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This page last updated on 06/15/2017
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| (Fig. 01) |
Background: Over the past several years I have visited Death Valley on numerous occasions trying to capture some of the park's wildflower displays. Though Death Valley can be famous for spectacular, spring wildflower displays, they are the exception. It is always very difficult to judge when it is going to be a good year for wildflowers at Death Valley National Park. Only under perfect conditions does the desert fill with a sea of gold, purple, pink or white flowers. A good wildflower year depends on at least three things: well-spaced rainfall throughout the winter and spring; sufficient warmth from the sun; and the lack of drying winds. I'm not sure if the October rains of 2015 were helpful or not. Needless to say the October flash flooding's, including the October 18th storm that dumped 3.5 inches, more than the entire year's rainfall, may have been partially responsible for this year's blooms. The good news is that even though there are years where blossoms are few, they are never totally absent. Most of the showy desert wildflowers are annuals, also referred to as ephemerals because they are short-lived. Oddly enough, this limited lifespan ensures survival here. Rather than struggle to stay alive during the desert’s most extreme conditions, annual wildflowers lie dormant as seeds. When enough rain finally does fall, the seeds quickly sprout, grow, bloom and go back to seed again before the dryness and heat returns. By blooming enmasse during good years, wildflowers can attract large numbers of pollinators such as butterflies, moths, bees and hummingbirds that might not otherwise visit Death Valley.
03/09/2016 Trip Notes: I made a second trip to Death Valley with my friend Jim Herring who just moved to Las Vegas last week. Though Jim and I had visited Death Valley on previous trips, he had never experienced any of the valley's wildflower blooms. Even though it was a few weeks past what I considered this years "peak" period, we were still able to observe lots of wildflowers and capture some great pictures. We also had a rare spotting of a Desert Iguana. Check out the description and pictures for this visit ...
Death Valley National Park - 03/09/2016 Trip Notes.
02/23/2016 Trip Notes: I made today's trip with Blake Smith and my wife Connie. Arriving from the East Entrance to the Furnace Creek Inn, I was encouraged by the spotting of a great color combo consisting of Golden Evening Primrose (Camissonia brevipes), Notchleaf Phacelia (Phacelia crenulata) and Purple Mat (Nama demissum) decorating Furnace Creek Wash. During some of my earlier visits I was able to obtain only a few limited pictures (2010 visit), however there was almost nothing worth stopping for on my 2011 visit. Now in our 12th year of a sustained drought, things seem even worse than in some of my earlier visits. However in 2015, even after arriving 2-3 weeks late for the best wildflower viewing, I still managed to find a few shots worth capturing. Today's 2016 visit was outstanding. From what I've heard, it appeared to revival the bloom of 2005, which was touted as the best flowers in 100 years.
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| (Fig. 02) |
Because Badwater Road seems to be the "go-to" destination because it can provide huge expanses of endless flowers, we decided to head down Badwater Road toward Badwater Basin and the Ashford Mills ruins near the end of the road. On the way to Ashford Mills, we made several stops along the way, including a stop at Badwater Basin, the lowest point below sea level in North America (Fig. 03). As you can see from (Figs. 01 & 02 above) and the pictures that follow (Figs. 05 thru 07), we were not disappointed. There were blankets of Desert Gold, Gravel Ghost Atrichoseis platyphylla everywhere we looked. At many stops along the way we found a good variety of flora like those seen in the collage in (Fig. 08). (con't below)
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| (Fig. 03) |
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| (Fig. 04) |
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| (Fig. 05) |
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| (Fig. 06) |
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| (Fig. 07) |
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| (Fig. 08) |
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| (Fig. 09) |
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| (Fig. 10) |
02/23/2016 Trip Notes Continued: As you can see from the pictures in (Figs. 09 & 10) above, once we reached the Ashford Mills the area, the surrounding rolling
bajadas were blanketed with row after row of flowers. Even though I have been here on several previous occasions, the ruins, framed by the thousands of wildflowers, never looked so good (Fig. 11). The wash located just below the ruins provided even more wildflower pictures (Fig. 12). Individual pictures and descriptions for six of the wildflowers seen in the collages, the Desert Gold (Fig. 13), the Gravel Ghost (Fig. 14), the Desert Five Spot (Fig. 15), the Notch-Leaved Phacelia (Fig. 16), the Rock Daisy (Fig. 17), the Brown-eyed Evening-Primrose (Fig. 18), and the Desert Sand Verbina (Fig.19) are further detailed below. Even though you can find pictures for some of these flowers from previous visits toward the bottom of this post, I have never before observed all of them in just one single visit before. Because Death Valley is the lowest, hottest, and driest location in the western hemisphere, it is hard to even imagine that this place can produce such a vivid variety of beautiful flora. This year's bloom was absolutely gorgeous.
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| (Fig. 11) |
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| (Fig. 12) |
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| (Fig. 13) |
Picture Info: These sunflowers (Fig. 13) can be found in almost every area throughout the park. It is by far the most common wildflower in Death Valley.
