Geraea viscida is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common name sticky geraea, or sticky desertsunflower. It is native to southern California, mainly the chaparral hills of eastern San Diego County, and northern Baja California. This is a bristly, hairy perennial geophyte producing scrubby stems reaching anywhere from 30 centimeters to nearly a meter in height. The slightly hairy leaves are several centimeters long and generally oval-shaped, sometimes with small teeth and basal lobes. The flower cluster holds one or more flower heads which are knobby clusters of yellow disc florets with no ray florets. The phyllaries surrounding the flower head are particularly sticky. The fruit is an achene up to a centimeter long, not including its pappus hairs.

Geranium carolinianum is a species of geranium known by the common name Carolina crane's-bill, or Carolina geranium. It is native to North America, where it is widespread and grows in many types of habitat. This is an annual herb reaching just over half a meter in maximum height. It has erect stems covered in spiky hairs. The palmate leaves are several centimeters wide and divided into usually five segments which are each subdivided into elegantly pointed lobes. The inflorescence is a cluster of one to several small flowers. Each flower has five pointed sepals and five notched petals in shades of white to lavender. The fruit has a hairy body and a style up to 1. 5 centimeters long. Noted visitors for nectar include long-tongued bees (Megachile spp. ), short-tongued bees (Halictid), and flower flies (Syrphid) whom in the larval stage can be early cool season aphid control. Mourning Doves have been observed eating the seeds.

The annual flowering plant Gilia achilleifolia is known commonly as California gilia, California gily-flower , and blue gilia. It is native to California but grows in other areas of North America where it has been introduced. The plant is erect with long stems that bear bunches of funnel-shaped lavender flowers. It is a member of the phlox family.

Gilia angelensis is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name chaparral gilia. It is native to the coastal hills and mountains of California and Baja California, where it is a member of the chaparral ecosystem. , especially in the Transverse Ranges. This wildflower, Gilia angelensis, grows a slender, branching stem reaching anywhere from 10 to 70 centimeters in maximum height. Leaves made up of several small leaflets grow clustered on the lower part of the plant. At the ends of the stem branches are clustered inflorescences of petite flowers. Each flower is less than a centimeter wide and very light lavender in color. The fruit is a capsule a few millimeters across containing up to 30 tiny seeds. This wildflower, Gilia angelensis, grows a slender, branching stem reaching anywhere from 10 to 70 centimeters in maximum height. Leaves made up of several small leaflets grow clustered on the lower part of the plant. At the ends of the stem branches are clustered inflorescences of petite flowers. Each flower is less than a centimeter wide and very light lavender in color. The fruit is a capsule a few millimeters across containing up to 30 tiny seeds.

Gilia austro-occidentalis is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name southwestern gilia. It is endemic to the Central Coast Ranges of California, where it grows in local hill and valley habitat. It is a slender herb producing a very glandular stem sometimes laced with cobwebby fibers. The lobed leaves are located in a rosette around the base of the stem. The inflorescence is a cluster of flowers dotted with glands and webby hairs. The sepals are green to purple and ribbed with membrane between the ribs. The corolla is purple with a yellowish throat. It is a slender herb producing a very glandular stem sometimes laced with cobwebby fibers. The lobed leaves are located in a rosette around the base of the stem. The inflorescence is a cluster of flowers dotted with glands and webby hairs. The sepals are green to purple and ribbed with membrane between the ribs. The corolla is purple with a yellowish throat.

Gilia capitata is a species of flowering plant in the Polemoniaceae (Phlox) family known by the common names bluehead gilia and blue field gilia. It is native to much of western North America from Alaska to northern Mexico, and it can be found on the eastern side of the continent as an introduced species. In California it is widespread, occurring along the coast and in the Sierras. It grows in many habitats, especially in sandy or rocky soils. This wildflower is somewhat variable in form and appearance, with eight recognized subspecies. The branching, leafy stems reach anywhere from 10 to 90 centimeters in maximum height and sometimes having hairy hairs on the fleshy herbage. The leaves are divided into toothed or lobed leaflets. Atop the branches of the thick stem are spherical flower clusters of 50 to 100 small flowers. Each flower has a throat opening into a spreading corolla which may be white, pink, lavender, or light blue. The stamens protrude slightly from the flower's mouth and are white with white, blue, or pink anthers. In the garden it is best use in a meadow-like setting with other annuals. It is frequently included in wildflower seed mixes.

