Wildflower Reports 2010
Joshua Tree NP

May 26, 2010 DUSA reports: Wildflower season has peaked in the low desert, but there is still lots of color to enjoy at higher elevations. Many species of cactus, mariposa lilies, desert senna, indigo bush, and paperbag bush are in full bloom. The end of the wildflower season is near.

May 10, 2010 Rebecca reports: These photos were taken in Yucca Valley on May 7th and 8th, 2010. What an ideal weekend!

Apr. 29, 2010 Mike reports: These photos were taken on April 24 and 25 in Joshua Tree Park. My wife and I came from Wisconsin to see them.

Apr. 25, 2010 Christina reports: I came across this pretty little flower while driving through Joshua Tree National Park on Apr 19/10. I can't identify it. I only saw one, along the geology tour road. Can you help me identify it?

Apr. 23, 2010 Barbara reports: Despite the weather it was a lovely day. The valley floor is covered in small yellow flowers. Picture1 was taken in the transition zone north of the Cottonwood entrance. Lots of brittle bush still covers the rocky hillsides throughout the park.

Apr. 22, 2010 Lynn reports: The wildflower displays at the southern part of Joshua Tree National Park, near the Cottonwood Visitor’s Center, have recently peaked. You can still see abundant showings of yellow brittlebush blooms and chuparosa across the valley floors and on the mountainsides. Ocotillo are also blooming in the Cottonwood area. I saw one hedgehog cactus with a few unopened blooms and a couple of beavertail that had buds. Many of the cactus flowers have already passed their bloom in the lower elevations.

At Joshua Tree NP the wildflowers bloom at different times throughout the park's ecological regions. Lower altitude areas have already passed their peak. The middle of the park, which can be accessed on Pinto Basin Road, has some good wildflower viewing along Wilson Canyon, Ocotillo Patch and the Cholla Gardens. The northern section of the park near Hidden Valley and Ryan Mountain should have good displays soon.

If you have time to stop at the Cholla Gardens you will find some cacti with a few blooms. I think the flowers are just starting to show in the garden. Nearby, at the Ocotillo Patch, you will see some really pretty displays of ocotillo in full bloom, probably the best color I’ve seen in the ocotillo in a few years. I saw a huge beavertail cactus along the Pinto Basin Rd. just north of the Cholla Gardens. You can park in the pullouts and walk into the desert a short distance to get a better view of the wildflowers along Pinto Basin Rd.

Click Here for more photos

Apr. 21, 2010 Ginger reports: We visited JT Park Saturday, April 17th. We took the road to the Octilla Patch and stopped by the Cholla Garden as well. Along the way varying colors and wildflowers were in bloom. We also did the hike up to 49 Palms Oasis and the hills were filled with so many different varieties of flowers and colors. I hope these photos give you an idea of the small glimpses of so many varieties you can see if you head out now.

Apr. 15, 2010 Rosanna reports: Photos taken April 11, 2010 at Indian Cove Campground area in Joshua Tree.

Apr. 13, 2010 Andreas reports: I visited Joshua Tree National Park on Saturday, and the southern end of park has some really nice colors. The northern (Mojave) park doesn’t have much except for the buds on the Joshua Trees and some scarce cacti with really nice bright red flowers.

Apr. 9, 2010 Jeanine reports: These pictures were taken at the South entrance to Joshua Tree off of I-10. Lot's of yellow but not much else.

Apr. 9, 2010 Lynn reports: Palm Springs, CA: Indian Canyons The wildflowers are in full bloom in the Indian Canyons. Brittlebush can be seen in carpets of yellow along the entrance to the canyons and along the trails. Hedgehog cactus, cholla cactus and barrel cactus were in bloom along the Andreas and Murray Canyon Trails. Apricot globe mallow, canterbury bells, fiddle neck, and other blooming flora lined the trails and were easy to find.

For pictures and more on the hike click here

Apr. 5, 2010 David reports: On April 4, 2010: We hiked Fried Liver Wash from the Geology Tour Road to Pinto Basin. Some barrel and beavertail cactus were blooming impressively. The bladderpod was also in full bloom. We saw many other wildflowers along the wash, but the desert is not yet in full bloom. I'd call it a 4 on a 10 point scale.

The main (upper) part of the park along Park Blvd. has some Joshua trees in bloom but otherwise has little color visible from the road. The ocotillo patch along the Pinto Basin Road is in fine form.

Apr. 1, 2010 Mike reports: We saw a lot of things in full bloom and many others preparing to bloom. We saw tons of Desert Dandelion (Malacothrix glabrata), Bladderpod (Isomeris arborea), Phacelias and Checkered Fiddleneck (Amsinckia tesselata) everywhere. We saw Ocotillo (Fourquiria splendens) and Chuparosa (Justicia californica) in the southern (Colorado desert) section of the park and Canterbury Bells (Phacelia campanularia), Joshua Tree (Yucca brefivolia), Cheesebush (Hymenoclea salsola), Desert Lavender (Hyptis emoryii), Paintbrush (Castilleja augustifolia), Rock Daisy (Perityle emoryi), Wooly Daisy (Eriophyllum wallacei), a few different primroses, including Brown eyed (Camissonia claviformis), and a flower I have tentatively identified as Yellowbush Beardtongue (Keckiella antirrhinoides) until further searching. These photos were taken over the weekend of 3-27-2010 to -3-29-2010.

