The Subalpine Fir (Abies lasiocarpa) is a species in the Pinaceae (Pine) family native to the mountains of the western U.S. In California it is restricted to the far northern part of the state in the Trinity Alps. It occurs at high altitudes, from 1,880 to 2,270 meters, and it is commonly found immediately below the tree line. It is a medium-sized tree growing to 20 meters tall, exceptionally to 40-50 meters tall, with a trunk up to 1 meter diameter, and a very narrow conic crown. The bark on young trees is smooth, gray, and with resin blisters, becoming rough and fissured or scaly on old trees. The leaves are flat needle-like, 1.5-3 centimeter long and waky green above, and blue-white stomatal bands below. The fresh leaf scars are reddish. They are arranged spirally on the shoot, but with the leaf bases twisted to be arranged to the sides of and above the shoot, with few or none below the shoot. The cones are erect, 6-12 centimeter long, dark blackish-purple with fine yellow-brown pubescence, ripening brown and disintegrating to release the winged seeds in early fall. This is a tree of the high mountains that is rarely seen in gardens.

Acer circinatum (Vine Maple) is a species of maple native to western North America, from southwest British Columbia to northern California, usually within 300 km of the Pacific Ocean coast. It most commonly grows as a large shrub growing to around 5-8 meters tall, but it will occasionally form a small to medium-sized tree, exceptionally to 18 meters tall. The shoots are slender and hairless. It typically grows in the understory below much taller forest trees, but can sometimes be found in open ground, and occurs at altitudes from sea level up to 1,500 meter.

Acer glabrum is a species of maple native to western North America, from southeastern Alaska, British Columbia and western Alberta, east to western Nebraska, and south through Washington, Montana and Colorado to California, Arizona and New Mexico. It is a small tree growing to 10 meters tall, with a trunk diameter up to 20-30 centimeters. The flowers are produced in corymbs of five to ten, yellowish-green, at the same time as the new leaves in spring. The fruit is a samara with two winged seeds.

Mountain Maple (Acer glabrum var. torreyi) is a native tree or shrub that grows in northern, southern and central California. It tends to grow in moist slopes and canyons, at elevations from 4900-9200 feet.

Box elder (Acer negundo), sometimes called boxelder, is a type of maple tree commonly found growing in moist areas near streams and rivers. Box elder is a deciduous tree with pinnate compound leaves (small leaflets that branch out of a single stem). The leaves turn yellow in the fall. Clusters of small flowers appear in spring. The flowers on female trees develop winged fruits called samaras. The flowers attract pollinators and the seeds provide food for birds and small mammals.

Box elder is an attractive tree that provides shade and visual interest in the landscape. Some gardeners prefer male box elders because they are less messy than female trees. Gardeners should also be aware that this tree sends out suckers which can become weedy and invasive. This fast-growing tree needs a large planting area as it can reach over 50 ft tall - and nearly as wide - when mature. It also requires a moderate to high level of moisture, including weekly supplemental irrigation in summer.

Box elder gets its name from its wood, which is used to make boxes and crates. The wood pulp is used in paper making. Like other maples, the tree's sweet sap can be cooked into a syrup.

Aconitum columbianum is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family known by the common names Columbian monkshood or western monkshood. This wildflower is native to western North America where it grows in moist areas. It is a spindly, twining perennial plant with lobed or toothed leaves and long stems with far-spaced flowers. The folded, wrinkly flowers are often deep blue or purple, but may also be white or yellowish, and they usually have a spur. The fruits are pod-like follicles. Like other monkshoods, this plant is poisonous.

Howell's Monkshood (Aconitum columbianum var. howellii) is a native perennial herb that grows in northern California. It tends to grow in wet places.

Adiantum aleuticum (western maidenhair fern) is a species of fern in the genus Adiantum, native mainly to western North America from the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, south to Chihuahua, and also locally in northeastern North America from Newfoundland south to Maryland. The fronds grow to 15-110 centimeter high, and are fan-shaped, light to medium green with dark brown to black stems. It prefers fertile, moist soil in rock crevices near streams, from sea level in the north of its range, up to 3,200 meter altitude in the south of its range. It tolerates serpentinite rock well, and is confined to this mineral-rich rock in some areas.

