You can search for wildflowers by location, color, flower shape, flower size and time of observation. Your search can use any combination of these criteria. Use the search menus on the left to set the search criteria.

First Step -- Set the Location

The first thing you should do is set the location. If you don't set the location the program will show you cactus in Seattle and strawberries in Death Valley. The easiest way to set the location is to use the Google map to the left. You can zoom with the "+" and "-" controls and drag the map with the mouse. When you find the location where the flowers were observed use a single mouse click to set the location. If your location is a national park or common tourist destination you may find the location by pressing the Parks and Trails button. Although the program shows fairly precise locations, plant selection is done with a resolution of around 35 miles.

Second Step -- Set the Time of Year

Often plants are observed because of their flowers. In this case you are setting the time you saw the plant flowering. To set the time that you observed the plant use the Observation Time button. This will show you a calendar allowing you to select the week of observation. If you have just seen the plant you can select "Now" to see plants that are blooming now.

Last Step -- Set Flower Shape, Color or Size

After the first two steps you will see pictures of flowers. When you find a picture that looks right, click on the photo. This will show you links to where you can find more photos and information about that plant.

The number of photos can be so large that it takes a long time to view all of them. If you do not see the flower that you are looking for right away, add additional search criteria. The Flower Shape button starts a two-level menu of flower shapes. The Flower Color button shows you palettes of colors restricting the search to flowers that can have a certain color. The Flower Size button allows you to restrict the search to flowers of a particular size. The more search criteria you add the more you will zero-in on the flower you are looking for.

More information about this web site can be found by pressing the button.