Wildflowers to know on your Bay Area Hikes this Spring!

Spring is here, and the flowers are already starting to bloom in the Bay Area. I can tell you from the looks of it, it's going to be one epic SUPERBLOOM this year! Now, while you're out hiking these beautiful trails in California, it's great to know a little bit about the flowers you see. This will get your kids looking forward to getting outside, learning, and exploring all about these beautiful blooms!

Let's start off with our beautiful Golden State Flower, the California poppy (Eschscholzia Californica), which is native to the US and Mexico. In my opinion, there isn't a flower more beautiful than this one, popping up with its fluorescent orange color among green hills at higher elevations. This is good because generally, it makes it hard to see, and a real treat when you do! It takes my breath away every single time! The poppy can live up to 8 years in fertile soil and is edible. Although it's an edible plant and was used by indigenous people to treat pain, it can cause many psychoactive effects and isn't recommended to consume. Moreover, if you pick and eat one, it's illegal, and you can get fined up to $1000. You'll be surprised how quickly their petals fall off after picking. So, enjoy these beauties as they open and close to protect their pollen and in cooler weather, right where they are, so others can also enjoy them like you!

Next up are Lupines (Lupinus), also known as blue bonnets! There are over 200 different species of lupines with varying colors of blue, pink, yellow, and white. The most common is the purple, and they grow in various places around the world except for Antarctica. The way lupines disperse their seeds is by pushing two sides of their seed pods together, and eventually, the seed pod will pop, sending its babies to school! If you're ever out in the wild enjoying these lupines, and it's really quiet, try to sit and listen to this phenomenon happening! It sounds like popcorn popping!

Wild Mustard is a very well-known wildflower that you will see blooming almost everywhere around California! When you look at the hills in the distance and see them half yellow, you are pretty sure to be looking at Wild Mustard! This plant can grow up to 3 feet tall! In some areas, you can hike alongside it and feel so small, and this is always fun for the kids! The leaves are also edible as mustard greens! It isn't a popular one with the kids because it tends to have a peppery horseradish taste to it, but if added into a salad with other greens, it shall taste delicious!

California Buttercups are beautiful yellow flowers with shiny waxy-looking leaves. They can grow up to 3 feet and have fuzzy branches. My kids love looking for these on the trails and munching on them for a good snack or mixing them in a salad. The taste is somewhat bitter and quite strong. Don't mistake the California buttercup for a Bermuda or other species of buttercups that may be toxic. Although edible for us, it may be poisonous to livestock, so they tend to avoid it. The Snow Bunting bird, Wild Turkey, and ducks really enjoy eating these buttercups, just like we do!

Bluedick (Dichelostemma capitatum) is another beautiful edible flower that tastes great in salads. You would think it's blue because of the name, but it's actually a pretty purple! The corms were used by the California Natives as a great source of starch. This flower tends to grow at higher elevations, and the petals taste really good added in salads or on their own.

Hope you enjoy the beautiful Bay Area trails this spring season and enjoy spotting some of these beautiful flowers! I wish I could cover them all, or at least all of my favorites, but I wanted to share some of our favorites to just get you started exploring and learning about these beautiful flowers. Let me know what you think in the comments and if you'd like a part two!

Make sure to always stay on designated trails and leave no trace. Please do not trample on wildflowers for the sake of a photo. There are ways you can get really creative without having to destroy these beautiful blooms so others can enjoy them too!

Happy Hiking!