Love wildflowers? Learn more about how you can support California California’s native plants at cnps.org! Photo: Nick Jensen Wildflowers Your guide to the peak season from What’s blooming where? Activities for Wildflower Visitors the California Native Plant Society Get the latest from these helpful sources. Photography Capture California’s splendid wildflower shows and share your photos with • DesertUSA wildflowers BY NICK JENSEN AND KATHY MORRISON (https://www.desertusa.com/wildflo/wildupdates.html). #CNPSsuperbloom. Photo: Nick Jensen Plant identification Discover which wildflowers • Theodore Payne Foundation Wildflower Hotline Two years ago, you could see California’s epic blooms from space. The good news is that most of us have you’re seeing using the resources listed below. (http://theodorepayne.org/learn/wildflower-hotline/). a chance to see them up close, and this year is already a special one. California offers diverse and beautiful • Websites of parks and preserves. Land managers Hiking A great way to experience the bloom up places to view spring wildflowers, from the Mojave Desert to coastal dunes. These shows of beauty are a often post updates. close. great excuse to get outdoors and discover the natural wonders of the state. Scenic drives Many large parks and nature • CNPS Facebook pages. See updates on our official 1. Carrizo Plain National Monument Bear Valley preserves lend themselves to long, eye-popping 7. and chapter pages. Location: San Luis Obispo County Some of Location: Colusa and Lake counties drives. When: Mid March-early May When: March-May 8 our favorite Citizen science Document what you see using Highlights: One of the premier Highlights: Stunning displays of California iNaturalist or join a CNPS Rare Plant Treasure Hunt. locations for wildflowers in California, wildflower poppies, lupines, and purple owl’s clover the Temblor range features massive decorate this inner coast range valley. Be on 4 hotspots Do the right thing Art Sketching or painting is a great way to observe displays of common monolopia the lookout for the rare, fragrant adobe lily (Monolopia lanceolata), phacelia (Phacelia 7 Remember that wildflowers flowers and landscapes in a new way. (Fritillaria pluriflora) in March. spp.), and California poppies (Eschscholzia are for all visitors to enjoy. 5 Get involved and make a difference Connect californica). Watch for rare plants like 8. North Coast Dunes Be respectful of others with local CNPS chapters to pull invasive plants California jewelflower (Caulanthus californicus) 9 Location: Humboldt County while reveling in one of competing with wildflowers. and Munz’s titdytips (Layia munzii). When: April-June California’s finest natural Highlights: Home to some of California’s finest Photo: Nick Jensen treasures. 2. Santa Monica Mountains sand dune habitat, Lanphere-Christensen Location: Los Angeles County Dunes in Humboldt County is accessible via Do: Flower ID Resources When: April-June guided tours only. Look for gems like sand Highlights: Most of this mountain range verbena (Abronia spp.) and beach morning • Follow signs, trail closures, and recommendations of land 1 CNPS Public Facebook Group burned in 2018 making this a great place to glory (Calystegia soldanella). managers. (https://www.facebook.com/ view fire-following annuals in the coming years. • Drive safely while traveling to and viewing wildflowers 2 groups/38417209275/) 6 9. Red Hills (don’t block roads). This savvy group can help you ID almost any 3. Anza Borrego Desert State Park Location: Tuolumne, Sierra Nevada Location: San Diego County 5. Jepson Prairie 3 When: March-April • Be prepared. Plan accordingly, and make sure you are wildflower you find. When: February-May Location: Solano County Highlights: This is one of the finest places in prepared with food, water, and safety gear during road Calflora (https://www.calflora.org/) Highlights: Unbeatable in a year with good When: March-May California to appreciate serpentine habitats. trips and hikes. A comprehensive plant ID resource, includ- precipitation. Visitors can enjoy the sight of Highlights: A great place to learn about 10 Serpentinite, our state rock, host a unique • Join CNPS! Being a member is the best way to support ing “What grows here?” where users can ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) towering vernal pool habitats and see what the array of plants endemic to California and this California’s wildflowers. search for plants using an online map. over an expanse of desert dandelion Central Valley would have looked like soil type. Look for rare plants like Rawhide Hill (Malacothrix glabrata). before development and agriculture. onion (Allium tuolumnense) and carpets of iNaturalist (https://www.inaturalist.org/) Don’t: The Solano Land Trust