Gilia diegensis is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name coastal gilia. It is native to southern California and Baja California, where it grows in forest and scrub habitat in the Transverse and Peninsular Ranges and the deserts to the east. Gilia diegensis produces a usually glandular, erect stem up to 40 centimetres (16 in) centimeters tall. The plant forms a flat basal rosette of sharply lobed, deeply cut leaves each up to 7 centimters long. There are smaller leaves on the stem which are lance-shaped and lined with teeth. The inflorescence is a cluster of flowers with purple and yellow throats and white to lavender corolla lobes with protruding stamens tipped with blue anthers.

Gilia leptantha is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name fineflower gilia. It is native to California and southern Nevada, where it grows in open mountain and desert habitat. It is a small, mostly erect herb with a hairy stem often coated in cobwebby fibers. The leaves are arranged in a rounded basal rosette, each leaf divided sharply into many subdivided lobes. The top of the stem is an flower cluster of a few pink to lavender flowers with yellow and white throats. The base of the flower is a thin, hairy tube.

Githopsis diffusa is a species of flowering plant in the bellflower family known by the common name San Gabriel bluecup. It is native to California and Baja California, where it grows in open habitat on the slopes of foothills and mountains. Githopsis diffusa is an annual herb forming a small clump at ground level or growing erect to a maximum height near 30 centimeters. The stem may have stiff hairs and the leaves are generally small and pointed. The small, solitary flower appearing at the tip of the stem is tubular to funnel-shaped and white or purple with a white throat.

Githopsis specularioides is a flowering plant known by the common name common bluecup. It is an annual herb which bears very small tubular flowers with white throats and five pointed purple petals. It is found on the west coast of North America from California to British Columbia.

American Licorice (Glycyrrhiza lepidota) is a species of Glycyrrhiza native to most of North America, from central Canada south through the United States to California, Texas and Virginia, but absent from the southeastern states. It is also sometimes known in the United States as "wild licorice", to distinguish it from the related European Liquorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) which is occasionally cultivated. The plant grows in moist soils; although it will grow in heavy soil it prefers sandy soil. It grows to 40-100 centimeter (16-40 inches) tall, and has long tough brown roots which are said to be sweet and were used as food and for medicinal purposes by Native Americans. American Licorice is not sweet from sugar but from glycyrrhizin, the acid ammonium salt of the tri-basic acid, glycyrrhizic acid. Glycyrrhizin may increase blood pressure (aka hypertension) by interfering with cortisol conversion.

This plant slowly spreads by rhizome to form large patches. Bumblebees are attracted to the flowers, and this plant is a host for several butterfly plant. Wild licorice is a rare in native plant gardens, but has lots of value for wildlife, does great in heavy soils, and is tolerant of both shade and full sun. It grows well with other riparian forest species like Leymus triticoides and Carex barbarae.

Gnaphalium palustre, known by the common name western marsh cudweed, is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family. The plant is native to much of western North America, where it is common in many habitats and from valley floor to mountain alpine elevations of Western Canada, the Western United States, and Northwestern Mexico. It is found from British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan south as far as Baja California Sur, Arizona, and New Mexico. Gnaphalium palustre is an annual herb growing erect stems which may be short or up to about 30 centimeters (12 inches) tall. The stems and foliage are nearly white due to their coating of woolly hairs. The leaves are small and lance-shaped to scoop-shaped. The inflorescence holds a cluster of flower heads in a nest of woolly fibers. Each head has brownish to pale yellowish phyllaries surrounding a center of many tiny flowers.

Grindelia camporum is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common names Great Valley gumplant and Great Valley gumweed. The plant is native to California and Baja California, where it can be found in a number of habitats including chaparral and woodlands. Its range may extend into Nevada. It is hardy plant that also readily grows in disturbed and altered areas such as ditches and roadsides. Grindelia camporum is a gangly perennial up to 2 m (6 ft. ) in maximum height but usually less. Its erect, branching stems are lined with many stiff, wavy-edged, serrated leaves 2 to 3 cm long. Atop the stem branches are inflorescences of a single large flower head up to 3 cm wide. The head is a vaguely thistlelike cup of green clawlike phyllaries that bend downward. The centre of the head is filled with yellow disc florets and there are usually many yellow ray florets around the circumference. The flower head fills with a copious white exudate, especially during the early stages of blooming. It is a traditional Native American medicinal plant, used by the Indigenous peoples of California and also a major pollinator attractant.