Mar. 30, 2010 Lynn reports: South part of the park between the exit from I-10 and the Cottonwood Spring Visitor’s Center

The blooms are just starting to open in the southern entrance to Joshua Tree National Park. There were scattered brittlebush, chuparosa, bladderpod, ocotillo and barrel cactus in bloom. The chia and dandelions were abundant and covered the ground in full bloom. There were a few fiddlenecks just getting ready to open and I saw a few rock daisies. I saw more beavertail cactus with buds than with open flowers. Only a few of the ocotillo were in bloom and I only encountered a few barrel cactus in bloom.

There are many brittlebush, beavertail cactus and globemallow that are bearing buds that have not yet opened. I would say that the bloom is at about 25%. I would predict that the peak bloom is one to two weeks away.

As I drove in from Indio, CA along the I-10 the interstate was lined with yellow brittlebush, apricot globe mallow, lupine and scattered beavertail in peak bloom. Only a short distance from the exit to the southern entrance to Joshua Tree National Park the blooms are still waiting to open. It is amazing how the season can be so far behind the other areas when there is only a mile or two between the various areas.

This area does not have fields of flowers. You will have to park your car in the pullouts along the side of the road that leads to the visitor’s center. Walk towards to mountains and you will find the best displays of beavertail cactus, barrel cactus and ocotillo blooms near the base of the mountain.

Mar. 28, 2010 Deborah reports: Joshua Tree March 26. It was definitely not yet ready but it will be good when it does bloom. Just outside Indio looked pretty but we were too tired by then to find out how to get off the fwy and investigate. Right now we'd only rate the flowers at about a 2, if 10 is the best we've ever seen it.

Mar. 26, 2010 Theodore Payne Foundation reports: At the southern end of the Joshua Tree National Park, in the Cottonwood area, the high desert is really starting to come alive! North of Bajada, look for sundrops (Camissonia brevipes), purple mat (Nama demissum), fagonia (Fagonia laevis), beavertail cactus (Opuntia basilaris), whispering bells (Emmenanthe penduliflora), and wild heliotrope (Phacelia distans). Cottonwood Road is lined with desert dandelion (Malacothrix glabrata), interspersed with chia (Salvia columbariae) and a few Mojave lupine (Lupinus sparsiflorus), and exploring the Cottonwood Wash rewards with sightings of wishbone bush (Mirabilis bigelovii), Mojave yucca (Yucca schidigera), and desert alyssum (Lepidium fremontii).

Mar. 22, 2010 Robert reports: I shot the attached high res photos in the south part of Joshua Tree Natl. Park on Saturday morning, March 20. I am no expert on types of flowers, but I wanted to share the images with you and feel free to post, etc. The drive along the 10 Freeway is great from Indio out to the south entrance of the park, with flowers lining the freeway for mile after mile too.

Mar. 24, 2010 Mary reports: On March 23, 2010 I walked the Bajada trail in the southern part of the park. It was covered with chia and desert dandelions, yellow cups, brown-eyed primroses, filaree, and desert alyssum. Nearby, the chuparosa and bladderpods were fantastic. I also saw purple mat, white wooly daisy, and phacelia. At this time it is the area with the most blooms in the park. In other areas some wildflowers are coming into bloom ,but are scattered. I think it is worth noting that the blooms on the Joshua Trees this year are super.

Mar. 22, 2010 DUSA reports: Still early for the park, there are few wildflowers at the southern entrance of the park.

Mar. 21, 2010 JJ reports: All these pix were taken on Friday March 19th, 2010 I took the Joshua Tree pix between Quail Springs and Hidden Valley. The small purple flowers, and I have no idea what the are, were taken at Live Oak, on the way to the Oak.

Mar. 19, 2010 Greg reports: Photo is from Joshua Tree on March 17th. Lots of green starting to show, but very few flowers.

Mar. 19, 2010 Park reports: A profusion of Joshua trees have come into full bloom in the northern, higher elevation areas, of the park. While the list of wildflower species that have begun to bloom at the lower elevations of the park continues to grow, these continue to be isolated blooms for the most part. The Lower Chilcoot Pass area of Cottonwood Wash, and the Bajada remain the best places to see several species together. We should be seeing more color in the Pinto Basin soon, including desert lilies.

Mar. 15, 2010 Charity reports: We visited the Coachella Valley Preserve and the southern part of Joshua Tree National Park on March 11th and 12th. The Coachella Valley Preserve has a few scattered wildflowers here and there, nothing really spectacular but if you walk around you can see a dozen or so species. There is a nice stand of Desert Sunflower, Lupine, Verbena, Phacelia, Desert Pincushion, and Desert Dandelion along the west side of the road just north of the Willis Palms trailhead. Along the trail to the palms we found a few scattered flowers of the latter species with some Desert Tobacco thrown in.

