San Francisco Wildflowers and Plants: Where and When to See Them

San Francisco is a good place for wildflowers and native plants: coastal dunes, serpentine bluffs, grassy hills, redwoods across the bridge, and two gardens in Golden Gate Park. This guide sticks to what the National Park Service, the Presidio Trust, SF Recreation and Park, the Gardens of Golden Gate Park and the state say, gives bloom times only as “typically,” and lists what we could not confirm.

State Symbols and Coastal Classics

Information as of 30 October 2026. Where a source gives a season but no month, we say so.

• California Poppy (State Flower)

  Where and when, per the sourceThe state’s Capitol Museum names the California golden poppy, Eschscholzia californica, as the state flower. It grows statewide and blooms from spring into early summer, in bright orange clumps up to 2 feet tall and wide. The Park Service also lists California poppies among Presidio, Lands End and Muir Woods wildflowers, and Rec and Park says they bloom in spring on Mt. Davidson.

  Care or safety noteThe Capitol Museum says it is illegal to harm or pick any golden poppy on state and private property (Penal Code 384a), that picked flowers fall apart, and that all parts are toxic if eaten.

  SourceCapitol Museum: golden poppy; National Park Service: Presidio wildflowers; National Park Service: Lands End plants; SF Rec and Park: Mt. Davidson

• Coast Redwood (State Tree)

  Where and when, per the sourceThe Capitol Museum says the coast redwood shares the state tree designation with the giant sequoia, lives best within 50 miles of the ocean from Oregon to Monterey because it needs winter rain and summer fog, and is the tallest tree in the world. The Park Service describes old-growth coast redwood forest at Muir Woods, and the Botanical Garden has a coast redwood grove in its California section.

  Care or safety noteStay on marked paths so roots are not trampled. The pages we read give no other rule.

  SourceCapitol Museum: coast redwood; National Park Service: Muir Woods plants; SF Botanical Garden

• Lupines

  Where and when, per the sourceBush lupine and Chamisso’s lupine are listed among common coastal dune scrub plants in the Presidio, and silver bush lupine among Lands End natives. Rec and Park says Twin Peaks has three native lupine species, including silver lupine, and that the endangered mission blue butterfly needs all three.

  Care or safety noteStay on trails: the butterfly lives and lays eggs on lupine (Rec and Park). We found no page with lupine bloom months.

  SourceNational Park Service: Presidio dune scrub; National Park Service: Lands End plants; SF Rec and Park: Twin Peaks

• Douglas Iris

  Where and when, per the sourceNamed among native plants on the Park Service’s Lands End panel and among coastal scrub plants at Muir Woods. The Park Service’s wildflower page also lists it among natives used in Bay Area landscaping.

  Care or safety noteLook, do not pick. Stay on the trail.

  SourceNational Park Service: Lands End plants; National Park Service: Muir Woods plants; National Park Service: Golden Gate wildflowers

• Sticky Monkeyflower

  Where and when, per the sourceThe Park Service says its bright orange flowers “tip you off to bloom time on the coastal cliffs,” with no month given. It is also listed in Presidio dune scrub and in Golden Gate scrub and chaparral.

  Care or safety noteLook, do not pick. Stay on the trail.

  SourceNational Park Service: Golden Gate wildflowers; National Park Service: Presidio dune scrub; National Park Service: Golden Gate scrublands

Habitats and Where to See Them

• Presidio Coastal Dune Scrub

  Where and when, per the sourceThe Park Service describes dune scrub as densely packed shrubs with scattered grasses, wildflowers and open sand, on inland dunes behind the foredune. Common natives: bush lupine, sticky monkeyflower, California coffeeberry, Chamisso’s lupine, coyote bush, lizard tail, mock heather and poison oak. It says the community once covered about 14 square miles of San Francisco and has shrunk because of urban growth and non-native plants. The page was last updated February 28, 2015.

