1996. Editorial Note regarding the death of George Clark and the status of the Walker Ridge/Bear Valley Plant List by Stephen W. Edwards. A Rancholabrean-Age, Latest-Pleistocene Bestiary for California Botanists by Stephen W. Edwards. Hypertufa Troughs by Phillippe Gabriel, Jacob Ballew, and Stephen W. Edwards. Sacramento Valley Prairie Project, U.C. Davis by C.D. Thomsen, M.I. Wibawa, K.J. Rice, and P.E. McGuire. Yerba Mansa North of Mt. Shasta by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 10, Number 1. December 1995. Botanical Exploration in the East Bay: Then and Now by Christopher Thayer. A List of Vascular Plants of China Camp State Park, Marin County, California by Eric Gillies, Jennifer Gillies, and Katie Martin. Horticultural Notes from the Regional Parks Botanic Garden by Stephen W. Edwards. Recognizing the New Single-Leaf Pinyon Pine (Pinus californiarum Bailey) of Southern California by Philip V. Wells. Canadian Buffalo Berry Found in California by Stephen W. Edwards. Notes on Grazing and Native Plants in Central California by Stephen W. Edwards. Shatterberry Manzanitas by Jon E. Keeley.

Volume 9, Number 4. December 1994. Creating an Authentic California Meadow by Stephen W. Edwards. Some Principles of Pollination with Illustrations from California's Native Flora by Alan Kaplan. Vascular Plants of Bear Valley, Walker Ridge, and Surrounding Areas of Colusa and Lake Counties, California compiled by George M. Clark and David L. Magney. Western Viburnum Found in Briones by Stephen W. Edwards. A New Cultivar of Sedum spathulifolium ssp. pruinosum from California by Steven Darington and Nezzie Wade. Plight of the Western Leatherwood by Bertram G. Johnson. 

Volume 9, Number 3. December 1993. Species Denial by Stephen W. Edwards and Richard W. Clinnick. A New Oak on Mount Tamalpais by Stephen K. Langer. A Key to Native Willows of the Greater San Francisco Bay Region by Eric L. Gillies. A New Cultivar of the Trailing Bearberry by Bert Johnson. Skyline Serpentine Prairie Note by Stephen W. Edwards. A Memory of Our Founder's Student Days by Stephen W. Edwards, James B. Roof, via David Amme. 

Volume 9, Number 2. December 1992. Foliar Morphology of Chamaecyparis and Thuja (with Notes on Seeds) by Stephen W. Edwards. Addendum and Clarification to Studies in the Genus Dichelostemma by Glenn Keator. Blue Dicks Brodiaea (Dichelostemma capitatum): A Common but Problematical Species by Glenn Keator. Baccharis pilularis ‘Al’s Blue’ by Al Seneres. Four New Species of Arctostaphylos from Southern California and Baja California by Philip V. Wells. Species Status of Two Manzanitas of the North Coast Ranges by Philip V. Wells. New Infraspecific Taxa and Combination in Arctostaphylos by Philip V. Wells. Subgenera and Sections of Arctostaphylos by Philip V. Wells.

Volume 9, Number 1. December 1991. New Cultivar Names from the Regional Parks Botanic Garden by Bert Johnson, Al Seneres and Stephen W. Edwards. My Life Among the Clones by Wayne Roderick. Studies in the Genus Dichelostemma by Glenn Keator. Vegetation Change on the Mountain: Mount Tamalpais Then and Now by David Amme. Rare, Endangered, and Unusual Plants in the East Bay Regional Park District by Stephen W. Edwards and Alisya Galo.

Volume 8, Number 4. December 1990. How to Make Naturalistic Rock Outcrops in the Garden Landscape by Stephen W. Edwards. A Case for Photography by Bob Case. The East Bay's Richest Grassland: A Pleistocene Relict? by Stephen W. Edwards. A Close-Up Technique for Photographing Wildflowers Indoors by James T. Vale. The Caribou Coffeeberry by Stephen W. Edwards. The Naming of the Manzanitas by Philip V. Wells. 