Gutierrezia californica is a species of flowering plant in the Asteraceae (Sunflower) family known by the common names San Joaquin snakeweed and California matchweed. It is native to California and Baja California, where it grows on slopes and plains in a number of habitats. It is found in the Coast Ranges, Transverse Range and Peninsular Range, coming fairly close to the coast in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego Counties. It is often seen in very arid settings. This is a small subshrub reaching up to about half a meter in height. It grows clumpy or gangly and generally erect stems in shades of gray and red which are lined with small linear green leaves. At the end of each branch of the stem is an flower cluster of one to three small flower heads just a few millimeters wide. The head contains several yellow disc florets with long, protruding styles and several yellow ray florets around the edge.

Hazardia orcuttii is a rare North American species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common names Orcutt's bristleweed and Orcutt's goldenbush. It is native to California in the United States and Baja California in Mexico. It can be found in one location in California, in the city of Encinitas. There, it is located in and near a protected zone known as the Manchester Conservation Area. In Baja California it can be found at 11 to 17 locations. Hazardia orcuttii is a resinous shrub growing up to 100 centimetres (39 in) tall. The leathery, pointed leaves are up to 5 by 1. 5 centimetres (0. 59 in) in size. The flower head is turbin-shaped and has several ray florets and disc florets surrounded by 40 to 60 resinous phyllaries. The fruit is a few millimeters long and is tipped with a brown pappus about half a centimeter long.

Hazardia squarrosa is a species of shrub in the Asteraceae (Sunflower) family known by the common name Sawtooth Goldenbush. It is native to California and Baja California, where it grows in coastal and inland scrub and chaparral habitats from Monterey County southward. This is a shrub of variable size, from low and clumpy to sprawling over two meters tall. It is covered in thick, sharply toothed leaves a few centimeters long and is generally not very hairy or woolly. It bears discoid flower heads covered in greenish, pointed phyllaries and opening into an array of long yellow to slightly reddish disc florets and no ray florets. There are three recognized varieties with largely overlapping ranges. In the garden it provides long lasting summer color and is popular with many insects including butterflies. Also valuable in restoration projects.

Saw Toothed Goldenbush (Hazardia squarrosa var. grindelioides) is a native sub-shrub in the Asteraceae (Sunflower) family that grows in southern and central California. It is found along the coast, in the foothills, valleys, and coastal mountains from Monterey County to northern Baja at elevations from 300-4300 feet. It is also commonly found along roadsides, trail edges, and other disturbed places. The flower head consists of only disc flowers. The flowers have great color and a long bloom time. There are two other recognized varieties of this species that differ primarily in leaf shape. This plant is good for "wild" gardens and for restoration projects.

Helianthella californica is a species of flowering plant in the sunflower family known by the common name California helianthella. This wildflower is native to the mountains of California and Oregon. It is a taprooted perennial herb producing erect stems up to about 60 centimeters tall. The many lance-shaped leaves are up to 4 centimeters wide and smooth or slightly toothed along the edges. The flower cluster holds one or more sunflower-like flower heads. Each head has a center of golden disc florets with purple or reddish parts, and a fringe of yellow ray florets one or two centimeters long.

The perennial herb Helianthella castanea is a rare plant endemic to California, and is only found in the San Francisco Bay Area, mostly in and around Mount Diablo State Park. Its common names include Mount Diablo helianthella, Mount Diablo sunflower, and Diablo rockrose. A member of the daisy and sunflower family, the flowers are bright yellow and daisy-like, with ridged petals. The plant grows in clumps of green foliage and sends up flowers on long stems.

Helianthus bolanderi is a species of sunflower known by the common names serpentine sunflower and Bolander's sunflower. It is native to California and Oregon, where it grows mainly in mountainous areas, often in serpentine soils. This wild sunflower is an erect annual reaching heights over a meter. It has a hairy, rough stem with leaves lance- or oval-shaped, usually pointed, sometimes serrated along the edges, and 3 to 15 centimeters long. The flower cluster holds one or more flower heads, and each plant may have many flower clusters growing along the full length of the stem. The flower head has a cup of long, pointed phyllaries holding an array of bright yellow ray florets each one to two centimeters long around a center of yellow to dark purple or reddish disc florets. The achene is 3 to 5 millimeters long.