The Southern Maiden Hair is a species of fern with a semi-worldwide distribution. It occurs in numerous locations and habitats throughout California, always growing where it is somewhat shaded and in moist but not saturated soil. It is often found near springs, seeps or stream banks, including desert palm oases. This native fern is hardy to USDA zone 7.



The Southern Maiden Hair fern grows 6 to 28 inches tall and 6 to 24 inches wide. The foliage is delicate and lacy, featuring dark stripes that accentuate the green leaves. Like most ferns, it forms a basal clump that will gradually grow outward in size if there is space. This fern can go summer dormant if it becomes too dry and/or receives too much direct sunlight, but usually regenerates new foliage after supportive conditions return.
This fern is also commonly grown as a houseplant.

Banksianum Maidenhair Fern (Adiantum capillus-veneris 'Banksianum') is an uncommon cultivar or clone of the native Southern Maidenhair (Adiantum capillus-veneris) that was selected for horticulture.

This fern has a graceful form, with mature arching fronds 12 to 18 inches tall and wide. The fronds divide to display bright green broadly triangular shaped leaflets on the black leaf stems. This fern grows best in loamy, medium to slow draining soil that's consistently moist. It's good in containers receiving regular watering, and adjacent to water features. In the ground it can tolerate infrequent irrigation and be relatively fairly drought-tolerant because if necessary it can recede in summer dormancy to return when moisture is available.

It prefers shaded areas with bright indirect light in coastal and inland gardens. It is evergreen to about 20 degrees F, but will rebound after colder frosts.

Adiantum jordanii is a perennial species Pteridaceae known by the common name California maidenhair. It is native to California and Baja California. It grows in shaded woods, usually in wetter spots such as moist rock outcropping and lower parts of north facing slopes. It can take a little sun near the coast or full shade inland. Each trailing leaf may reach over half a meter in length and is made up of many rounded green segments. Each segment has two to four lobes and it may split between the lobes, the underside of each segment bearing one to four sori. It remains evergreen with regular water or will go dormant if allowed to dry out in summer but should recover. It forms a slowly expanding clump. Adiantum jordanii is a host for the Sudden Oak Death pathogen, and for this reason it may be difficult to find in native plant nurseries.

Agoseris aurantiaca is a liguliferous species in the Asteraceae or sunflower family, and is commonly called orange agoseris or mountain dandelion. It is widespread and common in western North America from Alaska and western Canada southward to California, Arizona, and New Mexico. It also occurs disjunctly in the Chic-Choc (Gaspe Peninsula) and Otish Mountains (Laurentian Plateau) of Quebec. This is primarily a species of mountainous regions and may be found in wet to dry habitats. It is a perennial herb producing a basal rosette of leaves.

Agoseris glauca is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common names pale agoseris and prairie agoseris. It is native to northern and western North America from Alaska to Ontario to New Mexico, where it grows in many habitat types. This is a perennial herb which varies in general appearance. It produces a basal patch of leaves of various shapes which may be as long as the plant is high. There is no stem but the plant flowers in a stemlike flower cluster which is sometimes erect, reaching heights near half a meter or taller. The flower head is one to three centimeters wide with layers of pointed phyllaries. The head is ligulate, bearing many yellow ray florets and no disc florets. The fruit is an achene with a body up to a centimeter long and a pappus which may be almost 2 centimeters in length.

Agoseris monticola is a North American species of flowering plants in the daisy family known by the common name Sierra Nevada agoseris or Sierra Nevada mountain dandelion. It grows in the mountains of the western United States, primarily the Cascade Range and Sierra Nevada, but also on other mountains in Nevada and Idaho. Agoseris monticola resembles the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) in having no leafy stems, only a rosette of leaves close to the ground. There is a single flowerhead with many yellow ray florets but no disc florets. Agoseris monticola resembles the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) in having no leafy stems, only a rosette of leaves close to the ground. There is a single flowerhead with many yellow ray florets but no disc florets.