Volume 8, Number 3. December 1989. The Brodiaeas by Glenn Keator. Arctostaphylos wellsii, a New Species from San Luis Obispo County, California by Walter Knight. Ten Splendid Grasses by Stephen W. Edwards. An Undescribed Species of Arctostaphylos from the Mendocino Plains by Philip V. Wells. Neotype for Ceanothus x humboldensis by Walter Knight Addendum to Edwards’ Giant Redwoods article in Vol. 8(2) by Stephen W. Edwards. Errata to Rubtzoff’s and Gankin’s Botany of the Saddle Area Wetlands article in Vol. 8(2). A Place Called Dismal by Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 8, Number 2. December 1988. Giant Redwoods of the East Bay Hills by Stephen W. Edwards. The Origin of Serpentinites by Stephen W. Edwards. Needlegrass Notes by David Amme and Stephen W. Edwards. New Discoveries of Pacific Silver Fir in the Siskiyous of California by Stephen K. Langer. Botany of the Saddle Area Wetlands, San Bruno Mountains, San Mateo County, California by Peter Rubtzoff and Roman Gankin. The Sonoma Complex in Arctostaphylos, Including a New Serpentine Manzanita by Philip V. Wells.

Volume 8, Number 1. January 1988. Those Amazing Siskiyou Firs and a New Discovery by Eugene L. Parker. Editorial Note by Stephen W. Edwards regarding Roof’s Eriodictyon article. Germination Studies of Some Eriodictyon Species by James B. Roof. A Personal View of the Bristlecone Pines by Stephen K. Langer. Struggling with the Willows by H.K. Wagnon. Errata to Wells’ Leafy-Bracted, Crown-Sprouting Manzanitas article in Vol. 7(4). Two New Manzanitas from the North Coast Range, California by Philip V. Wells.

Volume 7, Number 4. February 1987. Editorial Note. The Leafy-Bracted, Crown-Sprouting Manzanitas, an Ancestral Group in Arctostaphylos (also see Errata in Volume 8, Number 1) by Philip V. Wells. An Ecological Assessment of Arctostaphylos pallida Eastw., Alameda and Contra Costa Counties by David Amme and Neil Havlik with map by Hunter Wallof. Correction to Edwards’ Indian Uses article in Vol. 7(3). Listed Rare Plants in the Regional Parks Botanic Garden by Stephen W. Edwards. 

Volume 7, Number 3. December 1985. The Remarkable Range of Port-Orford-Cedar by Stephen W. Edwards. A New Glandular Manzanita in the Southern Inner North Coast Ranges of California by Walter Knight. A New Arctostaphylos (Ericaceae) from Siskiyou County, California: Part II by Stephen W. Edwards. Botanical Peregrinations: Sightings, Speculations, and Observations (part 2) by Roger Raiche. A Natural History of Hound's Tongue and the Long-Nosed Flies by Wayne T. Williams. Restoration of Coastal Ecology on Landfill by David Kaplow. A Reappraisal of Arctostaphylos canescens Eastwood var. sonomensis (Eastwood) Adams by Walter Knight. Indian Uses of California Native Plants in the Regional Parks Botanic Garden: A Self-Guided Tour by Stephen W. Edwards. Letter from Elizabeth McClintock correcting Knight’s Trillium and Erythronium article in Vol. 7(2). Correction to Stratford’s Huckleberry Preserve Plant List article in Vol. 7(2). Book Review of Inventory of Rare and Endangered Vascular Plants of California. Special Publication No. 1 (3rd edition), 1984, California Native Plant Society; review by Albert (Al) Seneres.

Volume 7, Number 2. December 1984. New Light on Alaskan and Port Orford Chamaecyparis Cedars by Stephen W. Edwards. Some California Onions in My Garden by Wayne Roderick. Skyline Serpentinite Prairie Revisited by Stephen W. Edwards. The Huckleberry Preserve Plant List by Jack Stratford and Stephen W. Edwards. Manzanita Miscellany by Walter Knight. At Last: A New Name for Miniature Manzanita by Walter Knight. Notable Occurrences of Tufted Hairgrass Deschampsia caespitosa by Stephen W. Edwards. Finding Northern California’s Trilliums and Erythroniums by Walter Knight. Errata correcting Knight’s and Gankin’s New Subspecies of Arctostaphylos canescens article.

