There may not be falling leaves, but there’s plenty to see during autumn in the Mojave Desert! Explore the variety and understated beauty of the desert in fall in this all-day field class. You’ll learn the common shrubs, trees, and fall-flowering annual plants of the Joshua tree and pinyon-pine woodlands. The class covers both scientific and common names, plus the guides and botanical keys you can use to identify these plants in the field.

This class is held at Black Rock, with the classroom portion taking place in the Black Rock Nature Center education room.
Anyone may attend! Material is accessible for the plant-curious, amateur botanist, and professionals alike.
No park pass is required.
No meals or equipment are provided.

Activity level: The indoor portion of this class is ADA accessible. It requires very little travel with ADA accommodations, such as accessible parking, available.

The outdoor portion is leisurely and can be modified to accommodate participants. It requires less than 2 miles of walking with shade, seating, consistent terrain, and little to no elevation gain. Please email desertinstitute@joshuatree.org if you need specific accommodations.

Required items for participants:

Water, about 2 liters per person
Food and snacks that can be easily packed and eaten in the field
Closed-toe athletic shoes or hiking boots - no sandals
Sun protection: hat, sunglasses, sunscreen
Layers for cool weather
Backpack to carry food, water, and any other personal items
Notebook and pencil are great! If you have a field guide you like using, please bring it!

Participants earn 1 unit toward a Desert Ecology & Conservation Certificate. Eligible Desert Institute classes can be taken for fun or for credit toward a certificate. To earn the certificate, you must complete 12 units of eligible classes within three years. We offer a variety of classes each season! The certificate is available through UCR Extension. You do not need to be a current student in any academic program to earn the certificate. Units do not contribute to any academic degree.

Any other pertinent information: Instructor will provide checklists and teaching materials. DI will provide clipboards and loupes. The class will meet in the Black Rock Education Room for introductions and a plant family overview.

Meet your instructor: Melanie Davis lives in Joshua Tree and is a lead field botanist at UC Riverside's Center for Conservation Biology in Palm Desert. She has been working in the California deserts since 2017. Her field research takes her to remote corners of the Colorado, Mojave, and Sonoran deserts to study the effects of climate change and human disturbance on desert ecosystems, as well as the distribution of rare native plants. She is also an artist and has published illustrated field guides to several groups of native desert plants. Melanie holds a bachelor’s degree from The Evergreen State College and is certified as both a Desert Ecologist and Naturalist through College of the Desert. She is also a retired park ranger, an amateur herpetologist, and a graduate of the UCR Palm Desert Master Naturalist and Master Climate Steward programs.

Photo credit: NPS/Emily Hassell