Agoseris parviflora is a North American species of flowering plants in the daisy family known by the common name Steppe agoseris or sagebrush agoseris or false dandelion. It is found in the Western United states primarily in the Great Basin and the region drained by the Colorado River but also in the eastern foothills of the Sierra Nevada and on the western edge of the Great Plains. Its range extends from eastern Oregon and eastern California to Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico, with a few isolated populations in western Kansas and western South Dakota. Agoseris parviflora resembles the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) in having no leafy stems, only a rosette of leaves close to the ground. There is a single flowerhead with many yellow ray florets but no disc florets. Agoseris parviflora resembles the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) in having no leafy stems, only a rosette of leaves close to the ground. There is a single flowerhead with many yellow ray florets but no disc florets.

Agrostis exarata is a species of grass known by the common names Pacific bentgrass, spike bentgrass, and spike redtop. It is native to western North America from Texas to the Aleutian Islands. This is a common perennial grass reaching one to three feet in height with long, thin, flat leaves each with a ligule of 2 to 4 millimeters. The tuft flower cluster may be up to 30 centimeters long and is usually dense with tiny spikelets. It reproduces mainly by seed, but it can also spread via rhizome. This bunchgrass occurs in many plant communities in varied climates. It is considered good forage for livestock.

Agrostis idahoensis is a species of grass known by the common name Idaho bent grass. It is native to western North America from Alaska to California to Colorado, where it grows in several habitat types. It is a perennial grass growing in short tufts up to 30 centimeters tall. The leaves are thready and a few centimeters long. The flower cluster is an open, thin array of wispy branches bearing spikelets each a few millimeters long.

Agrostis microphylla is a species of grass known by the common name small-leaf bentgrass. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to Baja California, where it grows along coastal cliffs, on serpentine mountain slopes, and in vernal pools. This is a winter-flowering annual bunchgrass approaching half a meter in maximum height. The inflorescence is a dense cylindrical panicle up to 12 centimeters long. The spikelets are yellowish, greenish, or purplish, and very narrow and pointed. This is a winter-flowering annual bunchgrass approaching half a meter in maximum height. The inflorescence is a dense cylindrical panicle up to 12 centimeters long. The spikelets are yellowish, greenish, or purplish, and very narrow and pointed.

Agrostis oregonensis is a species of grass known by the common name Oregon bent grass. It is native to western North America from Alaska to California to Wyoming, where it grows in several habitat types. It is a perennial bunchgrass growing in 75 centimeters tall. The leaves are flat and up to 30 centimeters long. The inflorescence is a wide open array of wispy branches bearing clusters of spikelets each a few millimeters long. It is a perennial bunchgrass growing in 75 centimeters tall. The leaves are flat and up to 30 centimeters long. The inflorescence is a wide open array of wispy branches bearing clusters of spikelets each a few millimeters long.

Agrostis scabra is a common species of grass known by the common names rough bent grass and ticklegrass. A tumbleweed, it is native to much of North America, and widely known elsewhere as an introduced species. It occurs in most of the United States except parts of the Southeast and most of Canada except for the farthest northern regions. It can be found in Mexico, and across Alaska to far eastern Asia as far south as Korea. It is resident in a great variety of habitats, from warm coastal valleys to the alpine climate of high mountain ranges. This is a perennial grass growing mainly upright in form to heights around 75 centimeters. The leaves are rough with tiny hairs and up to about 14 centimeters long. The flower cluster is a wide open array of spreading, thready branches bearing spikelets each a few millimeters long. The tolerance of this grass to alpine climates makes it a good plant to use in revegetating disturbed land in such regions. It is known to spring up on sites where few other plants can grow, such as abandoned coal mines and soils polluted with sulfur, copper, and nickel.

Alisma triviale (Northern water plantain, Northern water-plantain) is a perennial semi-aquatic or aquatic plant in the Water-plantain family (Alismataceae). It grows in shallow water or mud. Northern water plantain is native to Canada, the United States, and Northern Mexico.