Volume 7, Number 1. February 1984. Our New Director: Stephen W. Edwards. Some Natural Bunchgrass Preserves in the San Francisco Bay Area by Stephen W. Edwards and Neil Havlik. A New Variety of Arctostaphylos (Ericaceae) from Baja California by Walter Knight. A New Manzanita Variety (Ericaceae) from Mexico's Mainland by Walter Knight. A New Variety of Arctostaphylos (Ericaceae) from the North Coast Ranges, California by Walter Knight. Natural Reproduction of Some Montane and North-Coastal Conifers in the Berkeley Hills by Stephen K. Langer. Some California Plants for the Rock Garden by Ron Lutsko, Jr. Director Roderick Retires.

Volume 6, Number 4. March 1983. Botanical Peregrinations: Sightings, Speculations, and Observations (part 1) by Roger Raiche. A Flat-Sprayed Sargent Cypress from Harrison Grade by Stephen W. Edwards. A New Location for Arctostaphylos nissenana (Ericaceae) and Some Comments Regarding the Evolution and Dispersal of the Small-Fruited Manzanitas by Roman Gankin, Benjamin F. Smith, W. Robert Powell. A New Arctostaphylos (Ericaceae) from Siskiyou County, California: Part I by Stephen W. Edwards, Todd Keeler-Wolf, Walter Knight. A New Subspecies of Arctostaphylos canescens (Ericaceae) from the Coast Ranges of California Walter Knight and Roman Gankin. An Unusual Currant from Marin County, California False Blood Currant by Bert Johnson. Notes on Some Disjunct Coastal Species by Bert Johnson. The First European Collection of Native California Plants: The Lapérouse Expedition (1785-1788) by Wayne Roderick. James Bernard Roof 1910-1983.

Volume 6, Number 3. August 1981. Notes on Marin County Plants 1970-1980 by John T. Howell, Gordon H. True, Catherine Best. Status of Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. crassifolia (Ericaceae) by Walter Knight. On Choosing the Right Plant for the Right Spot – Color and Texture in Planting Design (part 2) by Richard G. Turner, Jr. Index to The Four Seasons Volume 1 through Volume 5.

Volume 6, Number 2. December 1980. Gardening with Natives in Orinda, California by Toni Fauver. California Manzanitas in the Regional Parks Botanic Garden by Stephen W. Edwards. On Choosing the Right Plant for the Right Spot – Planting Design for the Home Gardener (part 1) by Richard G. Turner, Jr. A New Location for Fremontodendron decumbens in Yuba County by Daniel Campbell. Thomas Coulter 1793-1843 by Wayne Roderick. Chamisso 1781-1838 and Eschscholtz 1793-1831 by Wayne Roderick. Manzanita Galls by Ron Russo. Crossing the Sierra on Interstate 80 by Wayne Roderick. New Localities for Two Bay Area Trees by Neil Havlik. A New Conservation Program by Al Seneres. Seabluff Redwoods Revisited by Stephen W. Edwards. Plant Identification. 

Volume 6, Number 1. March 1980. The Story of Browns Island by Walter Knight. The Brodiaea Complex by Theodore F. Niehaus. Notes on Rare and Endangered Plants by Al Seneres. Trilliums in California by Wayne Roderick. Potato Peak Reconnaissance by Stephen W. Edwards. Seabluff Redwood Mats by Louis A. Biagi and Stephen W. Edwards.

Volume 5, Number 4. August 1978. Studies in Arctostaphylos (Ericaceae) by James Roof: A New Species in the Arctostaphylos pungens Alliance; A New Manzanita from San Benito County, California; A New Manzanita Species from the Santa Lucia Range, Monterey County, California; A Misused Name in Arctostaphylos; A New Manzanita from Contra Costa County, California; Marin County's Arctostaphylos viscida; Arctostaphylos glandulosa on San Bruno Mountain; The Tracy Manzanita Re-Evaluated. Sonoma Sage by James B. Roof.

