Spring arrived over the weekend here in Ridgecrest. This side of the Sierra Nevada is popping wildflowers like crazy. Most are just beginning to bloom. I have quite a crop of wild mustard and belly* flowers in my own backyard!
I have not had much time to get out in the desert yet as projects and a nasty cold have kept me tethered to home so far. One of the projects is preparing for a new selling event called the Home Show here in the Valley. I will have a booth this weekend and so I am painting cards. Right now I am painting wildflower cards, duh!
The 3 in the photo above are in process and they are taken from photos I have of our local flowers in the past. These are some of my favorites. The top one is called the Desert 5 Spot and is typically found in Death Valley, Bottom left is called a Mariposa Lily and it likes to hang out in a little higher elevations on the mountain slopes and tends to be a little more elusive, and the third is a Thistle Sage which is a little more common. Can’t wait to see them finished. Very fun!
This year I am hearing stories of fields of Evening Snow and Phacelia and many other things. It’s time to get out. Wildflower season is always exciting here. Every year brings a different mix of species. My daily walks will move a little farther out of the city so I can commune with the flowers. Yesterday the Painted Butterfly migration was in my neighborhood. The puppies and I got to be in the midst of them as they flew on. It was magical.
Have a Happy Day!
Cheryl
*Belly flowers are not really a species of wildflowers. They come in all kinds. The reason we call them belly flowers is because you have to get down on your belly to see them 🙂