Allenrolfea is a monotypic plant genus containing the single species Allenrolfea occidentalis, the iodinebush. This is a low-lying shrub of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it grows in sandy, often salty, distinctly alkaline soils, such as desert washes and saline dry lakebeds. It is a common member of the alkali flat ecosystem. The knobby green stems are fleshy and appear jointed at the internodes between segments. Often the segments are so short they are nearly round. The leaves appear as flaky scales scattered across the surface of the stems. The genus was named for the English botanist Robert Allen Rolfe. The seeds of iodinebush have been used as food in North America in prehistory.

Allium bisceptrum, also known as the twincrest onion, is a high elevation plant native to western United States. It is a perennial that thrives under damp and shady conditions or open meadows in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Utah. Allium bisceptrum is used sometimes as food flavoring as their leaves may be very strong and odorous. Natives pray before picking the leaves of this plant. Many animals in the region, including elk, black bears and prairie dogs eat the bulbs of the wild onions. In California, A. bisceptrum is distributed throughout the counties of Alpine, El Dorado, Glenn, Inyo, Lassen, Mendocino, Mono, Modoc, Mariposa, Nevada, Plumas, San Bernardino, San Diego, Shasta, Sierra, Trinity, Tulare, and Tuolumne. It is also widely distributed in Nevada, Utah, Arizona, southeastern Oregon, and southern Idaho with isolated populations reported from northern Idaho and from southeastern Washington (Franklin County). The twincrest onion is a perennial at altitudes ranging from 2000 to 2900 meters. They grow up to anywhere between ten to forty cm high. The onion bulbs are round and egg-shaped. The bulbs have a light tint and when cut, has a powerful odor. Their flower heads are about 10-15 mm in length. The flowers are a lightly tinted purple. Each flower head contains usually six petals with pointed tips. Their flat leaves usually come in pairs of two or three and give off an odor when scratched. Habitat and ecology. Allium bisceptrum is found in forests dominated by yellow pine, red fir, and lodgepole pine, and wetland-riparian habitats in California. The twincrest onion thrives near streambanks and meadows. It is also likely to occur in wetlands.

Allium validum, known by several common names including swamp onion, wild onion, and Pacific onion, has been previously classified as a member of the lily family, Liliaceae; however, it is now thought of to be in the Alliaceae. Allium validum is native to California. The Allium validum bulb is three to five centimeters long, ovoid and clustered on the short end. The outer coat of the stout rhizome is brown or gray in color, fibrous, and vertically lined. The stem is 50 to 100 centimeters long and angled. There are three to six leaves more or less equal to the stem and the leaves are flat or more or less keeled. There are 15 to 40 flowers with pedicels being seven to twelve millimeters in length. The flower itself is six to ten millimeters, its perianth parts are more or less erect, narrowly lance-shaped, acuminate, and entire with a rose to white color. The stamens are exerted and there is no ovary crest.

Almutaster is a North American genus of plants in the aster fammily containing the single species Almutaster pauciflorus (formerly Aster pauciflorus), which is known by the common name alkali marsh aster. It is native to Canada (Northwest Territories and the 3 Prairie Provinces, the western United States, and northern and central Mexico (as far south as Tlaxcala). Almutaster pauciflorus grows in wet alkaline and saline soils such as inland salt marshes and salt flats. This is a perennial herb growing a reddish-green glandular stem to heights from 30 to 120 centimeters. The narrow leaves are linear in shape and up to 10 centimeters long. The inflorescence is an open array of flower heads containing white to pale purple ray florets and a center of yellow disc florets. The head is lined with phyllaries covered in tiny white resin glands. The fruit is a hairy achene.