  Care or safety notePoison oak grows here. We do not name sites for the rare dune plants (see below).

  SourceNational Park Service: Presidio dune scrub

• Presidio Coastal Bluffs

  Where and when, per the sourceThe Park Service says the bluffs have low-nutrient soil over serpentinite rock with metals that are toxic to many plants, that some rare natives are adapted to it, and that restoration work centers on native toyon, madrone and manzanita. The Coastal Trail runs along the bluffs. The page shows wildflowers in a photo but gives no bloom times.

  Care or safety noteBluffs are windy, rugged and often cool and foggy, per the page. Stay on the trail.

  SourceNational Park Service: Coastal Bluffs

• Lands End

  Where and when, per the sourceThe Park Service panel lists toyon, Douglas iris, seaside daisy, silver bush lupine, Ithuriel’s spear, California poppies, cobweb thistle and California blackberry. Fog, west winds and sea spray favor low, salt-tolerant plants. Pine, cypress and eucalyptus planted from the 1930s crowded out many natives, and the Park Service is thinning stands and replanting natives.

  Care or safety noteLook, do not pick. Stay on the trail.

  SourceNational Park Service: Lands End plants

• Golden Gate Grasslands and Cliffs

  Where and when, per the sourcePer the Park Service, grasslands flower earliest, with footsteps-of-spring, goldfields and lomatium carpeting fields yellow and white. A few weeks later wild onion and brodiaea add pink and purple. Coast blue blossom scents the chaparral, sticky monkeyflower blooms on coastal cliffs, and pearly everlasting and California aster flower in late summer.

  Care or safety noteThe page gives no months and no picking rule. Follow park signs.

  SourceNational Park Service: Golden Gate wildflowers

• Twin Peaks Natural Area

  Where and when, per the sourceRec and Park calls Twin Peaks a 64-acre park at 922 feet, mainly grassland and coastal scrub, with coyote brush, lizard tail, pearly everlasting and three native lupines. Open 5 a.m. to midnight.

  Care or safety noteRec and Park says to stay on established trails to avoid poison oak and reduce erosion. The page gives no bloom times.

  SourceSF Rec and Park: Twin Peaks

• Mt. Davidson

  Where and when, per the sourceRec and Park says the city’s highest point, 938 feet, has eucalyptus on its western slopes and coastal scrub and grassland to the northeast, with California huckleberry and Pacific reed grass among its uncommon plants. “In spring, native wildflowers such as California poppy and blue-eyed grass bloom.” Open 5 a.m. to midnight.

  Care or safety noteThe eucalyptus are non-native but shelter owls and hawks, per the page. Respect posted signs.

  SourceSF Rec and Park: Mt. Davidson

• Muir Woods

  Where and when, per the sourceThe Park Service lists redwood forest wildflowers (trillium, Andrew’s clintonia, fetid-adder’s tongue), creekside western azalea, scarlet monkeyflower, elk clover and leopard lily, and coastal scrub Douglas iris, western blue-eyed grass, California poppy and bush lupine. It gives no months.

  Care or safety noteThe page says to watch for poison oak, especially in coastal scrub. We did not read the Muir Woods visit rules.

  SourceNational Park Service: Muir Woods plants

Rare Plants and Invasive Species

• Rare Presidio Plants (Names, Not Places)

  What the source saysThe Park Service names San Francisco campion, dune gilia, San Francisco lessingia, San Francisco spineflower and San Francisco wallflower as rare dune scrub plants, and says Golden Gate parklands hold over 45 rare or special-status plant species and are often the last chance to prevent their extinction. The Presidio Trust works with the Park Service and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy to restore grasslands, wetlands, dunes and creeks.

  What to doWe deliberately do not say where any rare plant grows. Never leave the trail, pick, dig or collect, and never go into a fenced or posted restoration area.

