These California hills are alive — with color and photo-ops

CARLSBAD, Calif. — Every spring the rolling hills come alive with a rainbow of ranunculus flowers.

The 50-plus acres of blooms draw thousands of visitors to The Flower Fields, a locally iconic flower farm along Interstate 5.

Retired schoolteacher-turned-volunteer Mary Ellen Courtney has been going back every year for more than a decade.

“It’s heaven. It’s beautiful. It’s peaceful. It’s spiritual. It’s comforting, and everyone has a good time,” Courtney said.

The flowers and the people who visit are what keep her volunteering.

“As a retired teacher, it allows me to further connect with the kids,” she said. “That was the favorite part of my job, was connecting with the boys and girls in the classroom, and this is just a different type of classroom.”

The volunteering gig has also led to a part-time job at the farm, where she works two-hour shifts talking to children or teaching visitors about the flowers and environment.

But, Courtney said, even when she’s not working, she’s there volunteering.

“I have a purpose every day, every day,” she said. “This is where I will be.”

On a busy day, the farm can attract nearly 10,000 visitors. And in more recent years, social media has boosted its popularity.

“I’d seen TikToks on the flower field here,” Alanis Mendoza said during a recent visit. “We’re from New York City, so we don’t really have a lot of fields and greenery, so it was like, wow!”

The estimated 80 million flowers are in bloom for only about 10 weeks, but their beauty keeps many, like Courtney, coming back.

“When people leave, you don’t have one person that’s unhappy. They’re unhappy that it’s over,” she said. “Everybody’s happy to be here, and everybody just sees the joy that’s here.”