Alnus rubra (red alder) is a deciduous broadleaf tree in the Betulaceae (Birch) family native to western North America. In California it is found primarily along the coast from San Luis Obispo County northward. In southern california Alnus rhombifolia is the more commonly found alder. Red Alder is the largest species of alder in North America and one of the largest in the world, reaching heights of 20-30 meters. The official tallest red alder (1979) stands 32 meters tall in Clatsop County, Oregon (USA). The name derives from the bright rusty red color that develops in bruised or scraped bark. The bark is mottled, ashy-gray and smooth, often draped with moss. Large trees are often unbranched for a considerable distance from the ground. The leaves are ovate, 7-15 centimeter long, with bluntly serrated edges and a distinct point at the end; the leaf margin is revolute, the very edge being curled under, a diagnostic character which distinguishes it from all other alders. The leaves turn yellow in the autumn before falling. The male flowers are dangling reddish catkins 10-15 centimeter long in early spring, and female flowers are erect catkins which develop into small, woody, superficially cone-like oval dry fruit 2-3 centimeter long. The flowers are wind pollinated, and a large amount of airborne pollen is produced in early spring. The seeds develop between the woody leaves of the 'cones' and are shed in the autumn and winter.

Surface roots can be problematic if the tree receives frequent, shallow watering. Better to water deep and infrequently. Established trees with deep roots can be surprisingly drought tolerant. This is a large tree that requires plenty of space. Best suited for restoration or large gardens with bioswales or streams.

Alnus viridis (Green Alder) is an alder with a wide range across the cooler parts of the Northern Hemisphere. It is a large shrub or small tree 3-12 meter tall with smooth grey bark even in old age. The leaves are shiny green, ovoid, 3-8 centimeter long and 2-6 centimeter broad. The flowers are catkins, appearing late in spring after the leaves emerge (unlike other alders which flower before leafing out); the male catkins are pendulous, 4-8 centimeter long, the female catkins 1 centimeter long and 0.7 centimeter broad when mature in late autumn, in clusters of 3-10 on a branched stem. The seeds are small, 1-2 millimeter long, light brown with a narrow encircling wing.

Sitka Alder (Alnus viridis ssp. sinuata) is a native tree or shrub that grows in Northern California, primarily in the North Coast, the Klamath Mountain Range and North Coast Range regions. It is slow growing and long-lived. It grows in an upright form to a height of 16 feet, with active growth during the spring and summer. Leaves are light-green and deciduous. It tends to grow in creek and meadow edges, at elevations from 3300-8900 feet.

Alopecurus aequalis is a common species of grass known as shortawn foxtail or orange foxtail. It is native to much of the temperate Northern Hemisphere from Eurasia to North America, where it can be found in many types of habitat. This perennial bunchgrass is variable in appearance. It produces bunches of erect stems between 10 and about 70 centimeters in height. The leaves are short, rarely exceeding 10 centimeters long. The cylindrical inflorescence is a few centimeters long and blooms with white to yellow to bright orange anthers. Ecology. One variety of this species, var. sonomensis, is a rare California endemic grass which is federally listed as an endangered species of the United States.

Alopecurus carolinianus is a species of grass known by the common names Carolina foxtail and tufted foxtail. It is native to much of North America, including most of the United States and western Canada. It may be an introduced species in many areas, however. It is most common in moist areas.

Alopecurus geniculatus is a species of grass known by the common name water foxtail or Marsh foxtail. It is native to much of Eurasia and North America, where it grows in moist areas. This is a perennial grass forming bunches of erect stems up to about 60 centimeters in maximum height. The leaves are 8 to 12 centimeters in maximum length. The flower cluster is a dense panicle up to 6 or 7 centimeters long which blooms in dusty yellow-orange anthers.

Alopecurus saccatus is a species of grass known by the common name Pacific foxtail, or Pacific meadow foxtail. It is native the west coast of the United States from Washington to California, where it grows in moist areas at low elevations. Alopecurus saccatus is an annual bunchgrass, forming tufts of stout, erect stems up to about 45 centimeters in maximum height. Leaves are up to 12 or 13 centimeters long. The inflorescence is a dense panicle up to 6 or 7 centimeters long which blooms in yellow to reddish brown anthers.