  SourceNational Park Service: Presidio dune scrub; National Park Service: Golden Gate plants; Presidio Trust: sustainability

• Non-Native Trees and Plants

  What the source saysThe Park Service calls the spread of non-native plants the most significant threat to biodiversity in the park, and Rec and Park says trees planted in natural areas, such as eucalyptus, Monterey cypress and Monterey pine, are almost entirely non-native and often invasive.

  What to doDo not plant or dump garden cuttings in parks. We found no page with a disposal rule.

  SourceNational Park Service: Golden Gate plants; SF Rec and Park: natural areas

Gardens in Golden Gate Park

• San Francisco Botanical Garden

  Where and when, per the sourceThe Gardens of Golden Gate Park page says the garden covers 55 acres and shows more than 8,000 kinds of plants. Its California section includes a coast redwood grove and the Arthur L. Menzies Garden of California Native Plants. Magnolias bloom mid-January through the end of March, the Succulent Garden is best in winter when Aloe arborescens flowers red, and the South Africa garden has something in bloom at any time of year. Open daily from 7:30 a.m.; the garden is free daily 7:30 to 9 a.m. and on the second Tuesday of each month.

  Care or safety noteGarden rules prohibit picking or stepping on plants, pets, feeding wildlife and wheeled vehicles other than wheelchairs and strollers. Last entry changes with the season, so check the hours page. Prices are not on the page we read.

  SourceGardens of Golden Gate Park: Botanical Garden; Gardens of Golden Gate Park: hours

• Conservatory of Flowers

  Where and when, per the sourceThe page calls it the oldest public wood-and-glass conservatory in North America, with Aquatic Plants, Highland Tropics, Lowland Tropics, Potted Plants and West galleries. It names giant water lily, fanged pitcher plant, Dracula orchid and staghorn fern, and says a corpse flower occasionally blooms in the West Gallery. Open Thursday to Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., last entry 4 p.m.; closed Wednesdays; free the first Tuesday of the month.

  Care or safety noteNo food or drink, strollers, pets or outside plants inside; it can top 85 degrees. Hours can change, and the page listed a closure January 21 to February 4, 2026, so check before going.

  SourceGardens of Golden Gate Park: Conservatory; Gardens of Golden Gate Park: hours

What Is Typically in Bloom, Month by Month

These are seasons as the sources describe them, not forecasts. Bloom shifts with rain, fog and temperature, so confirm with the park or garden before you travel.

• Mid-January to Late March

  TypicallyMagnolias bloom at the Botanical Garden, per the garden.

  SourceGardens of Golden Gate Park

• Winter

  TypicallyThe Botanical Garden’s Succulent Garden is best, with red Aloe arborescens flowers.

  SourceGardens of Golden Gate Park

• Earliest in the Wildflower Year

  TypicallyGrassland forbs such as footsteps-of-spring, goldfields and lomatium flower first. The Park Service gives no month.

  SourceNational Park Service: wildflowers

• A Few Weeks After the First Grassland Bloom

  TypicallyWild onion and brodiaea add pink and purple, per the Park Service.

  SourceNational Park Service: wildflowers

• Spring

  TypicallyCalifornia poppy and blue-eyed grass bloom on Mt. Davidson, per Rec and Park.

  SourceSF Rec and Park: Mt. Davidson

• Spring into Early Summer

  TypicallyCalifornia golden poppy blooms statewide, per the Capitol Museum.

  SourceCapitol Museum

• Late Summer

  TypicallyPearly everlasting and California aster flower, per the Park Service.

  SourceNational Park Service: wildflowers

• Any Time of Year

  TypicallySomething is in bloom in the Botanical Garden’s South Africa garden, per the garden.

  SourceGardens of Golden Gate Park

• Date Not Stated by Any Source We Read

  TypicallySticky monkeyflower on the coastal cliffs, lupines, Lands End and Presidio dune and bluff flowers, and Muir Woods wildflowers.

  SourceNational Park Service pages above

Where to See Wildflowers and Plants

These places each have an official page that names the plants.

