Pacific Southwest Research Station

Publication Information

Title: Alluvial Scrub Vegetation in Coastal Southern California

Author: Hanes, Ted L.; Friesen, Richard D.; Keane, Kathy

Date: 1989

Source: In: Abell, Dana L., Technical Coordinator. 1989. Proceedings of the California Riparian Systems Conference: protection, management, and restoration for the 1990s; 1988 September 22-24; Davis, CA. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-110. Berkeley, CA: Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; p. 187-193

Station ID: GTR-PSW-110

Description: Certain floodplain systems in southern California sustain a unique scrub vegetation rather than riparian woodlands due to a lack of perennial water. Alluvial scrub occurs on outwash fans and riverine deposits along the coastal side of major mountains of southern California. This vegetation type is adapted to severe floods and erosion, nutrient-poor substrates, and the presence of subsurface moisture. Ten major stands were sampled by line intercepts to determine their species composition, community structure, and successional status. Plant ecology and successional dynamics of these stands are compared. Loss of this unique floodplain vegetation type in the past, and current urban pressures from mining and flood control practices are discussed.

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Hanes, Ted L.; Friesen, Richard D.; Keane, Kathy  1989.  Alluvial Scrub Vegetation in Coastal Southern California  In: Abell, Dana L., Technical Coordinator. 1989. Proceedings of the California Riparian Systems Conference: protection, management, and restoration for the 1990s; 1988 September 22-24; Davis, CA. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-110. Berkeley, CA: Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; p. 187-193.