Anza-Borrego Wildflower Guide

A field guide for beginners and experts alike, with descriptions, keys, scientific names, and families for over 1650 plants/trees/wildflowers. Search and sort by common or scientific name Search options include partial name, scientific name, or family.

Is the guide complete?

The guide is as complete as we can make it at this time. We are constantly adding new flowers/plants after our almost daily walks in the desert. But we are probably missing some less common plants and flowers, but one day we will find them.

When is the flower season?

The season for annual wildflowers reaches its peak from the beginning of February to the end of April, and occasionally much earlier with the right monsoon rains. It is followed by a parade of perennials over the summer and fall and into the following year. Rainfall can be very localized, it needs to fall at just the right time, in the right amount.

Is every wildflower season the same? No. Rainfall and temperatures vary from year to year and from place to place within the desert. Altitude is an important factor, too. Remember that the Anza-Borrego Desert region ranges from well below 1,000 feet to over 5,000 feet. The first flowers appear in the lower elevations and move higher through the spring.

Where can I find more information? Our Facebook page and website are a good start, if you have any questions let us know.

Notice:

What will this guide do for you? Our hope is that our guide will help you identify the wildflowers you see, by genera if not by species. It will not make you an expert overnight. Some species, and varieties and subspecies, are difficult to identify, even for an expert.

Never assume you have the right flower, always check if everything adds up, the most common mistake is to ID a flower, just by appearances and ending up with a wrong conclusion.

If in doubt post it on iNaturalist.org and join our project Flora of Anza-Borrego State Park and adjacent desert. We try to review every single entry if you provide enough photos. Or post a request on our Facebook page and we or someone else will be glad to help you out.

*The Anza-Borrego Desert is part of the Colorado Desert, that is a subdivision of the larger Sonoran Desert.