Introduction to California Desert Wildflowers: Revised Edition (California Natural History Guides) [Paperback]

Philip A. Munz (Author), Diane Renshaw (Editor), Robert Ornduff (Introduction), Carrie Burroughs (Author), Karen Elsbernd (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0520236327 | ISBN-13: 978-0520236325 | Publication Date: March 29, 2004 | Edition: 2

Some of the most spectacular and famous spring wildflower displays in California occur in the state's deserts. In fact, California's deserts support a surprisingly rich diversity of plants and animals year-round, making them a rewarding destination for outdoor enthusiasts as well as professional naturalists. First published forty years ago, this popular field guide has never been superseded as a guide to the wildflowers in these botanically rich areas. Easy-to-use, portable, and comprehensive, it has now been thoroughly updated and revised throughout, making it the perfect guide to take along on excursions into the Mojave and Colorado Deserts.
* Includes 220 new color photographs and 123 detailed drawings
* Now identifies more than 240 wildflowers in informative, engaging species accounts
* Covers such popular destinations as Death Valley, Palm Springs, and Joshua Tree National Park

Editorial Reviews

Review

"One of the most comprehensive guides to help with identification."--San Jose Mercury News

From the Inside Flap

"This is an historic book, popular for 40 years and many people's first introduction to the study of California desert wildflowers. The combination of both line drawings and color photographs with a popularized but accurate and informative text is as effective as ever. Everyone interested in the subject will want a copy."--Emil Morhardt, author of California Desert Flowers

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Product Details

• Paperback: 248 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 2 edition (March 29, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520236327
• ISBN-13: 978-0520236325
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 4.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #799,153 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great guide for the amateur naturalist, March 14, 2005

By 

Gretchen Crumpacker "Weathergeek" (Costa Mesa, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Introduction to California Desert Wildflowers: Revised Edition (California Natural History Guides) (Paperback)

I picked up this book during a recent trip to the Coachella Valley (Palm Springs and vicinity), after the remarkable rainy season of 2004-2005 produced an equally remarkable spring wildflower season. We found this to be a handy and user-friendly guide for the interested amateur.

The flowers are conveniently organized in sections by color, making it easy to answer the question "Now, what purple flower is this?" and the illustrations are photographs rather than drawings, which I have always found much preferable in field guides. Each plant description also includes valuable information such as in which particular desert regions, at what elevations, and during what months you might expect to find it. A must-have for visitors to Death Valley, Anza-Borrego, the Palm Springs Indian canyons, and Joshua Tree National Park during wildflower season. Perhaps this book will not tell a botanist anything new, but it was perfect for us.

The regions covered consist essentially of all desert sections from Central California south to the Mexican border. The introductory chapters contain some interesting information about desert ecosystems and the specialized mechanisms these plants have developed to survive in harsh conditions. Useful and fascinating. Highly recommended.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This one's good, but there are better for Anza-Borrego, March 8, 2005

By 

K. Barber (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Introduction to California Desert Wildflowers: Revised Edition (California Natural History Guides) (Paperback)

On March 3rd, 2005, I took a trip out to Anza-Borrego with a friend of mine to see the wildflower bloom (a record year for rain I'm told). I took this book and she brought the Sonoran Desert Wildflowers guide. While the book I brought had accurate descriptions featuring detailed flower characteristics and habitat, her book was much more specific to this particular region of California. I would say her book had 2 flowers for every 1 that mine covered. So, if Anza-Borrego is your destination, the Sonoran book would be a better guide. But if you really wanted to, bring both, as it was interesting to compare descriptions. It helped to key out certain flowers by comparing both books' descriptions.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quite easy to use, February 26, 2007

By 

Peter McCluskey (San Bruno, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Introduction to California Desert Wildflowers: Revised Edition (California Natural History Guides) (Paperback)

I know a lot about wildflowers of wetter parts of California, but I rarely visit the deserts. I prefer botanical books that are more expert-oriented than this one is, but this is designed well enough that its beginner-oriented design didn't cause the kind of annoyance I normally feel with beginner-oriented botanical books. Most people will find it easy to use. It describes fewer plants than I normally expect a good botanical book to cover, but in spite of that I was surprised at how large a fraction of the flowers I searched for are covered by the book.
My only real complaint is that the index needs more work (e.g. Desert Pincushion is listed only under Desert, not under Pincushion).