WEATHER

Rain is pushing up wildflower season, but the new growth shouldn't affect wildfire season

Palm Springs Desert Sun

Hillsides across the Coachella Valley may soon flourish with colorful waves of wildflowers, thanks in large part to the rain that's been soaking the desert this week.

October rainfall was heavy enough for flower seeds to germinate and this week's storms, which are expected to bring at least an inch of rain to some areas, are only improving conditions necessary for a strong wildflower season.

"I can say we are going to have a good wildflower season, maybe a very good one. And if the rain keeps coming, it might move up to excellent,” said James Cornett, a local ecologist.

The likes of Desert Dandelions, Brown-eyed Primrose and Hairy Sand Verbena could show up as early as late January if temperatures are warm enough. They're typically visible from the highways, but anyone who wants to pull over for photos may visit the Indio Hills and areas east of Coachella near the Cactus City rest stop and Cottonwood Springs Road, which leads into Joshua Tree National Park.

Cornett said an average wildflower season appeared to be on tap before this week's rainfall improved his outlook. Wildflowers, he said, should be present by March if they don't show up this month.

This Desert Sun file photo shows a flower festival at the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument Visitor Center in March 2016. Wildflowers are expected to spread across the Coachella Valley thanks to recent rainfall.

The annual Coachella Valley Wildflower Festival is tentatively scheduled for March 2 at the Santa Rosa & San Jacinto Mountains National Monument Visitor Center in Palm Desert, but the location may change due to the partial government shutdown, according to the event website.

Also up in the air is whether the wildflower season will attract hordes of butterflies, which has happened in previous years.

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According to the Anza-Borrego Foundation, this winter’s rainfalls, the heaviest in a decade in the area, have wildflower experts predicting a record bloom at the state park.

It's unlikely the rain will change the outlook for this year's wildfire season, Cal Fire Capt. Fernando Herrera said.

Areas burned by recent wildfires, including the Cranston Fire and Holy Fire, are still recovering and it could be another two years before sufficient vegetation regrows. Elsewhere in local mountains, susceptible vegetation already exists.

"I don't perceive there will be any drastic change," Herrera said about the impact from this week's storm.

By 4:45 a.m. Tuesday, two-thirds of an inch of rain was recorded at the Palm Springs International Airport, which is the National Weather Service's main measuring station in the area. Meteorologists originally predicted just over a third of an inch would fall in the area.

Phil Gonsalves, a weather service meteorologist, said Monday's rainfall was "a significant amount" and that several locations received more than half an inch of rain.

This Desert Sun file photo shows Desert Dandelions, Sand Verbena and Fremont Pincushions. Wildflowers are expected to pop up as early as this month thanks to heavy rainfall.

Desert Hot Springs received 0.82 inch of rain, making it the wettest community in the Coachella Valley. Meanwhile, the storm was weaker in the eastern portion of the desert and Thermal got just under one-third of an inch as previously expected.

The surge in rainfall has placed inch counts near or even beyond where they should be for this time of year.

Palm Springs has received 0.93 inches of rain since the new year began, which is up about 50 percent from its normal rainfall for the first two weeks of January. Since Oct. 1, which is the beginning of the rain period used by weather experts, Palm Springs has had 2.44 inches of rain — just below the normal 2.47 inches.

The first two weeks of January 2018 were wetter, thanks to 1.45 inches of rain in that period, which had been all that Palm Springs received since Oct. 1, 2017.

More precipitation is in store for the Coachella Valley, but the prediction of just under another two-thirds of an inch through Thursday morning has been downgraded to just over a third of an inch. But due in large part to Monday's rainfall, experts are maintaining that more than an inch of rain could fall by the end of the week.

"That's certainly a possibility. In fact, it's a probability," Gonsalves said.

Desert Sun reporter Colin Atagi covers crime, public safety and road and highway safety. He can be reached at Colin.Atagi@desertsun.com or follow him at @tdscolinatagi.