EPA Level III Ecoregion
Southern California/Northern Baja Coast
837 native plants for the Southern California/Northern Baja Coast ecoregion (Los Angeles area).
The Southern California/Northern Baja Coast ecoregion covers the coastal plain from Ventura through Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego. This is coastal sage scrub country, with mild winters, marine-layer mornings, and very little summer rain. Natives such as California buckwheat, white sage, and lemonadeberry hold their form through the dry months, which matters in neighborhoods where a tidy street view is expected.
Conditions: Sandy loam to clay soils, 10–15 inches of winter rainfall, mild year-round temperatures, marine influence near the coast.
Cities and areas: Los Angeles, San Diego, Anaheim, Long Beach, Riverside, Oxnard.
837 Native Plants for the Southern California/Northern Baja Coast
HOA-friendly picks listed first. Pet-safety status varies by species; each plant page shows its sourced ASPCA status. Native range data from vouchered herbarium specimen records and regional native plant society lists.
Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis
Common Yarrow
Achillea millefolium
Soft rush
Juncus effusus
Aromatic Sumac
Rhus aromatica
Red-osier Dogwood
Cornus sericea
Prairie Junegrass
Koeleria macrantha
Golden Currant
Ribes aureum
Wild Woodland Strawberries
Fragaria vesca
Narrowleaf Milkweed
Asclepias fascicularis
Western Columbine
Aquilegia formosa
Flowering Currant
Ribes sanguineum
Sulfur-buckwheat
Eriogonum umbellatum
California-poppy
Eschscholzia californica
California Fuchsia
Epilobium canum
Deer Grass
Muhlenbergia rigens
California Wild Buckwheat
Eriogonum fasciculatum
Bunchleaf Penstemon
Penstemon heterophyllus
Mexican Feathergrass
Nassella tenuissima
Coastal Tidytips
Layia platyglossa
Checker-mallow
Sidalcea malviflora
Arroyo Lupine
Lupinus succulentus
Marin Iris
Iris douglasiana
Fragrant Sage
Salvia clevelandii
Fiddleneck
Phacelia tanacetifolia
Scarlet Bugler
Penstemon centranthifolius
Apricot globemallow
Sphaeralcea ambigua
Foothill Lupine
Lupinus albifrons
Western Blue-eyed Grass
Sisyrinchium bellum
Hummingbird Sage
Salvia spathacea
Toyon
Heteromeles arbutifolia
White Sage
Salvia apiana
Black Sage
Salvia mellifera
California Buckeye
Aesculus californica
Woolly Bluecurls
Trichostema lanatum
Purple Sage
Salvia leucophylla
Clarkia
Clarkia unguiculata
Blue Thimble-flower
Gilia capitata
Western Redbud
Cercis occidentalis
Birchleaf Mountain Mahogany
Cercocarpus betuloides
Showy Penstemon
Penstemon spectabilis
Blueblossom
Ceanothus thyrsiflorus
Douglas' Sagewort
Artemisia douglasiana
Skunkbush Sumac
Rhus trilobata
California Sagebrush
Artemisia californica
Desert Marigold
Baileya multiradiata
Cuneate Ceanothus
Ceanothus cuneatus
California Live Oak
Quercus agrifolia
California Sycamore
Platanus racemosa
Showing 48 of 837. Enter your ZIP for the natives matched to your yard.
Fall care in the Southern California/Northern Baja Coast
What to do right now for plants commonly grown here. Each links to the full regional care guide for that species, with sources.
- Southern bush monkeyflower
Fall is a good time to plant a shrub like this in Los Angeles, since cooler weather helps new roots settle. Keep the site sunny to part shade with good drainage.
- Mountain mint
Fall bloom winds down, so ease off watering as days cool.
- Firecracker penstemon
Fall is a quiet time. Clip finished flower stalks and avoid extra water or fertilizer.
- Saffron wild buckwheat
Fall is a good time to let rain take over the watering.
- Glandularia lilacina
Fall is a good time to plant and to cut back leggy growth.
- Yerba buena
Fall keeps the plant green, with some flowers still around.
- Emorys globemallow
Fall is a mild, good season to plant and to tidy the plant after summer.
- Santa barbara island liveforever
Fall is a calm season. Keep water minimal and tidy any spent flower stalks.
- Lemmons marigold
Fall is this plant's peak season in the Los Angeles area, when it produces its heaviest flush of yellow-orange, daisy-like blooms, typically running from late summer into early winter until the first real cold snap.
- Apricot globemallow
Fall is a good time to plant desert globemallow in Los Angeles, giving it a chance to root in during the mild, wetter months before it faces its first full summer here.
Build a plan for the Southern California/Northern Baja Coast
The Pollinator Patch App turns plants like these into a front-yard plan tuned for the soil, climate, and HOA expectations of the Los Angeles area.