California poppies bloom in Walker Canyon in Lake Elsinore on Tuesday, February 7, 2023. Lake Elsinore officials announced that the popular poppy fields in Walker Canyon will be closed until the wildflower bloom has subsided.

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — After a stormy rainy season, California’s spring has been full of blooms, but has it been a “super bloom”?

While there have been some flora that have had a spectacular bloom season, Dr. Michael Mayer, professor of biology and botany at the University of San Diego, says that overall this year has been milder compared to the super blooms of previous years.

As he explained, while the word doesn’t come from scientists, a super bloom generally describes a rare bloom that creates an impressive concentration of flowers, often forming mats on the ground.

To achieve this display, conditions must be perfect, beginning with fall rains for growth to begin. Mayer says light but consistent rainfall and cool temperatures during the winter and spring months are also needed to keep them pumping, without triggering premature growth.

“If it was really cold, that would be a problem. “Rain is not good for flowers… but a light rain will actually keep the season going,” Mayer said. “That will allow the annuals and perennials to hold on and continue to bloom.”

It is also necessary that enough seeds accumulate in the soil to form the spectacular mats. According to Mayer, not all seeds in the ground grow each year; some wait until they receive certain signals, such as scratching at the runoff.

Some isolated parts of the state saw these factors align more than others this year, Mayer added. However, the flowers that “steal the show” (primrose, poppy, visalia) didn’t get much of that benefit.

“Because there was a good amount of rain overall in the winter, the perennials and shrubs are putting on a big display,” Mayer said. “Right now, the bushes and cacti are growing wonderfully.”

According to Mayer, the last time nearly all of California saw a true super bloom of the other flowers, called annuals, was a few years ago, in 2019. However, last year’s bloom came close to that ubiquitous growth.

In the future, Mayer noted that climate change could dramatically change the frequency with which these flourishing events occur.

“Climate change in our part of the world will probably lead to a drier and warmer environment, but then it will leave the door open to some of these extreme weather events,” Mayer explained. “This could be the new norm, where we have these very dry periods, followed by very wet conditions, and that will definitely lead to more super blooms in the future.”

On the other hand, longer periods of drought could also put pressure on seeds waiting their time to grow, causing them to die before they can flower when the next rainy winter arrives.

With this year’s blooming season almost in the rearview mirror, those already looking ahead to next spring will have to wait and see what the rainy season has in store.

“There’s always a chance for a big bloom,” Mayer said. “We’ll have to see this next year.”