Introduction to California Plant Life

California’s unique plants range in size from the stately Coast Redwoods to the minute belly plants of the southern deserts and in age from the four-thousand year-old Bristlecone Pines to ephemeral annuals whose life span can be counted in weeks. Available at last in a thoroughly updated and revised edition, this popular book is the only concise overview of the state’s remarkable flora, its plant communities, and the environmental factors that shape them.

* 188 color photographs illustrate plants and typical plant communities around the state

* New chapters give expanded discussions of the evolution of the California landscape, recent changes in California's flora, and more

* Introduces basic concepts of plant taxonomy and plant ecology through clear examples and covers topics such as soil, climate, and geography

Robert Ornduff (1932-2000) served as Director of the University and Jepson Herbaria, Director of the University Botanical Garden, and Professor of Integrative Biology at the University of California, Berkeley. Phyllis M. Faber is General Editor of the California Natural History Guides. Todd Keeler-Wolf is Senior Vegetation Ecologist, California Department of Fish and Game.

Preface
Preface from the 1974 Edition
Introduction

1. THE CALIFORNIA FLORA
The Californian Floristic Province
Diversity of the Flora
Naming Plants: Latin Binomials and Common Names
The Meanings of Plant Names
A Hierarchy of Classification
Naming New Plant Species
Rarity and Endemism

2. CALIFORNIA’S TOPOGRAPHY,
CLIMATE, AND SOILS
Topographical Features of California
Climate
Geology and Soils

3. PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL
INFLUENCES ON PLANTS
Soil and Topography
Sun and Wind
Effect of Shade
Competition for Water and Light
Water and Salinity
The Presence of Fire
Fungi and Bacteria
Plant Competition and Allelopathy
Herbivory
Pollination
Seed Dispersal
Adaptations to Aridity
Reading the Landscape by Indicator Species

4. VARIATION OR ECOTYPES
OF PLANT SPECIES
Climatic Ecotypes
Soil Ecotypes

5. INTRODUCTION TO
CALIFORNIA VEGETATION
Vegetation and Flora
Concepts of Plant Community and Vegetation
A Classification System
Ecological Dominance
Plant Succession
Life Zones

6. VEGETATION TYPES IN
CISMONTANE CALIFORNIA
The Cismontane Region (West of the
Sierra Nevada Crest)

7. VEGETATION TYPES IN MONTANE
AND TRANSMONTANE CALIFORNIA
Montane Region (High Mountain Areas)
Transmontane Region (Areas East of the
Sierra Nevada Crest and the Deserts)

8. EVOLUTION OF THE
CALIFORNIA FLORA
Arcto-Tertiary Geoflora
Neotropical Tertiary Geoflora
Madro-Tertiary Geoflora
Fossil History of Coast Redwood

9. EARLY PLANT EXPLORATION
AND BOTANY IN CALIFORNIA
Early Explorers
Early Plant Collectors
The First American Explorers
Surveys for Railroads
Botany in California Since Statehood

10. RECENT CHANGES IN
CALIFORNIA’S FLORA
Climate Change
Native American Usage of the Land
The Impact of Agriculture and Grazing
The Impact of Invasive Weeds
Tracking Habitat Destruction and Loss of Species
Habitat Restoration
Saving Biodiversity: A Call for Action

Glossary
Supplemental Reading
References
Art Credits and Additional Captions
Index of Plant Names
General Index