Helianthus exilis is a species of sunflower known by the common name serpentine sunflower. It is native to northern California (from Siskiyou County south to Napa County and Nevada County), where it grows mainly in mountainous areas, often in serpentine soils. Helianthus exilis is an erect annual reaching heights over a meter (40 inches)). It has a hairy, rough stem with leaves lance- or oval-shaped, usually pointed, sometimes serrated along the edges, and 3 to 15 centimeters (1. 2-6. 0 inches) long. The inflorescence holds one or more flower heads, and each plant may have many inflorescences growing along the full length of the stem. The flower head has a cup of long, pointed phyllaries holding an array of bright yellow ray florets each one to two centimeters (0. 4-0. 8 inches) long around a center of yellow to dark purple or reddish disc florets. The achene is 3 to 5 millimeters (0. 12-0. 20 inches) long.

Slender Sunflower is a species in the Asteraceae (Sunflower) family that is native to central and southern California and Baja California, where it is a member of the chaparral and yellow pine forest habitats. This is a perennial herb growing from a thick taproot to heights anywhere between one half and two meters. The lance-shaped, pointed leaves are smooth-edged or slightly toothed and up to about 11 centimeters long. The long, slender stems and foliage are covered in rough hairs. The flower cluster bears flower heads with an array of short, hairy phyllaries behind a thick center of yellow to red-brown disc florets. The golden ray florets around the edge are one to three centimeters long. Grows well in chaparral and yellow pine forest habitats.

Seaside heliotrope (Heliotropium curassavicum) is an attractive flowering perennial that's also called salt heliotrope. Seaside heliotrope grows throughout the US. In California, it is commonly found near water sources, in alkaline or saline soils. This plant has a creeping growth habit, although it can grow to around 1.5 ft in height. The leaves and stems are thick and fleshy. The small, bell-shaped flowers grow along curved stalks and are white with yellow centers that turn purple as they mature.

Seaside heliotrope is not generally known for its fragrance, unlike other varieties of heliotrope which are famous for their sweet, almond-like scent. But the blooms are attractive to bees and butterflies, making it a worthwhile addition to the pollinator garden. It grows in full or partial sun in a variety of soil types and does best with occasional supplemental water. It can also be a container garden plant.

Cow Parsnip (Heracleum maximum) is a member of the Apiaceae (Carrot) family and the only member of this genus native to North America. Cow Parsnip is distributed throughout the continental United States and Alaska except the Gulf Coast and a few neighboring states. It is the only native member of this family to occur throughout the U.S. In California it occurs primarily in the northern half of the state. It is relatively large for an herb and features a large flower head consisting of the typical flat-topped umbels of the Carrot family. Chemicals in the plant may cause dermatitis in some individuals. It may be weedy or invasive in portions of its range.

Cupressus bakeri, the Modoc Cypress, Siskiyou Cypress or Baker Cypress, is a species of cypress native to the United States, in a restricted area of northern California (Siskiyou, Modoc, Shasta and Plumas Counties) and southwest Oregon (very localized in Josephine and Jackson Counties). It is usually found in small, scattered populations, not in large forests, at altitudes of 900-2000 meter. It is a medium-sized evergreen tree with a conic crown, growing to heights of 10-25 meter (exceptionally to 39 meter), and a trunk diameter of up to 0.5 meter (exceptionally to 1 meter). The foliage grows in sparse, usually pendulous sprays, varying from dull gray-green to waxy pale blue-green in color. The leaves are scale-like, 2-5 millimeter long, and produced on rounded (not flattened) shoots. The seed cones are globose to oblong, 10-25 millimeter long, with 6 or 8 (rarely 4 or 10) scales, green to brown at first, maturing gray or gray-brown about 20-24 months after pollination. The cones often remain closed for several years, only opening after the parent tree is killed in a wildfire, thereby allowing the seeds to colonize the bare ground exposed by the fire. The male cones are 3-5 millimeter long, and release pollen in February-March.

