Image - Anza Borrego Desert State
Even the most inhospitable desert can give the most wonderful surprise. And it is that, after the storm, calm always returns or, rather, life. An example of this is the desert of southeastern California. There, after five years of drought, the rains of this past winter have made the flowers take over the landscape.
But it is also that they have done it in a spectacular way. Normally, there is always a plant that is encouraged to flower even if the conditions are not very favorable; However, this time thousands and thousands of flowers brighten the desert of the southeastern state.
Image - Kyle magnuson
Seeds in hot deserts need heat, very sandy soil, and a little water to germinate. However, in these places you can never know when it will rain enough for the plants to resurface. But plant beings have developed a surprising adaptive measure: once the flowers are pollinated, the embryo can be dormant for a long time, as the shell that protects it is usually very hard.
Of course, as soon as the first drops fall, the seeds do not hesitate to germinate to make the most of the precious liquid that will help them complete their life cycle, which is what has happened in California.
Precipitation of the Anza Borrego desert, in southeastern California, from 1985 to 2017. Image - NOAA
Rainfall was low in recent times, but in winter 2016/2017 fell more than double of what had been falling. As you can see in the image above, in the Anza Borrego desert the average winter precipitation is barely 36ml, but the last one broke the records of recent times thus ending, at least momentarily, the drought.
The photos are really beautiful, don't you think?
Image - Anza Borrego Wildflower Guide Facebook