Anza Borrego Desert Wildflowers!

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, Flowers, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES

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Spring wildflowers,
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carpet the desert,
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with fragile blooms.
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Some live only for a day.
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No matter how brief,
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they fill the arid desert,
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with the joyful beauty,
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of Life!
Cheers to you from the fragile desert~

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262 thoughts on “Anza Borrego Desert Wildflowers!”

    1. I do too! It is often not just the flowers on a plant that are interesting. The tiny hairs you can’t really see with the naked eye are so alive and wonderous. Thank you for noticing~

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    1. The desert has this beauty which is so unusual. I have been spending time in Anza since I could walk. I like it best in the summer when the temp gets to around 118 degrees F. There are no people just this amazing desert ecosytem with all sorts of living things. There used to be horny toads (almost extinct) which I would hold, and sidewinders which I didn’t, trapdoor spiders with their silken holes, roadrunners who play with you, and coyotes whose scratches I would look for as they dug up cactus to drink the liquid in their roots. We live on an amazing planet, which I do not need to tell you.

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      1. We have horny toads here.

        You are right, we do live on an amazing planet, which I do need you tell me .. and you do, over and over again.

        Thank you for all you have done.

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    1. Yes! I feel just as you do. So amazing and incredible. The beauty of this world is everything and more than we could have asked for or thought of. Simply miraculous. A reflection of the face of God. <3

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    1. Thanks my friend and hope all is well with you. You will know when you see a photo of an ellie or lion popping up here, that I am knocking around in your backyard!

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  16. Oooh the California deserts and their wildflowers have been high on my places to see. One day… Cindy, you visit and photograph places, plants, and animals I want to see so frequently that it seems like you can read my mind!

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  32. Hi Cindy. The desert is certainly a different world. But I was surprised to see flowers you would expect were growing in a valley. Very interesting and beautiful <3

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  36. These photos brought back great memories. Many years ago, when I was teaching Intro to Biology at UC Irvine, I took the class each spring on a field trip to the Anza Borrega Desert. Most of them despite being Californians, had never seen the beauty of a desert. let alone any desert. Many thanks!

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    1. Borrego is so vast and such a varied ecosystem that one can explore it for a lifetime, as I have, and still find new surprises. Still so many of the creatures I loved and so constantly as a child I can no longer find, like horny toads, sidewinders, trap door spider tunnels. We need to take better care of our planet. Your class sounds awesome and we have very good friends who are both profs at UC Irvine. Wonderful you took the time to introduce your students to gorgeous Anza!

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  41. What beautiful cheering flowers 🙂 Some of the ones with “hairy” stems look like they borrowed it from Wolfie!!! lol 😉 That would be about right as it’s getting around to hair shedding season now 🙂 Better on the flowers than all over everywhere like usual!

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  42. Beautiful. We have cactus plants that bloom here in the Rockies up in the mountains and they grow on our mountain property. In the summer they have beautiful yellow blooms, also. I transplanted some once down here at our home in Loveland and they grew and bloomed every summer, and last for many years. I had to wear thick leather gloves when working with them because of the prickly needles that come off easily onto the hands and our grandkids have fallen over the cactus plans while up on our mountain property and had to have them all removed with tweezers. 🙁 No fun, and a lot of pain. Just better to enjoy them where they grow and bloom.

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    1. Oh yes! These are defensive plants. My son was once thrown from his horse right into a cholla cactus. He was covered in so many spines they were impossible to remove. I put him in a hot mineral spring that was nearby and they all fell out and the inflamation disappeared like magic! Blue Agave can kill a dog if they chase something into one. They are definitely not cuddly plants. Your mountain abode sounds glorious~

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      1. It is our little refuge and getaway we’ve had for about 25 + years or so. 3.4 acres northwest of Fort Collin in a covenant subdivision of mountain properties known as Glacier View Meadows just under the Mummy range in Roosevelt Nat’l Forest. Very scenic. Those hot springs are marvelous with such healing benefits. There are some here in Colorado too Steamboat Springs and elsewhere.

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        1. Sounds perfectly divine and I was thinkging about Steamboat when I responded to your comment. FDR was right about the healing power of natural hot springs wasn’t he!

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  43. Who knew there was so much beauty in the desert?!? Not me, that’s for sure. Of course, I’ve never really been to the desert, so maybe that excuses my ignorance! Thank you for brightening my Monday, Cindy!

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  44. What a blanket of color, bringing a desert to life. Like Debbie, above, I have never seen a desert, but, to me, the flowers look more hearty than fragile…survivalists. I Googled the desert. Had no idea where it was. You live in a gorgeous and diverse state, Cindy. 🙂

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    1. Yes, your perception is quite accurate. These are the most delicate flowers you can imagine. They look like they are made of gossamer and air. They last for a very short time, and grow from such spiny, intimidating, survivalist plants. The contrast is compelling.

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