Natural History Wanderings

Desert Wildflower Reports – DesertUSA. reports on Death Valley

Drove through the Greenwater Valley on Tuesday to visit the wildflowers around Salisbury and Jubilee Passes. Many wildflowers are blooming along the Greenwater Road south of Dantes View, with Gold Poppies, Fremont Phaclia and Checker Fiddleneck at the north end. On the south end there are large groups of Desert Dandelion and Desert Chicory. Also there may be Death Valley Phacelia blooming, but need to examine the wildflower books more closely to be sure.

On the east side of Salisbury Pass one mile from the summit along the hillsides and next to the road there are large carpet blooms of yellow and orange daisy-like two inch flowers interspersed with Fremont Phacelias. These may be the common Goldfields, but I haven’t been able to confirm identification yet.

On the way down to Jubilee Pass the Brittlebrush is is full bloom for a mile or more just south of the road in a small arroyo. Very very pretty.

South of Ashton Miles at the intersection of Harry Wade and the Badwater Road, the very large carpet bloom of Desert Gold is beginning to burn out with the 90 degree weather of the last three days. All of the Sand Verbena and other tasty wildflowers have been consumed by the voracious Hawkmoth Caterpillars, which rampage their way through the blooms. Still the large blooms at the southern part of the park should not be missed, being the largest of their ind since the Big Bloom of 2005.

Closer to home at Furnace Creek, the gravel fan between Sunset and Texas Spring Campgrounds has suddenly bloomed with Desert Gold, after I thought it was long burned out with lesser flowers. Now is the time to come to Death Valley and begin to follow the wildflowers from the valley floor to higher elevations.