The Kalmiopsis Wilderness area is very near the Wild Rogue River and part of the Siskiyou National Forest. It is legendary for its diversity of plant life. Much of this diversity results from plant species adapting to life in harsh soils derived from peridotite and serpentinite rocks. Both are rich in heavy metals such as magnesium, iron, chromium and nickel, which in high amounts can be toxic to most plants. The diversity of plant habitat has been the result of a combination of geologic forces (uplift, folding and faulting), erosional and depositional forces (glaciation, weather, climate, and the action of rivers), and periodic fires.
"Lilla (Leach) suddenly hesitated, gazed at a red patch of flowers ahead and then almost ran to it. She got down on her knees, examining them and exclaimed, "I have never seen anything like it before! Isn't it beautiful? I believe it is new." This was a June 14, 1930; and John Leach's account of the couple's discovery of a new genus in the Gold Basin of the Kalmiopsis Wilderness area. The Kalmiopsis leachiana is a relic of the pre-ice age and the oldest member of the Heath (Ericaceae) Family. The Kaliopsis Wilderness was named after this unique endemic shrub.
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