The coronavirus pandemic brought the economy to a screeching halt. But Mother Nature kept right on going.
Thanks to soaking March and April rains, colorful wildflowers are springing up from the sun-splashed hills of the Inland Empire to the fog-kissed coastal bluffs of Los Angeles and Orange counties.
“It’s a strange year,” said Evan Meyer, executive director for the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wildflowers and Native Plants in Los Angeles’ Sun Valley. “We got a lot of rain early and then it was really dry. And then, all of the sudden, we got a lot of rain again.”
Rains fuel bloom
The region pivoted from one extreme weather pattern to the other, said Alex Tardy, a National Weather Service meteorologist in San Diego.
Huntington Beach residents Jason Brown and Mary Durham enjoy a hillside of blooming Garland daisies as they hike along Weir Canyon Trail in Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Anaheim Hills on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A bougainvillea blooms in Moreno Valley on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
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A honey bee buzzes around blooming daisies in the wildflower garden outside Yucaipa City Hall on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Poppies are in bloom in and around the California poppy reserve in Lancaster on Thursday, April 2, 2020. The reserve parking is closed due to the coronavirus outbreak, but residents can hike into the trails as long as proper personal distance is maintained. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Flowers bloom at the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
A daisy blooms in the wildflower garden outside Yucaipa City Hall on Wednesday , April 15, 2020. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Poppies, seen Thursday, April 2, 2020, are in bloom in and around the California poppy reserve in Lancaster. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
The California poppy reserve in Lancaster, seen Thursday, April 2, 2020, features plenty of poppies. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
The Deane Dana Friendship Park and Nature Center in San Pedro, seen Tuesday, April 21, 2020, features blooming flowers. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Flowers are blooming at the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Flowers bloom at the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Visitors enjoy blooming flowers at the Deane Dana Friendship Park and Nature Center in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
A visitor enjoys the flowers at the Deane Dana Friendship Park and Nature Center in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
A rattlesnake makes its way across a trail at Deane Dana Friendship Park and Nature Center in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Flowers are in bloom at the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
The White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro, seen Tuesday, April 21, 2020, offer a view of many blooming flowers. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Blooming flowers are on display at the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Flowers bloom at the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
A bee flies from flower to flower in Moreno Valley on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
A purple iris blooms in the wildflower garden outside Yucaipa City Hall on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
The bloom of an Italian thistle glows in the morning sunlight at Irvine Regional Park in Orange on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A daisy gets ready to open in the wildflower garden outside Yucaipa City Hall on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Wildflowers are blooming across Moreno Valley on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
Flowers are in bloom at the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
A bouquet of daisies blooms in the wildflower garden outside Yucaipa City Hall on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Wildflowers are seen in Moreno Valley on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
Wildflowers have started to bloom in the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve in Rancho Palos Verdes and the White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro. (Photo By Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Wildflowers bloom in the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve in Rancho Palos Verdes and White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro. (Photo By Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
“Enjoy the wildflowers, do not enter meadow” reads a sign at the L.A. County Arboretum. Paths and trails are also closed, as are buildings, but the wide paved interior roads are open. (Photo by David Allen, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
A man is surrounded by mustard flowers as he walks the Madrugada trail in Chino Hills on Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Watchara Phomicinda, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
California goldfield wildflowers glow in the sunshine at Diamond Valley Lake along the Lakeview Trail on Tuesday, March 3, 2020. (Photo courtesy of William Wagner)
Garland daisies bloom along Weir Canyon Trail in Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Anaheim Hills on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
California poppies bloom along Weir Canyon Trail in Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Anaheim Hills on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Garland daisies bloom along Weir Canyon Trail in Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Anaheim Hills on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Garland daisies bloom along Weir Canyon Trail in Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Anaheim Hills on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A bee gathers pollen from Garland daisies along Weir Canyon Trail in Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Anaheim Hills on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Blossoms of the California bush sunflower glow in the last light of the day at Irvine Regional Park in Orange on Wednesday, March 11, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Covered in water from a light morning rain, a Parry’s phacelia blooms hang off the stem along a trail at Irvine Regional Park in Orange on Sunday, March 15, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Fuzzy, yellow blooms of an acacia tree are seen against the afternoon blue sky at Irvine Regional Park in Orange, on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The many blooms of a wild radish glow in the afternoon sunlight along a trail in Boomer Canyon in Irvine on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
As a light rain falls, the tendrils of a wild cucumber plant curl as they grow along a trail at Irvine Regional Park in Orange on Sunday, March 15, 2020. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Poppies bloom as snow can be seen in the mountains in Lancaster on Sunday, April 12, 2020. The California Poppy Reserve remains closed due to the coronavirus outbreak, but there are many poppies in bloom across the area. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
“That same pattern that we saw in December set back up again in March and set us up for a grand finale in April,” Tardy said.
