Flowers March 2026

Wildflower season began last month with just a few tiny dove’s-foot geraniums. They are now blooming in abundance, and other wildflowers are starting to appear, marking the true beginning of spring on the property.

California Buttercup is starting to appear now, its bright yellow flowers standing out against the green grass as wildflower season gets underway.

California Buttercup (Ranunculus californicus)

Dove’s-foot geranium appears in scattered patches across the property each spring, its tiny flowers easy to overlook unless you stop and look closely.

Dove's Foot (Geranium molie).

Shooting Star is not easy to find here, and so far I have seen only one plant, growing along a shaded path where it receives just a little sun.

Shooting Star (Dodecatheon clevelandii ssp. patulum)

Wild Strawberry is beginning to bloom, but so far I have seen only the tiny white flowers and none of the berries that will hopefully follow later in the season.

Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)

Blue-eyed grass is starting to popup in places, especially on the path that leads to the bell tree. It's not actually a grass but a plant in the iris family.

Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium)

A few hound's tongue plants are coming up. This plant is in the borage family and quite pretty.

Pacific Hound's Tongue (Adelinia grandis)

We have several Coastal Rosemary plants that are blooming now. It smells like rosemary but is not rosemary. In fact it isn't a California plant, having been introduced from Australia. It's drought tolerant and does quite well as a planting.

Coastal Rosemary (Westringia fruticosa)

Although scotch broom is invasive plant from Europe, it has pretty yellow flowers. Due to our eradication efforts, the population is certainly less than when we moved here many years ago, but the surroundling land is full of it so it keeps creeping back.

Scotch Broom (Cytisus scoparius)

This plant was eaten by California miners to prevent scurvy. I sometimes put it in salads.

Miner's Lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata)

This first iris appeared. Over the next few weeks I expect to see fields of them, as they spread each year.

Fernald's Iris (Iris fernaldii)

I always called this Himalaya blackberry (Rubus armeniacus), but there is a California blackberry. I'm not sure which this is. We have lots of these plants but I've never seen a fruit on any of them. Deer might be eating the flowers before they bear fruit.

California Blackberry (Rubus ursinus)

On March 23 I noticed the first lupines blooming. In a few weeks many more will be blooming.

Lupine (Lupinus)

Shinleaf (???)

Purple Owl's Clover

Pacific Sanicle

Mallow

Delphinium

Dandelion

Grevillea Juniperina (planted, not native)

California Burclover

Pretty Fir Branch

I was amazed by the sheer number of flowers I discovered on my end-of-the-month walk. They are tiny but abundant, and can only be truly appreciated by slowing down, walking, and looking closely at the ground. The following images, captured on my last walk of March, offer a glimpse of how these small blossoms quietly emerge among the grass and leaves—easy to miss, yet everywhere once you begin to notice them.