Description: The Desert Gold (Geraea canescens) is also known as the desert sunflower, hairy desert sunflower. It is a dicot and annual of the Aster (Asteraceae) family. "Geraea" in its scientific name comes from the Greek geraios ("old man"), referring to the white hairs on the fruits. The desert sunflower has a yellow sunflower-like flower, each flower on a slender, hairy stem. It grows 1-3 feet high. The leaves are gray-green and grow to 3 inches long. It flowers February through May after sufficient rainfall. It is native to western North America, specifically Arizona, Nevada, California, and Utah. A drought-avoiding annual plant, it can be found in the California, Mojave, and Sonoran Deserts. It grows from sea level to 4,265 feet in sandy desert soil in the company of creosote brush. The flowers attract bees and birds. Seeds are eaten by birds and rodents. There are two varieties of Geraea canescens: Geraea canescens var. canescens and Geraea canescens var. paniculata.
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| (Fig. 14) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 14), was taken during today's (02/23/2016) visit to the park was captured at the Ashford Mill Site.
Description: The Gravel Ghost (Atrichoseris platyphylla), are also known by the common names tobacco weed and parachute plant. The chicory-like flowers of this plant are about 1.5 inches in diameter, have several rows of overlapping petals, yellow at the center, pinkish purple at the tips but otherwise pure white. The stamens are similarly colored. Petal tips are flat and notched, and thin grooves run lengthways. The unusual mottled leaves grow only around the base, in a flat rosette, from where the thick grey-green flower stalk rises up to 3 feet, branching a few times towards the top. The leaves may also have a pinkish purple tint. Atrichoseris is a monotypic genus. The plant grows in sandy or gravelly locations in the Southwest deserts.
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| (Fig. 15) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 15), taken during today's (02/23/2016) visit to the park was captured at the Ashford Mill Site.
Description: Commonly called the Desert Five Spot, this erect annual is also known as falsemallow, lantern flower, Chinese lantern, and fivespot mallow. (It may also be listed as Malvastrum rotundifolium in some publications.) The plants are usually less than a foot high. The showy flowers are rose-pink with five purplish or deep-red spots on the insides of the petals. The leaves are often tinged with red or sometimes even completely red. The desert five-spot is found in washes and on mesas below 3800 feet. It grows in the deserts of southern California, Nevada, Arizona, and northern Mexico. Its showy flowers are in bloom between March and May. The best specimens of this flower are likely to be found where there is an abundance of black lava rock.
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| (Fig. 16) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 16), taken during today's (02/23/2016) visit to the park was captured at the Ashford Mill Site.
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| Description: Notch-Leaved Phacelia (Phacelia crenulata), a.k.a. Cleftleaf Wild Heliotrope, Scorpionweed, Scalloped Phacelia and Caterpillarweed. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It is an annual plant that grows from 3-24 inches tall. Its open flower clusters, coiled like a scorpion’s tail, are made up of many small, bell-shaped, purple flowers with white or light blue throats that all grow from the same side of the branching flower stalks. Flowers are 1/2 inch wide and have 5 round lobes. The petals of the flowers vary from deep violet to blue-purple in color and up to a half inch long. |
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| (Fig. 17) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 17), taken during today's (02/23/2016) visit to the park was captured along Badwater Road on the way to Badwater Basin.
Description: The Rock Daisy (Perityle emoryi) is an annual herb growing 2 to 20 inches tall, its stem small, delicate, and simple, or thick, branching, and sprawling. It is usually hairy and glandular in texture. The head has a center of many golden disc florets and a fringe of 8 to 12 white ray florets each about a half inch long. Its habitat is open, sandy, gravely desert areas. It is common in the deserts of Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah.
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| (Fig. 18) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 18), taken during today's (02/23/2016) visit to the park was captured along Badwater Road on the way to Badwater Basin.
Description: the Brown-eyed Evening-Primrose (Camissonia claviformis), also known as Browneyes, is an annual forb with basal leaves and a flowering stalk that can grown to a height of 2 feet, though usually shorter. Its leafs are generally basal; generally broad and 1-pinnate, but large terminal leaflet may look like an entire leaf; lateral leaflets much smaller than terminal leaflet. The flowers are white, aging to pink, with a dark brown center. The stigma hangs out beyond the petals. Brown-eyed Evening-Primrose is a common component of desert vegetation communities in washes and other gravelly and rocky soils. So found usually in lower elevations, and canbe found in elevations up to about 6,000 feet. It is common to California (Death Valley), Idado, Utah and New Mexico.
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| (Fig. 19) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 19), taken during today's (02/23/2016) visit to the park was captured at the Ashford Mill Site.
Description: The Desert Sand Verbina is an annual that spreads along the ground in an almost vine-like fashion. Many flower clusters of bright pink make this a highly noticed plant. The leaves are slightly hairy and light green. Sand verbena, as the name suggests, is often found around sand dunes and other sandy areas, such as washes, in the desert regions of southern California. This plant is also found in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Mexico, as well as along the coast. Showily pink clusters of flowers can be found from February through July.