Amaranthus blitoides, commonly called mat amaranth, prostrate pigweed, procumbent pigweed, prostrate amaranth, or matweed, is a glabrous annual plants species. It usually grows up to 0. 6 m, though it may grow up to 1 m (3 feet). It flowers in the summer to fall. It is believed to have been a native of the central or eastern United States, but it has naturalized in almost all of temperate North America. It has also naturalized in South America and Eurasia. Some authorities list it as an invasive species.

Amaranthus californicus is a species of flowering plant in the amaranth family known by the common name California amaranth. It is a glabrous monoecious annual that is native to most of the western United States and Canada. The plant grows from 10 to 50 centimeters tall. It is found in moist flats or near bodies of water, and blooms from summer to fall.

Amaranthus torreyi is a species of flowering plant that is sometimes considered to be a synonym of Amaranthus watsonii. Its common name is Torrey's Amaranth. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.

Amblyopappus is a genus in the daisy family described as a genus in 1841. There is only one known species Amblyopappus pusillus, known by the common name dwarf coastweed. This plant is native to Baja California in Mexico and the coast of southern California in the United States. It can also be found on the west coast of Chile and Peru in South America.

Ambrosia psilostachya is a species of ragweed known by the common names Cuman ragweed, perennial ragweed, and western ragweed. It is native to most of North America including all of southern Canada, nearly all of the continental United States, and the northern half of Mexico. It is a common plant in many habitat types, including disturbed areas such as roadsides. It can be found in parts of Eurasia as an introduced species. This is an erect perennial herb growing a slender, branching, straw-colored stem to a maximum height near two meters, but more often remaining under one meter tall. Leaves are up to 12 centimeters long and vary in shape from lance-shaped to nearly oval, and they are divided into many narrow, pointed lobes. The stem and leaves are hairy. The top of the stem is occupied by an flower cluster which is usually a spike. The species is monoecious, and the flower cluster is composed of staminate (male) flower heads with the pistillate heads located below and in the axils of leaves. The pistillate heads yield fruits which are achenes located within oval-shaped greenish-brown burs about half a centimeter long. The burs are hairy and sometimes spiny. The plant reproduces by seed and by sprouting up from a creeping rhizome-like root system. This plant had a number of medicinal uses among several different Native American groups.

Ammannia robusta is a species of flowering plant in the loosestrife family known by the common name grand redstem. It is widespread across much of North America (from British Columbia and Ontario to Guatemala) with additional populations in southeastern Brazil. Ammannia robusta grows in moist places, such as ditches and pond margins. It is an annual herb reaching up to 100 cm in height when growing erect. The leaves are up to 8 cm (3 inches) long and linear to lance-shaped. The leaves and stem are green to red. The inflorescences are clusters of up to five flowers in the leaf axils. The flowers are urn-shaped with light lavender petals about 5 mm long and protruding stamens with yellow anthers. The fruit is a spherical capsule about 5 mm wide containing several tiny seeds.

Amorpha fruticosa is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by several common names, including desert false indigo and bastard indigobush. It is found throughout eastern Canada, northern Mexico, and most of the continental United States. In California it is native to the southwestern part of the state with scattered occurrences in the central valley. A. fruticosa grows as a hairy, thornless shrub which can reach 3 to 4 meters in height and spread to twice that in width. It is somewhat variable in morphology. The leaves are made up of many hairy, oval-shaped, spine-tipped leaflets. The flower cluster is a spike-shaped raceme of many flowers, each with a single purple petal and ten protruding stamens with yellow anthers. The fruit is a legume pod containing one or two seeds.

This plant likes moist (but not saturated) areas, and will spread wherever it finds suitable moisture. It is loosely branched and can become leggy with age; it needs plenty of room to spread out. Its spreading tendency and fibrous root system make it useful for bank stabilization. It is winter deciduous so will be less attractive for several months out of the year. It is the host plant for the Southern Dogface butterfly.

Amphiscirpus is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the sedge family containing the single species Amphiscirpus nevadensis, which is known by the common name Nevada bulrush. This plant was formerly included in genus Scirpus. It is native to western North America, including the western Canadian provinces and the northwestern United States, as well as southern South America. It grows in wet and seasonally wet habitat, often on saline and alkaline soils. It is a perennial herb growing from a small, hard rhizome. The erect stems are stiff, ridged, and cylindrical, not three-angled. It lacks aerenchyma, a trait which makes it different from many of its relatives. The stems are sheathed by tough long leaves. The inflorescence is a headlike cluster of a few cone-shaped spikelets accompanied by a long, stiff bract which looks like an extension of the stem.

