Spring

Spring Is Sprouting and Plenty of Petals (Including Lilacs) Are Popping

Oh hey there, vernal equinox, we're happy to see you and your many florally fabulous gifts.

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What to Know

  • Spring begins on March 20, 2023
  • Lilacs and tulips are blooming at Descanso Gardens
  • The Natural History Museum's Butterfly Pavilion is now open

Spring has rarely felt as traditionally springful as it does in 2023, with cooling rains blowing through and the sorts of fluttery, lightly chilly breezes that make newly formed leaves dance.

But where can you go to embrace the equinox or at least connect with the season of new life, fresh hope, and an awakening world?

For many Southern Californians, that answer has long been Griffith Observatory, a destination known for its free in-person programs highlighting the equinoxes and the winter and summer solstice.

Alas: Even a place that deals largely with the wonders of time, and how time relates to the cosmos, has to take some time off. The hilltop landmark is closed on Mondays, and the first day of spring 2023 is, yes, a Monday.

But despair not, mavens of this remarkable stretch of the calendar, for the observatory is honoring spring 2023 via an informative live broadcast on March 20.

Still in the mood for spring things after that concludes? Look to our public gardens, and a certain celebrated science museum, which are fully in the spring swing.

The Scene

Want to find new things to do in Los Angeles? The Scene's lifestyle stories have you covered. Here's your go-to source on where the fun is across SoCal and for the weekend.

Theodore Payne Foundation's ‘poppy-ular' Poppy Days Spring Sale is about to sprout

The Broad is broadening: The contemporary art museum just unveiled a major expansion plan

Descanso Gardens always celebrates March Marvelousness, which has some of the thrills of basketball but with flowers instead, all month long.

No courtside seat is required nor bracket considerations needed; rather, simply buy a ticket to the La Cañada Flintridge gem and enjoy the destination's fragrant lilacs, flowers that recently began their seasonal show, as well as the first phase of the garden's tulip-tastic extravaganza.

Some 30,000 bulbs were planted in January, and now the whole delightful "reaping what has been sown" show has colorfully kicked off, with the bright blossoms delighting visitors daily.

Wisteria, a favorite near the Rose Garden at The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens, is starting its purple-y engagement, and the cherry blossoms of the Chinese Garden are beautiful.

And if it is butterflies you'd like to fly by? The Natural History Museum's beloved Butterfly Pavilion recently opened, just a couple of weeks ahead of spring's start.

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