Volume 5, Number 3. February 1978. Two-Needled Pinyon in California by James B. Roof. Field Observations on Ammannia in the Sacramento Valley, California by Lowell Ahart. Growing the California Hibiscus by James B. Roof. Growing Quaking Aspen by James B. Roof. Question on Comarostaphylis by James B. Roof. Van Rensselaer and McMinn at Work on Their Book “Ceanothus” photo by Milo Baker, caption by James B. Roof. 

Volume 5, Number 2. March 1976. A Fresh Approach to the Genus Arctostaphylos in California (parts 1, 2, and 3) by James B. Roof.  See The Changing Seasons, Volume 1, Numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4 for the continuation of Roof’s “Fresh Approach” article. Unfortunately, this work was never completed.

Volume 5, Number 1. April 1975. The Torrey Pines of Santa Rosa Island: A Photographic Essay by David Amme. Samoan Treasure by James B. Roof. Sites Fixes for Small Junipers by James B. Roof. Fog Belt Sugar Pines by James B. Roof. Floral Watch on Siskiyou County's Cook and Green Pass by James B. Roof with Wayne Roderick. A Name Change in Arctostaphylos by James B. Roof. 

Volume 4, Number 4. February 1974. Found Alive: The Truckee Barberry by James B. Roof. Our Native Crowfoot Still Hangs in There by James B. Roof. A New Sierran Sidalcea by John T. Howell and Gordon H. True. Lemmon's Clover Rediscovered by Gordon H. True. The Plumas Buckwheat by John T. Howell and James B. Roof. Letters to The Four Seasons from Ida Geary, and Marjorie Schmidt. 

Volume 4, Number 3. April 1973. Native Dwarf Junipers by James B. Roof. Newsnotes by James B. Roof. The Hanging Gardens of Three-Nine-Five (part 4) by James B. Roof. Ernest Twisselmann 1917-1972 by James B. Roof. An Odd Ceanothus in Humboldt County, California by James B. Roof. A New Pogogyne by John T. Howell. Ceanothus maritimus in the Regional Parks Botanic Garden by James B. Roof. Letters to The Four Seasons, Some Last Words on Agave shawii by Hildegarde F. Monhoff, Mitch Beauchamp, Jim Whitehead, and James B. Roof.

Volume 4, Number 2. May 1972. Detective Story: Our "Lost" Sonoma Barren by James B. Roof. A Footnote on the Sonoma Clarkia by James B. Roof. A New Variety of Arctostaphylos stanfordiana from Sonoma County, California by James B. Roof. Notice of Clarkia franciscana Sowings by James B. Roof. The Hanging Gardens of Three-Nine-Five (part 3) by James B. Roof. The Big Lupines of Point Reyes by James B. Roof. A Plaintive Note by James B. Roof.

Volume 4, Number 1. July 1971. Summer Wildflowers: The Clarkias by James B. Roof. Shaw's Agave is Alive and Well in San Diego County by James B. Roof. A Botanical Glimpse of Red Mountain by Walter and Irja Knight. The Peril of Nolina interrata by Walter and Irja Knight. Indian Rhubarb in Mountains and Gardens by James B. Roof. More About Sunol by Gene Lagel. Antioch Primrose Sown Out of Range by James B. Roof. Typification of Arctostaphylos truei (Ericaceae) by John H. Thomas. Letters to The Four Seasons by J. Edward McClellan, and Lester Rowntree, and J.E. Adams. Non-Letters to The Four Seasons by Donald V. Hemphill. Back to Common Names? By James B. Roof.

Volume 3, Number 4. May 6, 1971. Growing California’s Field Wildflowers by James B. Roof.

Volume 3, Number 3. July 1970. The Ferns and Fern Allies of the Sierra Nevada in California and Nevada by John Thomas Howell and Roberta J. Long. Chemotaxonomic Evidence for a New Form of Ceanothus incanus T. & G. by Frederick K. Klein. The Renaming of a Misnamed Species of Arctostaphylos by Roman Gankin and W. Richard Hildreth.

