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Plant Communities
In California, we are privileged to live among a diverse mosaic of plant communities. From the low, dry deserts to moist coastal forests, a variety of plants are perfectly adapted to conditions throughout the state. By taking cues from the plant communities in your area, you will be able to select plants best suited to thrive in your garden.
The below plant communities describe a variety of environments that occur naturally in California. With a little reading and simple investigation, one can easily identify the plant communities in your area. Or, use the INTERACTIVE PLANT COMMUNITY MAP to get started.
Once you have found the local plant communities that make up your environment, you can then find out what plants grow natively there. You just might be inspired to restore a lost connection to the land and plant your own regionally appropriate garden.
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CcClosed Cone Pine Forest
Dominated by coniferous trees whose hard pitch-covered cones require fire/heat to open.
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RwRedwood Forest
This plant community is located in moist, coastal areas north of Big Sur and is dominated by a dense forest of coniferous Redwoods...
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CfKlamath Mixed Conifer Forest
This plant community is typically composed of tall, dense to moderately open, evergreen forests with areas of broad-leaved evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs...
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MeMixed Evergreen Forest
This is a temperate forest characterized by a mix of broadleaved (majority) and evergreen species found...
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AlAlpine
Dominated by rapidly draining soils with little organic content, this plant community grows above pine/fir forests and represents the...