Tecate Cypress (Herpericyparis forbesii) is a species of cypress native to Southern California and Mexico. This is a relict species from a time when southern California's climate was cooler and wetter. It survives in a few, isolated locations in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Diego Counties, as well as northern Baja. It depends on intermittent fire for reproduction, but too frequent fires kill seedlings and threaten the survival of the species.

The foliage is bright green with reddish bark. Young trees are pyramidal in shape, becoming more rounded or contorted with age. It is very drought adapted; excessive supplemental water will make it floppy. In recent years, Tecate Cypress has become a fairly popular small tree for Southern California gardens. It makes a great specimen tree for larger landscapes, remaining tight and symmetrical.

The northernmost stand, comprising a very large area on the upper limits of Coal Canyon and Sierra Peak in Orange County, California, burned in a 2006 wildfire. Very few mature trees survived, but hundreds, if not thousands, of new plants are appearing as regeneration. Another devastating wildfire before seedlings are able to reach cone-producing age (which can be quite old for this species), could easily extirpate this stand.

Some refer to Tecate Cypress as a variety of Guadalupe Cypress (Cupressus guadalupensis), which occurs on Guadalupe Island, though that island is well over 250 miles from any Tecate Cypress stand. Aside from the ease of surmising that Tecate Cypress is genetically different from Guadalupe Cypress due to the two species being separated by ocean waters, molecular testing has shown the latter to be slightly more closely related to Cuyamaca Cypress (Hesperocyparis stephensonii).

Moreover, Guadalupe Cypress, when mature, makes a much taller and more massive tree than Tecate Cypress. Tecate Cypress has very green foliage, while Guadalupe Cypress has waxy pale, somewhat blueish tinted foliage. Finally, though cones of Tecate Cypress will not open without heat (unlike any other California native Cypress), those of Guadalupe Cypress will open without fire.

Cupressus macnabiana (McNab Cypress or Shasta Cypress) is a species of cypress endemic to northern California. It is one of the most widely distributed of all the native California cypresses, found growing in chaparral, oak woodlands and coniferous woodlands along the inner northern Coast Ranges and the foothills of the northern Sierra Nevada. It is an evergreen shrub or small tree, 3-12 meter (rarely to 17 meter) tall, with a spreading crown that is often broader than it is tall. The foliage is produced in dense, short flat sprays (unlike most other California cypresses, which do not have flattened sprays), bright waxy pale gray-green in color, with a strong spicy-resinous scent. The leaves are scale-like, 1-2 millimeter long with an acute tip, and a conspicuous white resin gland on the center of the leaf. Young seedlings produce needle-like leaves up to 10 millimeter long in their first year.

Cupressus sargentii is a species of conifer in the Cupressaceae family known by the common name Sargent's cypress. It is endemic to California, where it is known from Mendocino county southwards to Santa Barbara county. This taxon is limited to the Coast Range mountains. Like Mcnab Cypress, it is one of the most widespread of the California Cypresses. It grows in forests with other conifers, as well as chaparral and other local mountain habitat, usually in pure stands on serpentine soils. It generally grows 10 to 15 meters tall, but it is known to exceed 22 meters. On Carson Ridge in Marin County, as well as Hood Mountain in Sonoma County, the species comprises a pygmy forest of trees which do not attain heights greater than 8-12 feet due to high serpentine concentrations in the soil.

Chaparral yucca (Hesperoyucca whipplei)  is a striking, drought-adapted plant known for its dramatic presence year-round and spectacular flowering display. The plant begins as a large, rounded rosette of silver-green, spiky leaves. When mature — typically after 5 to 6 years — it sends up an impressive flower spike that grows 10 to 15 feet tall in just a few weeks. The towering spike is covered with hundreds of bell-shaped flowers, ranging from white to pale purple, creating a stunning visual impact in the landscape.

Native to California and parts of Baja California, chaparral yucca thrives in chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and oak woodland plant communities at elevations of 950 to 8,200 feet. It is well-adapted to rocky, dry soils and plays an important ecological role in its native habitat.

Chaparral yucca forms an exclusive pollinator relationship with the California Yucca Moth (Tegeticula maculata), making it a fascinating example of co-evolution. The moth is the plant's sole pollinator and relies on the yucca for its life cycle. The moth collects pollen from the flowers and deposits it on another flower’s stigma while laying its eggs inside the ovary. The developing moth larvae feed on some of the yucca seeds, while others are left to grow and disperse.

