Please share your wildflower pictures for Southern California, including the date and location. We will post your photos on our Wildflower Reports page, so others can learn where and when to view the spectacular displays.
- E-mail your digital photos and reports to Jim@desertusa.com. Use Wildflower Report as the subject of your e-mail. Let us know where you took the image, the date, and how you would like us to give you photo credit (first name, etc.)
- Text your photos to 760-740-1787. Be sure to include the location and the name you want to be credited for the photos.
Note: Spring is one of the most beautiful times of the year in the desert, but it can also be a time for caution. Rattlesnakes lie dormant during the cold fall and winter months and awaken from hibernation in the warm months of March and April. Another reason to stay on the trails. More…
2025 Southern California Wildflower Reports
April 15, 2025, Don Reports: Well, we made two trips to Figueroa Mountain on 4/12 and 4/14. What can I say? THE FIG IS BIG!Figueroa Mountain is shaking off the devastation left by the Lake Fire last July. While many of the trees and perennial bushes may have died, and the surroundings appear gray and black, the wildflower display is beyond belief!!
Poppies are EVERYWHERE! Lupine is, too. Exuberant poppy bouquets dot the landscape and broadly multiply on many slopes. There are wide swaths of lupine blanketing openings in the burned forest hillsides. Many other flowers are in evidence as well. The wildflower season seems to have been compressed – early bloomers like shooting stars are everywhere, while some later season flowers like sage are beginning to show. “Poppy Hill” is very showy and there are poppies evident on Grass Mountain across the valley, although it’s less vibrant than years past. But the variety of flowers from the bottom of the mountain to the top is pretty impressive! We identified 34 species (list attached) on our two visits.
Please encourage your readers to visit Figueroa Mountain soon, as the Big Show may not last if the dry and sunny weather persists. It hasn’t gotten too hot, yet, being in the high 60’s to mid 70’s so far.
April 15, 2025, Morgan Reports: Wildflowers Figueroa mountain road Some of the flowers seen include sky lupine, blue dick, shooting stars, golden yarrow, fiddleneck, Hooker onion and dudleya. The famous poppy hillside past the fire station is looking good. Zaca Ridge Road is closed to vehicles but if you walk a half mile or so out there’s a nice display of California poppies leading up the hill
April 14, 2025,Larry Reports: Not a very good year for wildflowers, but there are a few places where you can your wildflower fix in SoCall. One place is O’Melveny Park in Sylmar. Not a lot of variety, but there are some flowers worth seeing. Wildfires hit the park earlier this year. The last time the park had a bloom like this was when the park was also hit by a wildfire. Based on an N of 2 it looks like fires may be ‘good’ for wildflowers.
April 14, 2025,Jeff Reports: Took a ride up to Figueroa Mountain on 4 – 11- 2025 . Burn area had pretty good wildflowers in spots.
April 14, 2025, DUSA Reports: Antelope Poppy Reserve No fields of poppy blooms this year. A few are blooming.
March 26, 2025, Rena Reports: On 3-25-25 I went back to the area east of Arvin, California, driving along CA-223 towards CA-58. I saw Lupine, Fiddlenecks, and some little white flowers. The amount of flowers this year is not spectacular, but it was a pretty drive nonetheless.
March 24, 2025, David Reports: Kern River Canyon in bloom. Upper canyon, goldfields, poppies, lupine. Lower canyon choked with fiddleneck and some poppies
March 24, 2025, Sammy Reports: All of these shots are from the areas surrounding Pine Flat Lake east of Fresno. The King’s River flows into the lake.
March 12, 2025, Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve Reports: The past couple of storms have only dropped .6” of rain, not enough to significantly improve poppy germination rates. Poppy plants continue to grow and are the size of a quarter throughout the park. The best trail to hike for flowers is the ADA trail and follow it to the connector trail that connect the north and south loop of the poppy trail. Along the way, grape soda lupine is blooming and wild cucumber is pushing up. This trail has baby poppies and miniature lupine growing slowly and may be a good trail in 3 or so weeks.
March 12, 2025, Don Reports: Nice drive along Hwy 223 out of Arvin on 3/2. Beautiful 11-mile road! Man Sue’s photos are pretty much like mine. Really magnificent rain/sun/cloud display over the valley!
March 11, 2025, Don Reports: Usually a site for dramatic poppy and lupine displays as well as a good location for chocolate lilies, Figueroa Mountain was hit hard by the Lake Fire last July and is struggling to come back.
Poppies and lupine can be found along the road,but not in great quantity. The bleak fire-scorched backdrop takes away from the outstanding distant vistas, and the drive can still be rewarding, as brilliant green grass is coming up everywhere. The chocolate lilies below the main lookout were missed by the fire and should bloom after the rains predicted this week.
March 3, 2025, Man Sue Reports: I saw some early wildflowers blooming on March 1st while driving along Route 223 in Arvin. Overa
ll, there weren’t many flowers yet, but there were a fair amount of wildflowers in some spots. I expect to see wildflowers blooming on both sides of the road in about 10 to 15 days.
February 27, 2025, Rena Reports: The area east of Arvin, California, driving along CA-223 towards CA-58 Highway is blooming very nicely. I don’t have any pictures because I didn’t expect to see flowers this early in the season and didn’t have my camera. I drove there on 2/25/25 and will report back again in a couple of days with some photos!
Feb 15, 2025, DUSA Reports: Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve The wildflower bloom generally occurs from mid-March through April but varies widely each year. The peak viewing period is usually late March or early April.
Feb 10, 2025, DesertUSA reports: A significant storm is expected to hit Southern California this week. The storm will add lots of moisture to the desert area, which we hope means we’ll have some wildflowers this year.
January 8, 2025, DesertUSA reports: No rain the area for the last month.
January 1, 2025, DesertUSA reports: No reports yet for Southern California. Updates will be shared here as soon as new reports come in. Stay tuned for the latest bloom news, and don’t forget to bookmark this page for easy access to timely updates!
2024 Reports
May 3, 2024 Ruby Reports: I took these photos at Inspiration Loop Trail of Will Rogers State Historic Park in Pacific Palisades, California, on May 2.
Photos tips: Most digital point-and-shoot cameras have a macro function – usually symbolized by the icon of a little flower. When you turn on that function, you allow your camera to get closer to the subject, looking into a flower for example. Or getting up close and personal with a bug. More on desert photography.
Mojave Desert Wildflowers – This book is the standard by which all other wildflower books are measured. The author, Jon Mark Stewart, has combined super photography with concise information. This book has an entire color page for each wildflower covered, with a discussion of the wildflower. 210 pages with 200 color photos. More…
Desert Wildflowers and Plants Field Guide Kindle Edition
Other DesertUSA Resources
Wildflower Information & Hotlines