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Mojave National Preserve
Wildflowers
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In ordinary years when winter and early spring rains are scanty, the annual flowering plants are few; inasmuch as they are in no particular way adapted to endure shortage of water, they wilt and die a few weeks after they have sprung, as if by magic, from the barren earth. As though trying to make up for this poor showing, every few years comes an abundance of rain and there results such a wealth of blossoms that almost every foot of sand or gravelly soil is hidden beneath a blanket of flowers.
Edmund Jaeger
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Benjamin Chemel |
Desert five-spot, desert paintbrush, desert mariposa lily and beaver-tail cactus blooms. |
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While the magical Mojave wildflower show is by no means an annual event, a few well-timed soaking storms will produce a memorable spring wildflower bloom. To find out how the flowers are doing, check-out our current wildflower observations or visit DesertUSA's Wildflower Reports.
Check the chart below to help plan your wildflower viewing trip. Due to variations in temperature caused by increasing altitude, peak wildflower viewing advances upslope at the rate of about 1,000 feet every two weeks.
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February |
March |
April |
May |
June |
yuccas
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lower elevations |
below 3000 feet |
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higher elevations |
above 3000 feet |
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Joshua
trees |
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higher elevations |
above 3000 feet |
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annuals
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lower |
elevations below |
3000 feet |
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higher elevations |
above 3000 feet |
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cacti |
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lower elevations |
below 3000 feet |
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higher elevations |
above 3000 feet |
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Did You Know?
Mojave National Preserve was established in 1994 through the California Desert Protection Act. Now managed by the National Park Service, the area was known as the East Mojave Scenic Area, under the Bureau of Land Management.
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Last Updated: March 09, 2008 at 18:55 EST |