Superbloom 2019 in the Sonoran Desert

In 2019, the Sonoran Desert experienced a breathtaking super bloom, a rare natural event where an unusually high number of wildflowers blossomed. Triggered by heavy winter rains and ideal temperatures, the desert floor transformed into a vibrant carpet of white, orange, purple, yellow and blue. The 2019 superbloom also played a vital ecological role, supporting pollinators and wildlife. It reminded us of the delicate balance within desert ecosystems and the impact of climate conditions.

Superbloom in the Sonoran Desert

The Pushawalla Palms and Moon Country Trails are situated in the Indio Hills within the 17,000-acre Coachella Valley Preserve Area, which is home to the Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard and the stunning Thousand Palm Oasis.

Pushawalla Palms Trail

The geology in this area is fascinating, but today's hike was centered on the wildflowers in full bloom along the trail

Green plant patches lined much of the trail along the ridgeline.

Desert gold, also known as the desert sunflower, lined the entire trail.

Painted Lady butterfly on a desert sunflower.

The desert dandelion, a member of the sunflower family, grows 6 to 14 inches high. It's amazing how back home in New England these weeds are pulled from yards, but in the desert we appreciate their beauty.

Desert dandelion and brown-eyed primrose.

The delicate pedals of the desert chicory are found throughout the southwestern deserts of the US. The edges of the petals look like combs.

Chicory and phacelia also known as scorpion weed.

Desert sand verbena produce large, dense clumps of pink/purple flowers. The flowers appears as a mat that can grow up to 20 inches across after winter rain. Both stems and leaves of the desert sand verbena grow close to the ground and are often partly obscured by grass or sand.

Desert lupine, like all members of the Pea family, have distinctive flowers with one petal on top and two on the bottom.

Delicate brown-eyed primrose growing the sandy washes.

Phacelia is commonly known as scorpion weed, due to the coiled flower clusters resembling a scorpion's tail.

Phacelia and brown-eyed primrose.

Moon Country Trail

Although the trail is famous for winding through the Thousand Palms Oasis, it also put on quite a display on wildflowers.

The hills were covered with a field of desert sunflowers.

When the wildflowers go to seed, the harvester ants have a field day.

Indio Hills Badlands Trail

The East Indio Badlands Trail offers a variety of geologic features, desert vegetation, and picturesque views of the Coachella Valley.

Brittlebush was spectacular. With the super bloom, the Brittlebush's bright yellow flowers and silvery green leaves are everywhere.

A Painted Lady butterfly enjoying the brittlebush flowers.

The fragile Desert Fivespot wildflower is recognized for its unique pinkish-purple blossoms, each petal adorned with five dark red or purple spots. Unfortunately, I didn't position the camera to capture the inside of the petals.

The red discoloration in the center of desert chicory is a natural part of their bloom cycle and is not due to a disease or other issue.

Big Morongo Preserve

While technically located in the transition zone between the Sonoran and Mojave Deserts, the wildflowers we observed on the Big Morongo Preserve are included in this Sonoran desert blog.

Desert bluebells are characterized by their bell-shaped, deep blue flowers with white stamens.

Fiddlenecks are called that because the flower stems curl over at the top, resembling the head of a fiddle or violin.

Apricot mallow, also known as Desert globemallow is known for its distinctive bowl-shaped, apricot to red-orange flowers

It was only in the years after the superbloom that we realized how fortunate we were to witness it firsthand.