hosts excellent goldfields (Lasthenia gracilis). Post observations from the field with your 4. Table Mountain docent-led tours. • Walk off trails or step on flowers. smartphone. The online community will Location: Butte County 10. Punta Mazo Nature Reserve • Drive off roads unless you are in an area where this is identify unknowns and verify your IDs. When: March-May 6. Joshua Tree National Park Location: Baja specifically permitted. Calphotos (https://calphotos.berkeley.edu/) Highlights: One of the more reliable Location: Riverside County When: October to March locations for displays of lupines (Lupinus spp.) When: March-May Highlights: For the true adventurer, this • Crush or lay down on wildflowers while posing for or An enormous, searchable photo database of and purple owl’s clover (Castilleja exserta). hotspot is about a 5-hour drive south of San California’s flora and fauna. Highlights: It is hard to beat the majestic, taking pictures. Look out for the rare, endemic, yellow- boulder strewn landscape of Joshua Tree, Diego near San Quintin, Mexico. The incredi- • Pick or collect plants unless you have the proper permits CNPS webstore (https://store.cnps.org/) flowered Jokerst’s clover Trifolium( jokerstii). studded with poppies, phacelia, and ble landscape boasts volcanoes home to rock and permission from the landowner. Your go-to for botanical books and guides. desert dandelion. The Joshua trees daisy (Perityle emoryi) and the rare, Anthony’s (Yucca brevifolia) themselves are a treat. live-forever (Dudleya anthonyi). Most Common California Wildflower Families Photo: Keir Morse (Lasthenia gracilis) Photo: Keir Morse (Amsinckia intermedia) Photo: Keir Morse (Platystemon californicus) Photo: Neal Kramer (Triphysaria eriantha) Photo: Nick Jensen (Calochortus venustus) Photo: Keir Morse (Thysanocarpus curvipes) Asteraceae Boraginaceae Papaveraceae Orobanchaceae Liliaceae Brassicaceae Common name: Sunflower Common name: Borage Common name: Poppy Common name: Broomrape Common name: Lily Common name: Mustard or “jewelflowers” Representative species: Goldfields (Lasthenia Representative species: Rusty popcorn flower Representative species: California poppy Representative species: Purple owl’s Representative species: White fairy-lantern Representative species: California mus- gracilis); common monolopia (Monolopia (Plagiobothrys nothofulvus); common fiddle- (Eschscholzia californica); cream cups clover (Castilleja exserta); butter and eggs (Calochortus albus); butterfly mariposa lily tard (Caulanthus lasiophyllus); lacepod lanceolata) neck (Amsinckia intermedia) (Platystemon californicus) (Triphysaria eriantha) (Calochortus venustus) (Thysanocarpus curvipes) ID know-how: Sunflowers can be recognized ID know-how: The borage family is closely ID know-how: This family includes our state ID know-how: The broomrape family ID know-how: In California, this showy family ID know-how: California has more than 300 easily by their composite inflorescences (aka related to the waterleaf family. Borages typically flower, the California poppy, which creates includes paintbrushes (Castilleja spp.) with includes about 100 species. Look for large species of mustard. Some are aggressive heads), tight clusters of many small flowers have fruits with four nutlets. Look for popcorn some of the most spectacular displays in the relatively inconspicuous individual flowers, flowers with parts arranged in groups of three weeds (e.g., Sahara mustard), but the family with a series of bracts below. With more than flowers (Cryptantha spp. and Plagiobothrys state. Species in this family usually have large but colorful leaflike bracts below each flower. or six (e.g., Calochortus have three sepals also includes the well-loved jewelflowers 1,000 taxa, the sunflower family is the most spp.) with white flowers, and fiddlenecks showy petals and many stamens. All plants in this family tap into the roots of and three petals that are often very similar in (Caulanthus and Streptanthus). Flowers have diverse plant family in California. (Amsinckia spp.) with yellow flowers. host plants for nutrients. appearance). four persistent petals and sepals; fruits are long and thin or rounded. Photo: Neal Kramer (Phacelia tanacetifolia) Photo: Nick Jensen (Lupinus nanus) Photo: Neal Kramer (Gilia tricolor) Photo: Neal Kramer (Clarkia unguiculata) Photo: Nick Jensen (Salvia columbariae) Photo: Neal Kramer (Chorizanthe membranacea) Hydrophyllaceae Fabaceae Polemoniaceae Onagraceae Lamiaceae Polygonaceae Common name: Waterleaf Common name: Pea Common name: Phlox Common name: Evening primrose Common name: Mint Common name: Buckwheat Representative species: Tansy-leafed phacelia Representative species: Sky lupine (Lupinus Representative species: Birds-eye gilia Representative species: Elegant