The Southwest has so many gorgeous flowers that when I go hiking probably two-thirds of my photos are of animals and flowers.
Below are all the purple flowers and shrubs that have purple flowers found in the Southwest that I know of and will keep updating the list as I find more and add photos as I identify the ones from my hikes.
I keep wanting to visit a “super bloom” area but they never appear when I go visit the areas that have the amazing fields carpeted with beautiful wildflowers.
Note that some of these flowers may be a “variation” of a purple flower by various shades of red, blue, and pink.
Is your favorite purple flower not list? If so, drop us an email or comment below and we will add it.
Purple Flowers
Alfalfa aka Lucerne | Medicago sativa
American pasqueflower | Anemone patens
American vetch | Vicia americana
Arizona blue-eyes | Evolvulus arizonicus
Arrowweed | Pluchea sericea
Ashen milkvetch | Astragalus tephrodes
Bear river fleabane | Erigeron ursinus
Beardless sidebells penstemon | Penstemon virgatus
Beautiful fleabane | Erigeron formosissimus
Big bend bluebonnet | Lupinus havardii
Bigelow’s tansy aster | Machaeranthera bigelovii
Bigleaf periwinkle | Vinca major
Blue dicks | Dichelostemma capitatum
Blue lettuce | Mulgedium oblongifolium
Blue sage | Salvia dorrii
Blue witch | Solanum umbelliferum
Bluebowls | acerosum
Bolander’s phacelia | Phacelia bolanderi
Bonker hedgehog | Echinocereus Bonkerae
Brewer’s lupine | Lupinus breweri
Broadleaf lupine | Lupinus latifolius
Bulbous spring parsley | Cymopterus bulbosus
Bull thistle | Cirsium vulgare
Cane cholla | Cylindropuntia Spinosior
Chinese houses | Collinsia concolor
Chinese lantern | Quincula lobata
Climbing milkweed | Funastrum cynanchoides
Cobwebby thistle | Cirsium occidentale
Cochise penstemon | Penstemon dasyphyllus
Common blue-eyed grass | Sisyrinchium montanum
Common self-heal | Prunella vulgaris
Common vetch | Vicia sativa
Cord-root beardtongue | Penstemon montanus
Creeping milkvetch | Astragalus troglodytus
Crescent milkvetch | Astragalus amphioxys
Cutleaf daisy | Erigeron pinnatisectus
Davidson’s penstemon | Penstemon davidsonii
Death valley blue-eyed grass | funereum
Death valley sage | Salvia funerea
Desert broomrape | Orobanche cooperi
Desert Fivespot | Eremalche rotundifolia
Desert lavender | Hyptis emoryi
Dune lupine | Lupinus chamissonis
Dusty penstemon | Penstemon comarrhenus
Emory’s milkvetch | Astragalus emoryanus
Field mint | Mentha arvensis
Fiesta flower | Pholistoma auritum
Fort miller clarkia | Clarkia williamsonii
Franciscian bluebells | Mertensia franciscana
Fremont’s indigo bush | Psorothamnus fremontii
Fremont’s phacelia | Phacelia fremontii
Fringed onion | Allium fimbriatum
Front range beardtongue | Penstemon virens
Grape soda lupine | Lupinus excubitus
Gray aster | Herrickia glauca
Gregg’s tubetongue | Justicia pilosella
Grey mint | Poliomintha incana
Gypsum scorpionweed | Phacelia integrifolia
Hairy yerba santa | Eriodictyon trichocalyx
Halfmoon milkvetch | Astragalus allochrous
Hall’s milkvetch | Astragalus hallii
Harbour’s beardtongue | Penstemon harbourii
Heartleaf twistflower | Streptanthus cordatus
Hill’s lupine | hillii
Hoary tansy aster | Machaeranthera canescens
Holzinger’s venus’ looking glass | Triodanis holzingeri
Intermountain indian breadroot | Pediomelum megalanthum
Kelvin cholla | Cylindropuntia x Kelvinensis
Largeleaf lupine | Lupinus polyphyllus
Leafy aster | Symphyotrichum foliaceum
Littleleaf ratany | Krameria erecta
Lobed fleabane | Erigeron lobatus
Low beardtongue | Penstemon humilis
Mexican skullcap | Scutellaria platyphylla
Minthorn’s milkvetch | Astragalus minthorniae
Missouri milkvetch | Astragalus missouriensis
Mojave indigo bush | Psorothamnus arborescens