The southern part of Joshua Tree is starting to bloom, color is beginning to show along the roadsides south of the visitors' center. Near Interstate 10 there is some Chia, Purple Mat, Brown Eyed Primrose, Desert Gold Poppies, Chuparosa, Bladderpod, Desert Lavender, and Desert Alyssum (which smells wonderful!) blooming. We hiked to Mastodon Peak and were surprised at what was already blooming. We found some nice stands of Canterbury Bells and Desert Gold Poppies, along with Chia, Sunflowers, lots of Bladderpod, Desert Pea, Fiddleneck, and a couple species of yellow flowers that we couldn't identify. The Phacelia looks like it's going to start blooming any day now. Many yuccas are developing flower stalks and the Beavertail, Hedgehog and Cholla cactus all have buds on them. It is definitely a wonderful season to be out in the desert!

Mar. 09, 2010 George reports: Hi, we were in Joshua Tree NP on Sat 3/6 when these pictures were taken. We were also there on Sunday when we hiked in a steady rain to Barker Dam, then drove up to Keys Point into snow above 4500 feet. Big, fluffy, slushy snow -- absolutely beautiful and definitely a wonderful surprise!

The bladderpod, verbena and cottonwood shots I've attached were taken at Cottonwood Spring, and the ocotillos at the Ocotillo Patch.

There were a lot of bladderpods visible from Cottonwood Visitors' Center up to the White Tank area, seen along the road and in some very large and colorful bushes away from the roadside up to the hillsides. That was about the only thing blooming we could see for certain. The verbena was a lone blossom all alone, certainly a sign of more to come soon.

The cottonwoods were budding, creating a lovely light spring green haze of color in the branches. The ocotillos were very green but only had a few flowers, some budding but probably need two weeks.

For the flowers overall I'd say the color will really be going the weekend before Easter, and strong from that point through the Easter/Spring vacation weeks. We saw no color other than a rare bladderpod in the western part of the park, from east of the junction all the way to 29 Palms and Joshua Tree entrances. There was no color along Geology Tour Road, but most bushes, the low ground cover and hillsides were quite green.

I hope the attached images are useful. We plan to go back to JTNP on Sat & Sun 3/24-25 so maybe I'll be able to send more. Might get up to Amboy Crater as well.

Mar. 09, 2010 the Park reports: Although spring wildflower season continues its slow pace in Joshua Tree National Park, more species in flower are being observed. Though it is important to note that these are often isolated blooms so visitors are unlikely to see many. The Lower Chilcoot Pass area of Cottonwood Wash, and the Bajada are the best places to see several species together.

The number of Joshua trees beginning to bloom has increased in the higher elevations of Queen Valley and in Black Rock Canyon.

Naturalist Bill Truesdell advises that the best way to see flowers this time of year is to stop when you see one, get out of your car, and walk around. That way you are likely to find others.

Mar. 07, 2010 DUSA reports: It is raining in many areas of the park today.

Mar. 01, 2010 DUSA reports: Joshua Tree has a lot of green brittle bushes growing on the hillsides and in between the rocks. We expect that the rocky slopes will be tinted with yellow in about three or four weeks. It is too early for wildflowers along the road that leads from the I-10 to the Cottonwood Visitor's Center. The only bush we saw in bloom were a few bladderpods and a couple chuparosa bushes with some red blooms...

Feb. 26, 2010 DUSA reports: Storm on the way for the 27th. Chance of T-storms and 70% chance of precipitation. This will be great if it happens, the last storm did not bring much rain to the area.

Feb 22, 2010 Byron reports: We visited the south entrance to the park on Sunday, Feb 21, 2010. Again, blooms are just beginning on many plants mentioned from last week. I’ve included a few shots!

Feb 14, 2010 Ken reports: This afternoon I headed to the south entrance of Joshua Tree NP to check on the progress of the wildflower bloom. There are a lot of green plants starting to show up which should make for quite a show in a few weeks. The yellow bladder pod is beginning to bloom as well as the red Chuparosa. The Ocotillo is greening up nicely with a few red flowering tips beginning to show. It was a great way to spend the day with my valentine!

Feb 11, 2010 DUSA reports: Wildflowers may begin blooming in the lower elevations of the Pinto Basin and along the park’s southern boundary in early March and at higher elevations in late March and April. Desert regions above 5,000 feet may have plants blooming as late as June.

Feb. 6, 2010 Kathy reports: Although not indicative of wildflowers, I wanted to show the amount of water collected at Barker Dam in Joshua Tree on 1/24. Hope you enjoy it!

Feb. 6, 2010 DUSA reports: It's raining in most of the southern part of the park and there's more to come; it looks good for the wildflowers this year.

Jan 19, 2010 DUSA reports: The 29 Palms area got about a 1/2 inch of rain on Monday.

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

Jan. 3, 2010 DUSA reports: Checked the area at the south entrance of Joshua Tree NP. Looks very dry and no sign of any green yet.

May 1, 2009 Kim reports: Taken Apr 30 at Joshua Tree National Park. There's still some flowers, mostly at upper elevations, along Park Blvd between West and East entrances. However, they are drying out fast.