Amsinckia spectabilis is a species of fiddleneck known by the common names seaside fiddleneck and woolly breeches. It is native to the west coast of North America from British Columbia to Baja California, where it grows in sandy habitat, including direct coastline. Amsinckia spectabilis is a bristly annual herb similar in appearance to other fiddlenecks. The leaves are sometimes edged with fine teeth. The coiled inflorescence holds tubular yellow flowers up to 2 centimetres (0. 8 in) long and 1. 5 centimetres (0. 6 in) wide at the face.

Andropogon glomeratus is a species of grass known by the common names bushy bluestem and bushy beardgrass. This grass reaches heights approaching two meters and has large, fluffy cream-colored flower clusters. Each dense, tufted flower cluster has several pairs of hairy spikelets. The leaves may reach over a meter in length. This grass is native to the Americas, where it is widespread. It has also naturalized in other areas. It is cultivated as an ornamental. This species also has potential as a noxious weed and is easily spread via seed contamination. It is a pest plant in Hawaii, where it has been documented on the island of Kauai.

Anemone oregana is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family known by the common names blue windflower, Oregon anemone, and western wood anemone. It is native to the forests of the west coast of the United States. This is a perennial herb growing from a thick rhizome to a maximum height of 25 to 30 centimeters. There is usually a single basal leaf made up of three large leaflets on a long petiole. There are sometimes more leaves along the mostly naked stem. The flower cluster has three leaflike leafs and a single flower. The flower has no petals but 5 to 7 petal-like sepals in any of several colors, usually blue or purple but sometimes reddish, pink, white, or bicolored. In the center of the flower are up to 75 thin stamens. The fruit is a cluster of fluffy achenes.

Yerba mansa or lizard tail, is a perennial flowering plant within the family Saururaceae. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Anemopsis. It is native to southwestern North America. In early spring numerous tiny white flowers are borne on a cone which is surrounded by 4-9 large white spoon-shaped bracts that look like petals. As it matures, the visible part of the plant develops red stains, eventually turning bright red in the fall. Yerba mansa means "calming herb" in Spanish (yerba = "herb"; mansa = "calm or tranquil").

Yerba Mansa requires moist soil, so best to plant in streambeds, seeps or other damp areas. It goes dormant and basically disappears from late summer to early winter, and re-sprouts from the roots in late winter. It produces beautiful white flowers in the early spring that remain on the plant until it starts to go dormant in late summer. It will often spread out like a carpet throughout the damper soil, and choke out any other plants in the area, and in particular while it's blooming, it's quite beautiful.

Angelica arguta is a species of angelica known as Lyall's angelica. It is native to western North America, where it grows in coniferous forests from British Columbia to Utah. This is a taprooted perennial herb growing an erect, hollow stem to heights between one and two meters. It produces large, somewhat triangular leaves made up of many toothed, pointed leaflets each up to 9 centimeters long. The top of the stout stem is occupied by an flower cluster in a compound umbel arrangement, with the webbed rays of the umbel up to 10 centimeters long each. The flowers are generally yellowish.

Angelica genuflexa is a species of angelica known as kneeling angelica. It is native to northwestern North America from Alaska to northern California, where it grows in moist areas in coniferous forests such as streambanks. This is a taprooted perennial herb producing an erect, hollow stem to heights between 1 and 2 meters. The leaves are up to 80 centimeters long and are made up of many dissected, toothed leaflets, each up to 10 centimeters long. The flower cluster is a compound umbel of up to 50 rays bearing clusters of small flowers.