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| (Fig. 20) |
02/28/2009 thru 03/28/2015 Trip Notes: The pictures that follow were taken on various visits to Death Valley between 2009 and 2015. To the best of my knowledge, the pictures in (Figs. 20 & 21) were taken back on 02/28/2009. In 2010 I was only able to obtain a few pictures (Figs. 22 & 23), however there was almost nothing worth stopping for on my 2011 visit except for some flowers we found around the Lake Manly marker and turnoff along the western side of Badwater Road (Fig. 24). Because we had been in a prolonged drought for nearly 6 years, things seemed even worse than in some of my earlier visits. However, this visit in 2015, even after arriving 2-3 weeks late for the best wildflower viewing, I still managed to find a few shots worth capturing (Figs. 25-27).
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| (Fig. 21) |
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| (Fig. 22) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 22), taken during my 04/11/2010 visit to the park at the entrance to the wash trail that led to the Natural Bridge Canyon. From what I could tell, it appeared that we might have been just a couple of weeks late.
Description: Commonly called the Desert Five Spot, this erect annual is also known as falsemallow, lantern flower, Chinese lantern, and fivespot mallow. (It may also be listed as Malvastrum rotundifolium in some publications.) The plants are usually less than a foot high. The showy flowers are rose-pink with five purplish or deep-red spots on the insides of the petals. The leaves are often tinged with red or sometimes even completely red. The desert five-spot is found in washes and on mesas below 3800 feet. It grows in the deserts of southern California, Nevada, Arizona, and northern Mexico. Its showy flowers are in bloom between March and May. The best specimens of this flower are likely to be found where there is an abundance of black lava rock. | |
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| (Fig. 23) |
Picture Info: These sunflowers can be found in almost every area throughout the park. It is by far the most common wildflower in Death Valley.
Description: The Desert Gold (Geraea canescens) is also known as the desert sunflower, hairy desert sunflower. It is a dicot and annual of the Aster (Asteraceae) family. "Geraea" in its scientific name comes from the Greek geraios ("old man"), referring to the white hairs on the fruits. The desert sunflower has a yellow sunflower-like flower, each flower on a slender, hairy stem. It grows 1-3 feet high. The leaves are gray-green and grow to 3 inches long. It flowers February through May after sufficient rainfall. It is native to western North America, specifically Arizona, Nevada, California, and Utah. A drought-avoiding annual plant, it can be found in the California, Mojave, and Sonoran Deserts. It grows from sea level to 4,265 feet in sandy desert soil in the company of creosote brush. The flowers attract bees and birds. Seeds are eaten by birds and rodents. There are two varieties of Geraea canescens: Geraea canescens var. canescens and Geraea canescens var. paniculata.
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| (Fig. 24) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 24), taken during my 03/28/2015 visit to the park was taken around the Lake Manly marker and turnoff along the western side of Badwater Road.
Description: The Desert Sand Verbina is an annual that spreads along the ground in an almost vine-like fashion. Many flower clusters of bright pink make this a highly noticed plant. The leaves are slightly hairy and light green. Sand verbena, as the name suggests, is often found around sand dunes and other sandy areas, such as washes, in the desert regions of southern California. This plant is also found in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Mexico, as well as along the coast. Showily pink clusters of flowers can be found from February through July.
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| (Fig. 25) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 25), was taken during my 03/28/2015 visit to the park while hiking along the lower ridgeline at Dante’s View.
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| Description: Notch-Leaved Phacelia (Phacelia crenulata), a.k.a. Cleftleaf Wild Heliotrope, Scorpionweed, Scalloped Phacelia and Caterpillarweed. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It is an annual plant that grows from 3-24 inches tall. Its open flower clusters, coiled like a scorpion’s tail, are made up of many small, bell-shaped, purple flowers with white or light blue throats that all grow from the same side of the branching flower stalks. Flowers are 1/2 inch wide and have 5 round lobes. The petals of the flowers vary from deep violet to blue-purple in color and up to a half inch long. |
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| (Fig. 26) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 26), was taken during my 03/28/2015 visit to the park while hiking along the lower ridgeline at Dante’s View.
Description: Tidy Fleabane (Erigeron concinnus), a.k.a. Navajo fleabane and Shaggy daisy, is a perennial flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, native to the dry mountains of the Mojave Desert around Death Valley in southeast California and Nevada. It can also be found in Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico. “Erigerons”, commonly called "Daisies" or "Fleabanes", are a large and complex genus; there are 130 species in North America and 200 world-wide.
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| (Fig. 27) |
Picture Info: The picture above (Fig. 27), was taken during my 03/28/2015 visit to the park in the sandy desert area surrounding the road leading up to Dante’s View.
Description: Smooth Desert Dandelion (Malacothrix glabrata), a.k.a. Desert Dandelion, is an annual forb that grows in sunny, open, sandy washes and flats. Its dandelion-like flower heads are up to 1 3/4 inches wide and have numerous, slender, strap-shaped, square-tipped, 5-toothed corollas. The sparse leaves are green, alternate, mainly basal, and usually pinnately lobed with 3 to 6 or more pairs of long, threadlike lobes.
For more information on desert plants and flora, go to my site index on plants and flowers at ...
Plants & Flowers - Index.
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