Wildflower Reports 2010
Death Valley NP

Jan 19, 2010 DUSA reports: More rain the way could improve the outlook for Death Valley wildflowers.

Jan 16, 2010 DUSA reports: The rain is coming next week, it could be a big storm.

Jan 1, 2010 Death Valley park reports: It's still a bit early for a reliable spring wildflower prediction, but this is what we know so far:

• There were no significant rain events in the autumn, so we can not expect a large wildflower bloom like we saw in 2005.

• The northern and southern ends of the park both received at least one significant rain event so far this winter but not enough to produce much of a bloom without additional rains.

• The rest of the park has been very dry, with less than 0.10 of an inch of rain accompanied by many days of drying winds.

The National Weather Service is reporting a mild El Niño has developed in the Pacific Ocean. The El Niño weather pattern is often responsible for bringing significant rain to the Southwest and the Death Valley area. Often these rains do not start until late January to early February. In other words, it is still possible to have a spring wildflower bloom, but if the rain does not come it is unlikely we will see many flowers.

Apr.29, 2009 DUSA reports: There are still many wildflowers in Death Valley they will be killed off when it heat up, the weather was good when we were there this week.

Apr.22, 2009 Charlie at DV Park reports: The rich, pink blossoms of the Beavertail Cactus can be found in abundance along the Mud Canyon and Beatty Cut-Off roads near Hell’s Gate, along the Scotty’s Castle Road and many other locations from 2000 to about 3000 feet in elevation. Death Valley Sage, Brittlebush, Rock Nettle, Globemallow, and other perennials are blooming in open wash and protected canyon environments. Bigelow Coreopsis and Desert Dandelions can be viewed blooming in profusion along portions of the Greenwater Valley dirt road. They may also still be putting on a nice display in nearby Gold Valley, which is reached with a four-wheel drive vehicle. The bloom is past its peak at elevations below 3,000 feet, but abundant fields of Desert Gold are still visible along park roadsides.

Apr.14, 2009 Bill reports: I made the trip to Death Valley from Vegas on April 11th. The 5 Spot Buds, Brittlebush, Daisy, Evening Primrose and the unidentified flowers were on Hwy 178 between Salsberry pass and Jubilee pass.The most impressive display of flowers was on the road to Dantes View and at the View itself. There were endless fields of Desert Dandelion all along the roadway. At the overlook there was a Mojave Aster and an abundance of Chia and Phaceli It was a good wildflower show for my first trip to Death Valley to search out the illusive wildflowers.

Apr.14, 2009 Halimah reports: The Apricot Mallow and the Desert Pincushion are roadside shots taken on April 12th, I believe outside the Park boundary, heading south on Hwy. 178 towards Trona.