Big Desert Bloom: California is full of flowers

Deborah Netburn, Los Angeles Times (latimes.com); Xochitl, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly

VIDEO: Botanists Chester and Harper go on the hunt for rare desert blooms (latimes.com).

 
TRAVEL: Death Valley's "super bloom"

It’s been 11 years since the harsh Death Valley landscape was this full of life. “Super bloom” isn’t an official term, National Park Service officials say, but it has come to describe the rare floral pageant of yellows, pinks, purples, and reds that blankets the desert moonscape after a perfect...
 

Science: Stalking wildflowers in the Anza-Borrego desert to forecast the Big Bloom

(Deborah Netburn) Tom Chester is standing in the middle of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, ignoring the majestic scenery. The towering Santa Rosa Mountains, the wide vistas and the clear blue sky are not what interests the 64-year-old retired astro-physicist. Instead, he keeps his eyes trained to the ground....

 

Published in Los Angeles Times on March 5, 2016 — headline: "THE BIG BLOOM - A band of plant enthusiasts scours the desert floor of Anza-Borrego Park for wildflower buds ready to burst"
 

Chuparosa bush, Glorietta Canyon, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park (Mark Boster/LA Times)

Want to track the Anza-Borrego bloom yourself? Here's a list of resources

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