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List of California native plants

Adapted from Wikipedia · Adventurer experience

Majestic redwood trees lining the Avenue of the Giants in Humboldt Redwoods State Park.

California native plants are special plants that have grown in California for a very long time, even before people from Europe arrived in the late 1700s. These plants are important because they have learned to live with California’s special weather and soil over many years.

California is part of a very important area for plants called the California floristic province. This area covers most of California and reaches into nearby places like Oregon, Nevada, and Baja California. It is one of the richest places in the world for plant life, with many different kinds of plants.

These native plants help keep the land healthy. They give food and homes to many animals and help the soil stay strong. Learning about them helps us care for California’s beautiful natural world.

Native wildflower blazing star (Mentzelia lindleyi)

For more information, see the List of flora of the Mojave Desert and Flora of the Sierra Nevada alpine zone.

Introduction

In 1993, a book called The Jepson Manual guessed that California had about 4,693 plants that grew naturally there. A study in 2001 by the California Native Plant Society thought there were around 6,300 native plants.

Many plants grow only in California. The state’s different lands, weather, and soils help many plants to grow. Some California plants are popular in gardens far away, like lupines, California fuchsias, and California poppies.

Selected trees

Coniferous trees

Sequoias and redwoods

Coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)

Pine trees

Pinus ponderosa, Kings Canyon National Park

Western Cypress

Other conifers

Monterey cypress, Carmel

Oak trees

California has many types of oaks, often found in oak woodlands:

Valley oak near Mount Diablo.

Riparian trees

In moist areas near streams (riparian areas), some trees include:

Other trees and tree-like shrubs

Selected shrubs

Fremontodendron californicum (California flannelbush)

Selected desert plants

A Joshua tree in Joshua Tree National Park
Creosote bush (Larrea tridentata)

See also: Category:Flora of the California desert regions

Selected perennials

Sunny habitats

Eriogonum fasciculatum (California buckwheat)

Shady habitats

Ferns

Selected bulbs

Brodiaea coronaria (California hyacinth)

Selected annuals and wildflowers

Here are some beautiful wildflowers and plants that grow naturally in California:

Selected vines

Aristolochia californica (Dutchman's pipe)

Selected grasses

Grasses:

Festuca californica, El Cajon

Grasslike:

Selected succulents

Dudleyas

Coast dudleya (Dudleya caespitosa)

Sedums

Environmental challenges

Some plants that grow naturally in California are disappearing. This happens because cities are getting bigger, farms need space, animals eat too much grass, people harm nature while playing, and pollution hurts plants. New plants from other places also cause problems. One example is yellow star-thistle.

These new plants arrived in California during different times, like when Spain took over the land and during the California Gold Rush. Many people and goods also came into the state over the years.

Images

Beautiful Sierra alpine gentians blooming by a serene lake in Yosemite National Park.
Beautiful aspens trees turning golden along Lee Vining Creek during autumn in the Sierra Nevada.

Related articles

California
Baja California
Channel Islands (California)
Sequoia sempervirens

This article is a child-friendly adaptation of the Wikipedia article on List of California native plants, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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