• San Francisco Botanical Garden in Golden Gate Park: California native garden, redwood grove, magnolias in winter (Gardens of Golden Gate Park).
• Conservatory of Flowers: tropical and rare plants under glass (Gardens of Golden Gate Park).
• Presidio: dune scrub, coastal bluffs and a Coastal Trail (dune scrub; coastal bluffs).
• Lands End: native coastal plants and a replanting project (Park Service).
• Twin Peaks and Mt. Davidson: city natural areas, open 5 a.m. to midnight (Twin Peaks; Mt. Davidson).
• Muir Woods National Monument: redwoods, ferns and woodland wildflowers (Park Service plants page).
• Japantown cherry blossoms: the official Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival site lists the 2027 festival as April 10 to 11 and 17 to 18. It does not say when the trees bloom (festival site).

Staying Safe and Protecting Plants

• Read this first: the law and plant-protection notes below are not legal advice. We read the Capitol Museum, Park Service, Rec and Park and Gardens of Golden Gate Park pages on 30 October 2026. Laws and park rules can change, so check the current text or ask the agency (the park, Rec and Park or the garden) before you rely on them. Sources disagree on picking golden poppies: the Capitol Museum says it is illegal on state and private property, while California Fish and Wildlife says no law protects the poppy specifically, only the general rule that plants on land you do not own need the landowner’s permission. We did not read the statute text for this page, so ask the park or California Fish and Wildlife, and the safe rule is to look and leave it. Anything else we could not confirm is listed under What We Could Not Verify.
• Stay on the trail: the Park Service says “Stay on trails!” and Rec and Park says to stay on established trails at Twin Peaks to avoid poison oak and reduce erosion (Park Service; Rec and Park).
• Do not pick: the Capitol Museum says it is illegal to harm or pick golden poppies on state and private property, and the Botanical Garden prohibits picking or stepping on plants (Capitol Museum; Gardens of Golden Gate Park).
• Protected and rare plants: over 45 rare or special-status plant species live in Golden Gate parklands (Park Service). Never dig, collect or enter restoration areas, and do not share exact locations of rare plants.

Grow and Learn More

• Calscape, run by the California Native Plant Society, lets you search native plants by address, zip code, city, county or park and find participating nurseries. Its maps are distribution models, not a survey (FAQ; about).
• California Native Plant Society says its local chapters hold plant sales, wildflower shows, nature walks and restoration projects (CNPS). We did not read the San Francisco chapter’s page.
• Volunteer: Rec and Park says its natural areas cover more than 1,100 acres in 32 parks and have volunteer programs (Rec and Park). The Presidio Trust runs Habitat and Forest Stewards and a native plant nursery (Presidio Trust).

What We Could Not Verify

• Exact bloom months for Twin Peaks, Lands End, the Presidio bluffs and Muir Woods: none of the pages we read give them. Check with each park.
• When Japantown’s cherry trees bloom, and where else in the city cherry trees can be seen. The festival site did not say.
• Admission prices at the Botanical Garden and Conservatory. The hours page does not list prices.
• The year the coast redwood became the state tree: sources conflicted, so we omit it. The poppy’s adoption year is not on the page we read.
• A San Francisco plant list from Calscape or the local CNPS chapter, Muir Woods visit rules and reservations, and the Presidio Trust’s own wildflower guidance. Not read.
• Where rare plants grow. We left this out on purpose.
• The statute text behind the plant-picking rules on this page (poppies and parkland plants). We quote the agencies named, not the code, so check the current rule with the park or garden before you rely on it.

More San Francisco Guides

Read the San Francisco wildlife guide for the animals that share these habitats, the Lands End trail guide for the walk, or browse all topic guides, San Francisco history and neighborhood guides. See what else is on at the events calendar.

Facts are as the sources state them, read on 30 October 2026. Bloom times are typical, not guaranteed.