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Photos: The 'Dr. Seuss' Plants in Malibu are Blooming Like Crazy
For most of the year, the Giant Coreopsis plant looks like a short stubby odd-looking version of a Joshua Tree. Often referred to as the Dr. Seuss plant, it sits flowerless and dead-looking for about nine months of the year. Then wildflower season comes and it boldly blooms with beautiful yellow flowers. And that time is now and the clock is ticking.
You can only find Coreopsis gigantea in a handful of places in Southern California and some of them are not all that accessible with ease like Anacapa and San Miguel islands in Channel Islands National Park, which sit a boat ride away from Ventura County. However, there's one good spot in Malibu and that's Point Dume State Preserve which sits just at the end of Point Dume State Beach.
Seen this weekend, the fields of the plant are abloom, sparkling with yellow. The small preserve offers a nice casual walking or jogging space and access to the more secluded, yet public, Dume Cove beach where some tidepools can be found. Above, a small hill is popular for whale watchers and also makes a good spot for watching the sun set over Santa Cruz Island.
Parking at the preserve is very limited--about six spaces--and while you'll see many cars
parked in the dirt across the street, police are quick to ticket. Your best bet is parking at the official beach parking lot on Westward Beach Road and hiking it over to the preserve (map).
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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