Mojave lupine | Lupinus odoratus
Mojave lupine | Lupinus sparsiflorus
Moss verbena | Glandularia pulchella
Mountain coyote mint | Monardella odoratissima
Mountain jewelflower | Streptanthus tortuosus
Musk thistle | Carduus nutans
Narrowleaf beardtongue | Penstemon angustifolius
Nevada blue-eyed grass | Sisyrinchium halophilum
Nevada gilia | brecciarum
Northern gentian | Gentianella amarella
Notch-leaved phacelia | Phacelia crenulata
Oneside penstemon | Penstemon unilateralis
Palmer’s milkvetch | Astragalus palmeri
Paper bag bush | Salazaria mexicana
Parish’s horse-nettle | Solanum parishii
Parish’s larkspur | Delphinium parishii
Parry’s bellflower | Campanula parryi
Parry’s false prairie-clover | Marina parryi
Pedicellate phacelia | Phacelia pedicellata
Pennyroyal | Mentha pulegium
Perennial rockcress | Boechera perennans
Pin-leaf vervain | Verbena perennis
Pinpoint clover | Trifolium gracilentum
Preuss’ milkvetch | Astragalus preussii
Purple clematis | Clematis pitcheri
Purple desert lupine | Lupinus shockleyi
Purple fringe | Phacelia sericea
Purple locoweed | Oxytropis lambertii
Purple mat | Nama demissum
Purple nightshade | Solanum xanti
Purple prairie verbena | Glandularia bipinnatifida
Purplenerve springparsley | Cymopterus multinervatus
Rimrock milkvetch | Astragalus desperatus
Robust hedgehog cactus | Echinocereus Fasciculatus
Rocky mountain fringed gentian | Gentianopsis thermalis
Rocky mountain iris | Iris missouriensis
Rocky mountain penstemon | Penstemon strictus
Rosy gilia | sinuata
Roundleaf leatherroot | Hoita orbicularis
Rydberg’s penstemon | Penstemon rydbergii
Sacramento waxydogbane | Cycladenia Humilis
Sagebrush mariposa lily | Calochortus macrocarpus
Satin lupine | Lupinus obtusilobus
Sheep milkvetch | Astragalus nothoxys
Shortstem lupine | Lupinus brevicaulis
Showy jacob’s ladder | Polemonium pulcherrimum
Showy locoweed | Oxytropis splendens
Sierra penstemon | Penstemon heterodoxus
Silver-leaved phacelia | Phacelia hastata
Sky pilot | Polemonium eximium
Sky pilot | Polemonium viscosum
Slender dwarf morning-glory | Evolvulus alsinoides
Slender penstemon | Penstemon gracilentus
Smallflower fishhook cactus | Sclerocactus Parviflorus
Smooth aster | Symphyotrichum laeve
Snapdragonvine | Maurandella antirrhiniflora
Spanish needle | Palafoxia arida
Splendid daisy | Erigeron eximius
Splendid gilia | Saltugilia splendens
Star gentian | Swertia perennis
Sticky gilia | Aliciella pinnatifida
Subalpine larkspur | Delphinium barbeyi
Sugarbowls | hirsutissima
Swamp vervain | Verbena hastata
Tailcup lupine | Lupinus caudatus
Tansyleaf aster | Machaeranthera tanacetifolia
Texas lignum-vitae | Guajacum angustifolium
Texas mountain laurel | Dermatophyllum secundiflorum
Texas stork bill | Erodium texanum
Texas toadflax | Nuttallanthus texanus
Thick stemmed aster | Eurybia integrifolia
Thick-stem wild cabbage | Caulanthus crassicaulis
Threenerve fleabane | subtrinervis
Toadflax penstemon | Penstemon linarioides
Torrey’s milkvetch | Astragalus calycosus
Tower larkspur | Delphinium glaucum
Towering jacob’s ladder | Polemonium foliosissimum
Twocolor phacelia | bicolor
Water speedwell | Veronica anagallis-aquatica
Western aster | Symphyotrichum ascendens
Western blue-eyed grass | Sisyrinchium bellum
Western mountain aster | Symphyotrichum spathulatum
Western showy aster | Eurybia conspicua
Western spiderwort | Tradescantia occidentalis
Whipple’s penstemon | Penstemon whippleanus
White horsenettle | Solanum elaeagnifolium
White-leaf bush lupine | Lupinus albifrons
Widow’s milkvetch | Astragalus layneae
Wild canterbury bells | Phacelia minor
Woodland sage | Salvia sylvestris
Woolly locoweed | Astragalus mollissimus
Yelloweyes | Lupinus flavoculatus