Volume 3, Number 2. March 1970. Locations of Six Southern Californian Rhamnaceae by Frederick K. Klein. Three Native Agaves by James B. Roof. Springtime on the Deserts of California by Wayne Roderick. Some Brief Acquaintances with Chinquapins (part 2) by James B. Roof. Chinquapin-Hunting on the Mendocino Barrens by Gregory Whipple. Helmquist on Chinquapins by James B. Roof. Book Review: The Green World Around Us, by Betty L. Hoover by Walter Knight. Leaflet Review: “Native Plants for Southern California Gardens” by James B. Roof. Letters to The Four Seasons from Robert Hoover, Robert P. Muns, Hildegarde F. Monhoff, Phil Haddock, and Donald V. Hemphill. 

Volume 3, Number 1, December 1969. In Memoriam: the Antioch Dunes by James B. Roof. Some Conspicuous Woody Vegetation of Sunol Regional Properties by Walter Knight. A New Variety of Berberis nervosa from Mendocino County, California by James B. Roof. The Hanging Gardens of Three-Nine-Five (part 1 and 2) by James B. Roof. Some Brief Acquaintances with Chinquapins (part 1) by James B. Roof. A New Manzanita from Feather River Country by Walter Knight. Letters to The Four Seasons from Marjorie Schmidt. 

Volume 2, Number 4. October 1968. Some Lines on a Sea-Bluff Garden by James B. Roof. Notes on Sierra Nevada Calyptridium by Gordon H. True. A New Species of Lewisia from Mendocino County, California by Roman Gankin and W. Richard Hildreth. Two Orthocarpus Species from the San Joaquin Valley by Robert F. Hoover. A Columnar Form of Juniperus californica by John Thomas Howell and Ernest C. Twisselmann. A Range Extension for the Rare Santa Lucia Fir by Don L. Olson. New Kern County Flora by James B. Roof. A Survey of the Southern Distributional Limit of Sequoia sempervirens by Neil Havlik and Kay Ketcham. Dining with California Bay Leaves by Wayne Roderick. Range Extensions by James B. Roof, Mrs. Kenneth B. Thompson and Rimo Bacigalupi, Walter and Irja Knight, William Anderson, Richard M. Schutt, John Tucker and Roman Gankin. A New California Ceanothus by Walter Knight.

Volume 2, Number 3. September 1967. What's Bugging the Bristlecone Fir? by Carl E. Wolf. Arctostaphylos montaraensis, a New Species of Manzanita from San Mateo County, California by James B. Roof. A New Ceanothus from San Francisco by James B. Roof. From Carmel Highlands: A Hitherto Unnamed Variety of Ceanothus by James B. Roof. Letters to The Four Seasons from Philip A. Munz, Lester Rowntree, Helen-Mar Beard, Marjorie Schmidt, Gordon True, Douglas B. Jones and Alpha Pitkin, and Dr. and Mrs. Robert F. Hoover. 

Volume 2, Number 2. July 1967. The Air-Conditioned Telescope by James B. Roof. A New Species of Arctostaphylos from Santa Barbara County, California by Roman Gankin. A New Fritillaria from Mendocino County, California by Walter Knight. Arctostaphylos mewukka: A Hybrid by James B. Roof. 

Volume 2, Number 1. August 1966. Two New Shrubs from San Luis Obispo County, California by Robert F. Hoover and James B. Roof. Wildflowers in the Warners by Margaret Williams. Shield Leaf Salad Bowl by Laurence M. Stickney. Recommendation from Conservation Committee of Santa Lucia Group, Los Padres Chapter, Sierra Club report prepared by Robert F. Hoover. Manzanita Miscellany by James B. Roof. The Roof Garden by Robert Grinstead. Letters to The Four Seasons from Pauline Croxton, Peter H. Raven, Marjorie G. Schmidt, Philip A. Munz, Barbara Bradbury, Margaret Williams, Milton Seibert, and Vernal L. Yadon.

Volume 1, Number 4. February 1966. The Nature and Distribution of Arctostaphylos nissenana Merriam by Walter Knight. The Big Sur Locations of Arctostaphylos uva-ursi by James B. Roof.