After the flowers are pollinated, the yucca plant dies, a process known as monocarpic reproduction. However, the dried flower stalk often remains standing for several years, creating a natural sculpture in the landscape. New plants emerge from seeds or from offsets at the plant’s base.

Chaparral yucca is also known by several common names, including our lord’s candle, Spanish bayonet, Quixote yucca, common yucca, and foothill yucca. Despite its beauty, it is reportedly difficult to grow outside its native range. However, when planted in the right conditions, it provides a bold accent in native gardens, particularly when combined with rocks or other drought-adapted plants. Care should be taken to place the plant away from pathways, as its sharply pointed leaves can cause injury.

This iconic plant is a resilient symbol of California’s rugged chaparral landscapes, offering both ecological value and ornamental appeal.

Heterocodon is a monotypic genus of plants in the bellflower family containing the single species Heterocodon rariflorum, which is known by the common names rareflower heterocodon and western pearlflower. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California to Colorado, where it emerges during the spring in wet areas such as meadows. This is an annual herb producing a very thin, erect stem to 30 centimeters in maximum height. It branches few times if at all and is dark green to reddish in color. Leaves are occasional along the stem and are heart-shaped to rounded with a toothed edge. Also at occasions along the stem are the flowers, which emerge from a base of toothed or spiny leaflike sepals a few millimeters long. The corolla of the flower is a cylindrical tube 3 to 5 millimeters long, blue or lavender with darker veining and a lighter throat, and spreading into triangular lobes at the mouth.

Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia), also known as Christmas Berry, is an evergreen shrub in the Rose family (Rosaceae). In the summer it produces bunches of fragrant white flowers. In the winter it develops vibrant clusters of scarlet berries. The flowers attract butterflies and other pollinators. The berries are eaten by many birds, including Mockingbirds, American Robins, and Cedar Waxwings. Mammals including coyotes and bears also eat and disperse the berries. For humans, the berries are edible after cooking, or drying and crushing, in order to break down the small amounts of cyanogenic glycosides. Indigenous People use the berries to make cider, and a granular sugar. 

Toyon is a prominent component of the Coastal Sage Scrub plant community, and is a part of drought-adapted Chaparral, Mixed Evergreen Forest and Oak Woodland habitats. Toyon are beautiful plants and easy to grow. If properly situated, they can grow very quickly, up to 10 feet in three years. They like sun or part shade, though they tend to do better in part shade in the southern, drier part of their geographic range. They can handle a wide variety of soils, including clay, sand and serpentine. They are an excellent hedge plant.

Horticultural selection from Heteromeles arbutifolia. A keystone shrub in the native landscape, Toyon (also known as Christmas Berry), is the common name for Heteromeles arbutifolia. Toyon is known as a dependable long lived shrub and valued for the visual appeal of its small white flowers in summer, persistent berries in the winter and evergreen foliage. A cultivar of Heteromeles arbutifolia var. cerina, 'Davis Gold' has striking yellow berries instead of the typical red, and has been noted as having improved resistance to disease. Toyons are very flexible when it comes to light exposure, growing best in sun but tolerating almost full shade. A classic wildlife attractor, birds in particular love to eat the golden berries that linger on the plant. 'Davis Gold' toyon has leathery serrated leaves 2 -4" long and grows well in sandy soils and on slopes with dry, well drained soils. 'Davis Gold' is excellent as a screening plant, hedge, or multi-trunk small tree, reaching a typical height and width of about 6 - 1 '; given ideal conditions and enough time it can grow to 15' or more.This is a selection introduced by UC Davis and it tolerates almost any soil type. Selected for the garden.

Heterotheca oregona is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common name Oregon false goldenaster. It is native to the west coast of Canada and the United States in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California as far south as Los Angeles County. Heterotheca oregona is found in low-elevation mountain forests and chaparral, often near water. This is a perennial herb which is variable in appearance, with four somewhat indistinct Varieties: It reaches a maximum height of 20 centimeters (8 inches) to one meter (40 inches) , and is covered in small bristles. The inflorescence contains 1-15 flower heads in a flat-topped array. Each head has 14-60 yellowish disc florets but no ray florets. The fruit is an achene with a long grayish pappus.

