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Home | Plant Communities | Foothill Woodland

Much of California's area is included within the Foothill Habitat, including the foothills of both the coastal and the Sierra Mountains. The soil here is fertile, so wherever water is available, trees and plants flourish. The average rainfall is 15" - 40" and the growing season is 6 - 10 months annually.

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California Coffeeberry

Rhamnus californica; Buckthorn Family

• evergreen; erect shrub grows up to 15 feet tall
• shiny, dark green, 1" - 3" oblong leaves (pale beneath)
• small green flowers followed by 1/4" - 1/2" berries
• berries are first green, then red, finally black when ripe
• Native Americans used the berries in teas drunk to offset the digestive effects of an acorn diet
• bark once used for chronic constipation, but the laxative effect is so severe that it is considered toxic
• It is highly recommended that people do not consume any part of this plant in any form.
• berries are an important food source for native birds
• host plant for the Pale Swallowtail butterfly

Gray Pine

Pinus sabiniana; Pine Family

• medium to large evergreen tree
• crooked trunk branching to many secondary trunks to form a broad, open crown
• dark grey, roughly fissured bark
• gray-green needles are 3 in a bundle, 8" - 12" long
• light brown cones are broadly egg-shaped, 6" - 10" long and slightly one-sided
• Pine nuts are good to eat, and make good beads
• Native Americans used the branches to make baskets

Western Redbud

Cercis occidentalis; Pea Family

• large shrub with multiple branches spreading from the base
• heart-shaped, bluish-green leaves are 1" - 3.5" wide
• flowers have 5 reddish-purple petals
• fruits are flattened and stay on shrubs for a long time
• Native Americans used bark extracts to treat diarrhea and dysentery
• baskets from the shredded bark and the wood was also made into bows, fence posts, and tool handles
• a favorite plant used to weave color into baskets
• pollination is by bumble bees (Bombus sp.) and orchard mason bees (Osmia lignaria)

Buck Brush

Ceanothus cuneatus; Buckthorn Family

• rounded or spreading shrub with clustered erect stems
• magenta to purple (but occasionally white) flowers February to April
• host plant to the Pale Swallowtail, Spring Azure and several Hairstreak butterfly species