Posted by Bryan Maltais on February 22, 2010 at 1:02 PM
Based on recent threads, it seems the area around Tucson is the best place to be instead of Phoenix. All sources say that wildflowers are good from Feb to Apr, but for those of you with experience, can you narrow it down to your favorite week?
Posted by Marcy Ugstad on February 23, 2010 at 9:57 AM
Bryan
I used to live in Tucson, Phoenix and Yuma, and I can tell you the wildflower bloom is very dependent on when they get their winter rains. With all the rain they received this year and are still receiving - it will most likely mean a very late wildflower season.
One tip is to check the websites for the Tonto National Forest, Coronado National Forest, Arizona BLM districts (Phoenix, etc) and the National Park websites (Saguaro NP). They usually keep updates on the wildflower conditions. You can always give them a call and see if one of the biologists or botanists can give you an update. Another good place to check with is the Desert Museum in Tucson - they offer classes in wildflower photography and nature walks and would be a good source of info.
Seems like I've seen a couple internet sites also that keep people up to date on wildflower conditions.
On average, I've found the best time to go for wildflowers has always been around middle of March. Saguaro blooms are normally the best around June.
Hope this helps.
Marcy
Posted by Bill Brennan on February 23, 2010 at 5:36 PM
Bryan, you can rely on Marcy's advice. With your experience in CO, wondering about Fall foliage and Spring and Summer wildflowers, the same applies to AZ's wildflowers. Timing is not precise to specific week. If your schedule permits, stay loose until you start to get confirmation that they are in season. Otherwise, pick a week from mid-late March through mid-April, plan to shoot the cactus blooms and treat the wildflowers as a bonus.
Today, the weather is what you would expect for Tucson. If it continues to be warm, seeds will start to germinate. There seems to be general agreement among locals that wildflowers should be great this season.
Bill Brennan
Highlands Ranch, CO
Posted by Lee Daniels on February 23, 2010 at 10:15 PM
It has been a cold wet winter in Tucson - there was sleet blasting my windows last night in the Catalina foothills and the mountains are still snow-capped this afternoon. El Nino has been generous with the rain and the wildflower season should be spectacular.
Understand that blooming takes place over a long period of time. Wildflowers probably best the first 3 weeks of March or so. The best cactus show doesn't get going until around mid-April. Look for Saguaro blooms from mid-April, but better toward the end of April beginning of May.
It is never NOT pretty here during those times, so you win anytime you come.
Posted by Chuck Peacock on February 24, 2010 at 8:02 PM
Important emphasis: The Saguaro bloom does not coincide with the regular spring wildflower bloom.
Very generally speaking - March for wildflowers, Late May/early June for Saguaros (it's getting fairly warm when the Saguaros bloom.)
Posted by Bob Falcone on February 25, 2010 at 8:47 PM
As a regular visitor to Tucson every March, I'll attest to both Lee and Chucks responses. Since my trips down there correspond to baseball spring training (March), I've seen varying amounts of wildflowers every year, but in 13 or 14 years of going there, I can't remember ever seeing the Saguaros in bloom at that time.
Discussion
5 repliesI used to live in Tucson, Phoenix and Yuma, and I can tell you the wildflower bloom is very dependent on when they get their winter rains. With all the rain they received this year and are still receiving - it will most likely mean a very late wildflower season.
One tip is to check the websites for the Tonto National Forest, Coronado National Forest, Arizona BLM districts (Phoenix, etc) and the National Park websites (Saguaro NP). They usually keep updates on the wildflower conditions. You can always give them a call and see if one of the biologists or botanists can give you an update. Another good place to check with is the Desert Museum in Tucson - they offer classes in wildflower photography and nature walks and would be a good source of info.
Seems like I've seen a couple internet sites also that keep people up to date on wildflower conditions.
On average, I've found the best time to go for wildflowers has always been around middle of March. Saguaro blooms are normally the best around June.
Hope this helps.
Marcy
Today, the weather is what you would expect for Tucson. If it continues to be warm, seeds will start to germinate. There seems to be general agreement among locals that wildflowers should be great this season.
Bill Brennan
Highlands Ranch, CO
Understand that blooming takes place over a long period of time. Wildflowers probably best the first 3 weeks of March or so. The best cactus show doesn't get going until around mid-April. Look for Saguaro blooms from mid-April, but better toward the end of April beginning of May.
It is never NOT pretty here during those times, so you win anytime you come.
Very generally speaking - March for wildflowers, Late May/early June for Saguaros (it's getting fairly warm when the Saguaros bloom.)