Heterotheca sessiliflora is a species of flowering plant in the Asteraceae (Sunflower) family known by the common name False Goldenaster. It is native to California and Baja California, where it grows primarily along the coast, in the foothills and mountains, in many types of habitat. This is a perennial herb which is quite variable in appearance. There are four recognized subspecies which vary in morphology and geographic range. Depending on subspecies and location, it may be a small clumping or mat-forming plant or grow tall stems to heights exceeding a meter. It may appear as an annual or perennial herb. It is coated in small bristles or long woolly hairs and it is hairy, particularly around the flower cluster. The flower head contains long yellowish disc florets and the edge is fringed with yellow ray florets. Its most outstanding feature is nearly year-round flowering.

Hairy False Goldenaster (Heterotheca villosa) is a native perennial herb that grows in northern, southern and central California. It is moderately fast growing and short-lived. It grows in an upright form to a height of 3 feet, with active growth during the spring and summer. Flowers are yellow and striking, and bloom in the mid summer. Leaves are gray-green and deciduous. It tends to grow in crevices, at elevations from 1300-10200 feet.

Grows best in sandy, coarse-grained or other fast draining soil. Prefers sun in coastal sites, and sun or part shade in inland sites. Selected for the garden.

Island alum root (Heuchera maxima) is a perennial flowering plant in the saxifrage family. In gardens it is valued as a groundcover for both its foliage and its flowers that hummingbirds love. The  rounded green leaves grow in a broad patch and remain low. In winter to spring, tiny white-pink flowers bloom in frothy clusters towards the top of tall erect stems that rise above the leaves and may reach to about 2 feet.  

This plant performs best in coastal gardens, where it can take full sun to part shade. In inland gardens, it may require full shade and additional water. It looks good in woodland gardens.  It is adaptable to different types of soil but prefers sandy/rocky soil with good drainage. 

In the wild, this plant is endemic to three of the eight Channel Islands of California, where it grows on cliffs and canyon walls. It is rare due to its limited distribution. 

Heuchera rubescens is a species in the Saxifragaceae (Saxifrage) family. Its common name is Pink Alumroot. It is native to a large part of the western United States and northern Mexico. In California is is found primarily in the Sierras with scattered locations in the Klamath region and southern California. The plant grows as a low rosette of basal leaves from which the inflorescence arises, to 6 inches in height. All Heucheras have nodding bell-shaped flowers, leading to the common name Coral Bells. Aspects of the plant vary with region where it is native. There is one recognized variety, var. versicolor, a rare species that is found only in the mountains of southern California. In the garden it requires regular water and afternoon shade.

Grows best in sandy, coarse-grained or other fast draining soil. Prefers part shade or shade in coastal sites, and shade in inland sites. Selected for the garden.

Hieracium scouleri is a North American species of hawkweed in the dandelion tribe within the sunflower family. It is known by the common name Scouler's woollyweed. It is native to the United States and Canada from British Columbia and Alberta south as far as northern California and Utah. Hieracium scouleri grows in a variety of mountainous habitats. It produces a basal rosette of long, narrow leaves 10-20 centimetres (3. 9-7. 9 in) long, which are generally hairy to bristly. The plant produces an erect stem 30-70 centimetres (12-28 in) tall which bears the inflorescence. Each flower head has large, curling bracts with glandular hairs or bristles, long, bright yellow ray florets but no ray florets. The achene is about 3 millimetres (0. 12 in) long.

Hippuris vulgaris, known as mare's-tail or common mare's tail, is a common aquatic plant of Eurasia and North America ranging from Greenland to the Tibetan Plateau to Arizona. It prefers non-acidic waters. The species is also sometimes called horsetail, a name which is better reserved to the horsetails of genus Equisetum. These are unrelated to H. vulgaris, although there is some resemblance in appearance. The common mare's tail is a creeping, perennial herb, found in shallow waters and mud flats. It roots underwater, but most of its leaves are above the water surface. The leaves occur in whorls of 6-12; those above water are 0. 5 to 2. 5 cm long and up to 3 mm wide, whereas those under water are thinner and limper, and longer than those above water, especially in deeper streams. The stems are solid and unbranched but often curve, and can be up to 60 cm long. In shallow water they project 20-30 cm out of the water. It grows from stout rhizomes. The flowers are inconspicuous, and not all plants produce them. Studies of H. vulgaris in the Tibetan Plateau have shown that it is a prolific methane emitter. H. vulgaris's roots extend into the anoxic zone of wetland soils and create a conduit for methane produced in the anoxic zone to travel to the atmosphere. Uses. In herbal medicine, mare's tail has a number of uses, chiefly to do with healing wounds, e. g. stopping internal and external bleeding, curing stomach ulcers, and soothing inflammation of the skin. It can also be a troublesome weed, obstructing the flow of water in rivers and ditches.