As a result, much of Orange County and the Inland Empire went from having half of normal rainfall at the end of February to 90% or more today, he said.
That ignited a bloom.
Sure, the bloom isn’t as dramatic as it was last year, when a rare superbloom lit up social media and drove hundreds of thousands to travel to Riverside County, where Lake Elsinore’s Walker Canyon offered miles of rolling hills painted brilliant orange.
But 2020 went from being a disappointment to an above-average wildflower year, said Naomi Fraga, director of conservation programs at the 86-acre California Botanic Garden in Claremont.
“Actually, it’s a pretty exceptional year because we had significant late rain,” Fraga said.
The rain fueled a modest California poppy bloom along the 15 Freeway in the Lake Elsinore area that experts had predicted wouldn’t happen.
Many flower areas closed
“Nothing big enough to write home about,” wrote Riverside County Supervisor Kevin Jeffries in a recent Facebook post.
“But a little sign of nature’s beauty is appreciated these days,” Jeffries said.
Don’t jump in the car, though, and head for Lake Elsinore. You’ll find the Walker Canyon parking lot and trail closed, said Nicole Dailey, assistant to the city manager.
You’ll find the same situation across Southern California.
Most popular wildflower-viewing areas are closed because of stay-at-home orders from the coronavirus outbreak and concerns about the ability to practice social distancing.
“Even in the midst of a pandemic, the flowers are beautiful,” Meyer, of the Theodore Payne Foundation, said.
But he recommends staying local and either viewing the wildflower show online, from one’s home, or from a trail in one’s neighborhood.
Fraga offered similar advice.
“What you might not realize is that in our own backyards there are native plants in bloom that are beautiful,” she said. “And they are all around us.”
Virtual viewing suggested
The Payne Foundation, which posts Wild Flower Hotline reports each Friday, is emphasizing the convenience of virtual peeks.
That’s a good way to see sprawling fields of poppies at the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, which is closed, Meyer said.
It’s also a way to see the wide variety of coastal and desert wildflowers at Prisk Native Garden in Long Beach at Prisk School. The garden is closed, a foundation report said, but anyone can take a virtual tour via a recorded video the garden posted on Facebook.
In Orange County, flowers are blooming profusely. For example, on Wednesday afternoon, April 22, Huntington Beach residents Jason Brown and Mary Durham hiked past blooming Garland daisies along Weir Canyon Trail in Santiago Oaks Regional Park, in Anaheim Hills.
Because parking lots at Orange County parks and trails are closed, spokeswoman Marisa O’Neil wrote in an email that officials are urging people “to enjoy nature from home” by viewing content on social media pages.
It’s also a good year for viewing wildflowers in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Mountains offer big blooms
Mark Mendelsohn, a botanist at the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, said highlights include the Mariposa lily, Parry’s phacelia and blue-eyed grass flower from the Iris family.
“In the higher elevations, you’ve got huge, huge blooms of golden ear drops,” Mendelsohn said. “Some people call them bleeding hearts. But it’s a member of the poppy family. It’s striking.”
Recreation-area trails have been closed in Los Angeles County and open weekdays only in Ventura County, providing limited opportunity to venture out, he said.
The recreation area is going to unveil an opportunity for visiting virtually.
Mendelsohn said a Facebook live “wildflower walk” is set to debut on the Santa Monica Mountains’ Facebook page Saturday, May 2, and will be the first of three such presentations, he said.
Flowers may soon wilt
Meanwhile, Meyer said his foundation is hosting a “Poppy Hour” each Friday at 5:30 p.m. where people can virtually join a conversation about wildflowers and wilderness.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Meyer said. “And people get to see plants from the safety of their homes. It’s a way to connect with nature at this time.”
However one chooses to connect this spring, one thing’s certain: the flowers won’t last.
After the rain, the region is in store for a week of sunny, summer-like weather. Tardy, the meteorologist, said inland temperatures will hover in or near the 90s through the middle of next week.
“After a week or so of 90s, they are going to get stressed out quickly,” he said.