Angelica lucida is a species of angelica known by the common names seacoast angelica and sea-watch. It is also one of many species in the celery family which are casually called wild celery. This plant is generally similar in appearance to other angelicas, with tall, dense umbels of yellowish-white flowers. As its common names suggest, this plant is found most often along the coastline. Its distribution includes the east and west coasts of North America, plus parts of east Asia. It is considered an endangered species in some eastern United States.

Antennaria corymbosa is a North American species of flowering plants in the daisy family known by the common name flat-top pussytoes or meadow pussytoes. It is native to western Canada (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan) and the Western United States south as far as Tulare County in California and Rio Arriba County in New Mexico. It grows in moist, cool areas such as mountain meadows and riverbanks. Most of the populations are found in the Rocky Mountains, the Cascades, and the Sierra Nevada. Antennaria corymbosa is a small perennial herb growing from a basal patch of thin, gray, woolly, spoon-shaped leaves one or two centimeters long. It produces several erect stems no more than 15 centimeters tall, each holding an inflorescence of several flower heads. It is dioecious, with male and female plants producing different types of flower heads, which are generally similar in appearance. Each head has a surface of dark-dotted white phyllaries and contains tiny individual flowers. Female flowers yield fruits which are achenes no more than a millimeter long, not counting the soft pappus of 3 or 4 millimeters.

Hierochloe odorata or Anthoxanthum nitens, also known as sweet grass, buffalo grass, bison grass, holy grass (UK), manna grass, Mary's grass, seneca grass, sweetgrass, or vanilla grass, is an aromatic herb which grows in northern Eurasia and in North America. It is used in herbal medicine and in the production of distilled beverages (e.g., ubrwka, Wisent). It owes its distinctive sweet scent to the presence of coumarin. Very hardy perennial. Native to North America as well as Europe. Grows to about 60 centimeter (24 inches) in height, leaves grow 60 centimeter (24 inches) long by late summer. Bases of leaves, just below soil surface are broad and white, without hairs, underside of leaves are shiny, without hairs.

Aquilegia eximia is a species of columbine known by the common name Van Houtte's columbine. It is endemic to California, where it grows in the moist forests of the Coast Ranges. This is a perennial herb growing from a thick caudex and varying in height, reaching a maximum height near 5 feet. The lower leaves are divided into large, leaflike segments up to 1.5 to 2 inches long and a lobed oval in shape. Leaves farther up the stem are not segmented but may be deeply lobed. The flower cluster bears a large, nodding columbine flower. Each flower has five bright red to orange-red flat sepals up to 1 inch long, and five petals which are hollow spurs 0.5 to 1.5 inches long, bright orange-red on the outer surface and lighter orange to yellow inside. The mouth of each hollow petal tube is up to a centimeter wide. The sepals and petals are generally reflexed back toward the stem and the five pistils and many thin stamens extend forward from the center of the flower.

The Western Columbine is also known as the Red or Crimson Columbine because of its attractive red-and-yellow-colored flowers. The blooms are very appealing to hummingbirds. Mature seedheads provide food for finches and other bird species.

This charming wildflower is a member of the buttercup family and grows in moist, shady locations. In the garden, it likes regular water, partial shade, and compost-rich, well-draining soil. It does self-sow, but deadheading will control spreading.

Tolerates almost any soil type. Prefers sun in coastal sites, and part shade in inland sites. Garden selection of stream side species (Aquilegia formosa).

Desert Columbine (Aquilegia shockleyi) is a native perennial herb that grows in southern and central California.

Aralia californica, known by the common name elk clover though not actually a clover, is a large herb in the family Araliaceae, the only member of that family native to California and southwestern Oregon. It is a deciduous herbaceous perennial plant growing to a height of 2-3 meters on stems which are thick but not woody. The stems bear large green pinnate or bipinnate leaves 1-2 meters long and 1 meter broad, the leaflets 15-30 centimeter long and 7-15 centimeter broad. The greenish white flowers are produced in large, ball-shaped compound umbels 30-45 centimeter diameter at the stem tip; each star-shaped flower is 2-3 millimeter diameter, and matures to small (3-5 millimeter) dark purple or black fruit, each berry containing 3-5 seeds. This plant performs best under trees or in other moist, shady areas.