Hoita macrostachya is a species of legume known by the common name large leatherroot. It is native to California and Baja California where it can be found in moist areas of a number of habitat types. This is a hairy, hairy perennial herb producing a tall, branching stem approaching two meters in maximum height. The sparse, widely spaced leaves are each made up of three leaflets up to 10 centimeters long each attached to a long petiole. The leaflet blades are hairy. The plant produces many clublike raceme flower clusters on sturdy stalks from the stem. The flower cluster contains many purplish pealike flowers. The fruit is a hairy, veiny brown legume pod under a centimeter long containing a kidney-shaped seed.

Hoita orbicularis is a species of legume known by the common name roundleaf leatherroot. It is endemic to California, where it is relatively widespread throughout the state's mountain ranges, growing most often in moist habitat. It is a perennial herb growing prostrate or nearly so at ground level with large leaves each made up of three round leaflets up to 11 centimeters long each. The herbage is hairy and often hairy. The flower cluster is an erect raceme which may be up to 35 centimeters long. Each of the many flowers is one or two centimeters long, pealike, and generally a shade of light to medium purple in color. The fruit is a hairy, veiny legume pod just under a centimeter long.

Cream Bush (also called Ocean Spray) is famous for its cascading clusters of fragrant, creamy white flowers. These lovely blooms attract hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies. After blooming, the seeds provide food for birds, and the plant itself provides shelter for birds and small animals.

Cream Bush is an attractive deciduous shrub, commonly found in forest and woodland environments. In the garden, it does well in shade or part shade and adapts to a variety of soil types. Water needs are moderate, and it can enjoy supplemental irrigation in drier areas.

Hordeum brachyantherum is a species of barley known by the common name meadow barley. It is native to western North America from Alaska to northern Mexico, far eastern Russia, and parts of eastern North America. It can be found in other parts of the world as an introduced species. This is a tufting perennial grass approaching a meter in maximum height. It produces compact, narrow flower clusters 8 to 10 centimeters long and purplish in color. Like other barleys the spikelets come in triplets. It has two small, often sterile lateral spikelets on pedicels and a larger, fertile central spikelet lacking a pedicel.

Meadow Barley (Hordeum brachyantherum ssp. brachyantherum) is a native grass that grows in northern, southern and central California. It tends to grow in meadows, pastures and streambanks, at elevations from 0-11200 feet.

California Meadow Barley (Hordeum brachyantherum ssp. californicum) is a native grass that grows in northern, southern and central California. It is fast growing and short-lived. It grows in an upright form to a height of 1.6 feet, with active growth during the spring. Flowers are yellow and bloom in the mid spring. Leaves are medium green and deciduous. It tends to grow in meadows, pastures and streambanks, at elevations from 0-8500 feet.

Horkelia cuneata is a species of flowering plant in the rose family known by the common name wedgeleaf horkelia. It is endemic to California, where it grows in coastal chaparral communities and sandy areas. This is a matting or clumping perennial herb producing erect green or red stems up to 70 centimeters tall. The fernlike green leaves are up to 30 centimeters long and are made up of toothed, oval-shaped leaflets each one or two centimeters long. The foliage and stems are often quite hairy. The flower cluster holds several flowers, each with narrow, pointed leaflets and wider, reflexed sepals. The sepals and five white petals may be tinted with bright pink. The center of the flower holds ten stamens and up to 60 small pistils.

Coast Horkelia (Horkelia cuneata var. cuneata) is a native perennial herb that grows in Southern and Central California, primarily in the Central Coast, the South Coast Range and South Coast regions. It tends to grow in dunes, at elevations from 0-1300 feet.