A comprehensive guidebook to Monterey County wildflowers blooms in local bookstores.

Michael Mitchell organized his most recent guide to local wildflowers based on the simplest description a layperson would use: color.

Mitchell’s field guide, Monterey County Wildflowers, features nearly 1,000 species throughout Monterey County. They’re organized by color tabs resembling a muted rainbow, the thickest section devoted to purple flowers, followed by whites and yellows, and just thin slivers devoted to blue and red. From there, the flowers are listed alphabetically by family and scientific name.

The book, co-written and self-published with Rod Yeager and published in November 2016, is a larger-scale version of Mitchell’s 2011 guide to Garland Park in Carmel Valley.

“That book was well-received [but] limited in its scope,” Mitchell says. “Rod and I decided to create a larger-spread book. There are over 2,300 species of either naturalized or native to Monterey County.”

Mitchell moved from England to the Monterey Peninsula 14 years ago and took to hiking, and he would come across sprawling wildflowers. “I became curious,” Mitchell says. “There was no satisfactory field guide to flowers in the area for anyone to understand.”

Mitchell is now a co-chair of the annual wildflower show held at the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History and a board member for the Monterey Bay Chapter of the California Native Plant Society.

The three-day wildflower show gathers cuttings from all over Monterey County, spreading out some 700 different species. Monterey County’s Mediterranean climate allows many wildflowers grow at various times throughout the year, making them relatively colorful – and easy-maintenance – additions to home gardens all over the county. They’re easy to plant, by simply sprinkling wildflower mix on the soil and raking it in. As a bonus, the blooms attract pollinators.

Mitchell says there are great places to find wildflowers throughout the county including popular spots like Garland Ranch Regional Park and Toro Park.

“My favorite place is Indians and Fort Hunter Liggett,” he says. “People who live on the Peninsula don’t appreciate how many flowers there are to be found in South County. The best flower displays to be found in spring are in South County. Some spots can be a hassle to get to, but worth the effort.”

For the book, Mitchell traveled to the far reaches of the 3,300-square-mile county to find specimens. On the southeastern boundary, en route to Coalinga, he found yellow tubular flowers of Mojave rabbitbrush shooting up along Mustang Grade on Highway 198.

“It’s a moonscape during the summer with nothing but dry and arid weather,” Mitchell says. “But in October at the top of the grade, there are about seven or eight species of flowers.”

Closer to civilization, Mitchell says he loves the vibrant blue of sticky phacelia, which is easily seen along Carmel Valley Road this wildflower season.

MONTEREY COUNTY WILDFLOWERS can be found at River House Books in Carmel, 626-6225; Old Capitol Books in Monterey, 333-0383; and Grigg’s Nursery in Carmel Valley, 626-0680.montereywildflowers.com