FLEMING, Guy L.
FLEMING, Guy L. (1884-1960), botanist who collected plants on Santa Rosa Island in the early 1920s. In 1921 he was appointed custodian of the Torrey Pines Reserve in La Jolla, California where today a trail is named in his honor.
Fleming was particularly interested in the Santa Rosa Island Torrey pine population. He collected several island endemics to grow in La Jolla. In 1922 botanist Ralph Cornell joined him on a trip to Santa Rosa Island. Fleming's conservation work led to the founding of Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, now a 2000-acre protected coastal area of La Jolla, San Diego. The Torrey pine, Pinus torreyana, is the rarest pine species in the United States. He is considered the “Father of Torrey Pines Reserve.” The Torrey Pines ASsociation was formed in 1950 and Fleming was its first president.
Fleming worked as a landscape foreman and guide for the 1915-1916 Panama-California Exposition, before he played an integral role both in preserving the rare Torrey pines and in establishing many of the parklands that are protected today under the California State Parks system. In 1933 Fleming became superintendent of all California State Parks in central and southern California.
Fleming's house, located in the Torrey Pines State Reserve, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. It is owned and managed by California State Parks. The two-level, single family residence is a vernacular interpretation of the Pueblo Revival architectural style.
The island monkey flower, Mimulus flemingii, was named by Munz in his honor.
Guy and Margaret Fleming House
Flemming collected on:
- Santa Rosa Island (1922, 1926, 1928)
- 1950. Fleming, Guy L. Native trees and shrubs in home landscaping Aliso (2):119-130, 1950
Island Collections~
| ISLAND | COLLECTOR | INSTITUTION | DATE | NUMBER | SPECIMEN | |
| Santa Rosa Island | G. L. Fleming | SD | July 1922 | SD-1311 | Ericameria parishii var. parishii | Plants |
| Santa Rosa Island | G. L. Fleming | SD | n.d. | SD-5107 | Malacothrix saxatilis var. implicata | Plants |
| Santa Rosa Island | G. L. Fleming | SD | July 1, 1922 | SD-5201 | Eriogonum grande var. rubescens | Plants |
| ~ trip ~ | ||||||
| Santa Rosa Island | G. L. Fleming | UC | August 1, 1926 | JEPS-46907 | Pinus torreyana | Plants |
| Santa Rosa Island | G. L. Fleming | UC | August 1, 1926 | JEPS-46908 | Pinus torreyana | Plants |
| ~ trip ~ |