Volume 1, Number 3. November 1965. On the Peak Named Anthony by James B. Roof. Dining Out on California Corn Lily by Laurence M. Stickney. A Revival of Lupinus milo-bakeri by Walter Knight. A Timely Note on the California Oak Moth by H.G. Baker. Honorary President of California Native Plant Society – Lester Rowntree by James B. Roof. Large Native Plant Merger by James B. Roof. Concerning Beargrass, Rhubarb, Orchids and the Like by James B. Roof. Letters to The Four Seasons from Malcolm G. Smith, Mary L. Bowerman, Donald V. Hemphill, Ernest C. Twisselmann, Lester Rowntree, Phil Haddock, J.E. Adams, Bob and Reba Sones, Percy C. Everett, Doris F. Leonard, and Lydia S. Bowen. 

Volume 1, Number 2. March 1965. A Record, Hitherto Unpublished, of the Occurrence of Cercocarpus ledifolius in the North Coast Ranges in California by John M. Tucker. Black January: The Latest Needless Destructions Along California's Sea Coast by James B. Roof. Notes on Vernal Pools by Wayne Roderick. A New Southern Station for Abies grandis by Walter Knight. “Operation Wildflower” by James B. Roof. Letters to The Four Seasons from John Thomas Howell, Elizabeth McClintock, John Hunter Thomas, Roman Gankin, Robert F. Thorne, W.H. Brown, and Lu Watters. 

Volume 1, Number 1. September 1964. The Nature and Distribution of Arctostaphylos rosei Eastwood by James B. Roof.

The founding director of the Botanic Garden, James B. Roof, retired from the East Bay Regional Park District in 1976. His successor at the Botanic Garden, Wayne Roderick, started working for the Park District on August 23, 1976. Roof continued writing and publishing The Four Season through the completion of Volume 5 in August of 1978.

Roof became increasing embittered toward the Botanic Garden such that in August of 1979 he began self-publishing a new journal, The Changing Seasons, where he continued publishing his research, observations, and conclusions regarding his favorite topic: manzanitas (Arctostaphylos spp.) and a few other topics. Only five separate issues of The Changing Seasons were published before his death in 1983, and these form a single “Volume 1” as the fourth issue is titled “Supplement to Volume 1, Number 3.” This supplemental issue is entirely free of articles on manzanitas and is the only issue of The Changing Seasons with contributions from other authors. It also contains some of Roof’s most compelling writing. These five issues are enumerated here as they are not widely known and are very rarely available.

Only Xerox copies of these issues are available. Contact us at BGarden@ebparks.org.

Volume 1, Number 1. August 28, 1979. To the Reader, Domestic or International by James B. Roof. Continuation of: A Fresh Approach to the Genus Arctostaphylos in California (conclusion of part 3, beginning of part 4) by James B. Roof.

Volume 1, Number 2. February 29, 1980. Continuation of: A Fresh Approach to the Genus Arctostaphylos in California (conclusion of part 4, beginning of part 5) by James B. Roof.

Volume 1, Number 3. July 18, 1980. Continuation of: A Fresh Approach to the Genus Arctostaphylos in California (continuation of part 5) by James B. Roof.

Supplement to Volume 1, Number 3. May 30, 1981. Edward Preston Lee (1914-1979) by Marjorie Lee Collins. The Identity of Mimulus filicaulis by Rimo Bacigalupi. Mexican Gold by James Roof. A Plant New in California: Limnophila indica L. by Lowell Ahart. The Bog at Big Lagoon, Humboldt County by Bert Johnson. Ecology in Action: The Great Dichelostemma Caper by James B. Roof. Picacho Peak by James Griffin and James B. Roof. Status Changes in Berberidaceae by James B. Roof. Derider of the Purple Sage by James B. Roof. Border Fields Agaves by James B. Roof. Sugar Pines of the Past photo by Clarence L. Quick. Ed Lee on San Bruno Mountain, Champagne Luncheon at Nine-Fern Rock, Ed Lee on Mahonia, on Brooms, on Botanical Lenses by James B. Roof. The Elusive Licorice Fern by James B. Roof. The Somber Monks of Point Reyes by James B. Roof. 

Volume 1, Number 4. February 6, 1982. Continuation of: A Fresh Approach to the Genus Arctostaphylos in California (continuation of part 5) by James B. Roof. This final issue of The Changing Seasons did not complete this long-running article.