Dumb question about CA trees (San Diego, Modesto: how much, home, neighborhood)

[angelaf]

So I know California probably has different kinds of trees than we have here in the upper midwest (I live in Wisconsin near the Minnesota border), but I'm curious about how deciduous trees change there. Here, all the leaves fall off in the winter and the trees stay bare till spring. It's hard to imagine sunny California with a bunch of naked trees. So since the change of seasons is less extreme there, do the trees lose their leaves more like one at a time, and then grow them back continuously, or what?

[Roman11]

They do depending on what type of tree it is. Here in San Diego we have Palm trees that off course don't loose there leaves all at the same time but the do die off. While one palm from dies another is already taking it's place. I have in my yard a couple of Japanese Maples and a White Birch that do loose of at one time and they are now coming back. We also have a lot of Jacaranda Trees that look really cool in the spring time because they're covered with blue flowers. While all of the energy is going into the flowers, all of the leaves fall off. When the flowers fall after a month, the leaves come back, very cool looking tree in my opinion.

So it depends on the type of tree. Does that answer your question?

Roman11

[angelaf]

Yep... pretty much! Thanks!

[enlightenme]

Where I live also has a lot of oak trees. They drop brown leaves throughout the year and acorns. During spring, they make a lot of pollen. Sometimes our backyard would get this greenish, yellow glow because everything would be so heavily covered in pollen. It isn't like other states where you get a beautiful fall with changing colors. We pretty much go from brown to green. Some trees do drop a lot of leaves and you have bare trees, but not many. Dropping Palm fronds are a huge mess! After windy days, our yard would get covered and they would fill up our garbage can because they are so big.

[cgca4]

I am native Californian and have lived from one end of the state to the other. My daughter lives in Wisconsin on the Illinois border. California has evergreen as well as seasonal trees. It depends on where you are, the deserts have the palm trees and Oak trees, the palms do not lose the leaves and the oaks do. While living in Paso Robles on the Central Coast of California my home had pine trees, and three different types of Walnut trees. The Walnuts would lose their leaves with the seasons while the pines did not. California has different climates within the state. I love our Mountains with the pine trees and snow in the winter. While the inlands are more arid and scattered with evergreens. The Coastal regions have both seasonal and evergreen. Here in California in the fall you can see the leaves change and 20 minutes away see evergreens. We may not have the Dells in the fall, but we do have variety.

[bobizzy3]

When you think about California,, think Variety,, people, trees, climate, mountains, deserts, beaches, lakes, everything is about where you live,, you will find places that resemble where you live and places that look like the moon,, it is a big state,,, so pick your climate, and then decide where you want to live in the state that has that climate,,, you can do that in Cal. The climate will dictate the type of trees that are indiginous to that region.

[Roundtruck]

I had read this thread earlier and it made me open my eyes a little more today. I was on a residential boulevard near the coast in Ventura County and saw pines, cedars, junipers, oaks, sycamores, elms, cottonwoods, several varieties of eucalyptus, palms, and ficus, magnolias, bottlebrush, bauhinia, etc. Then nearby are avocado, orange, and lemon orchards, even some cherimoya, banana, and most nuts, even some macadamia. Some properties are landscaped with coral trees and carrotwoods. There really is a huge variety. True maples and some of the other hardwoods won't grow in this area, but it is pretty amazing how much will. Some of these grow in very few locations anywhere. These were just the trees. With all of the sub-tropical shrubs and flowers, I guess it is quite unique!

[MoMark]

Originally Posted by angelaf

So I know California probably has different kinds of trees than we have here in the upper midwest (I live in Wisconsin near the Minnesota border), but I'm curious about how deciduous trees change there. Here, all the leaves fall off in the winter and the trees stay bare till spring. It's hard to imagine sunny California with a bunch of naked trees. So since the change of seasons is less extreme there, do the trees lose their leaves more like one at a time, and then grow them back continuously, or what?

Many of these posts are from Southern California. I grew up in the Central Valley in Merced and Modesto, then lived many years in the bay area. Northern and Central California have four seasons and the deciduous trees lose their leaves like everywhere else. It gets pretty cold in California actually in the winter and very storm in the northern half. In Modesto, where I grew up, I had rake the Modesto Ash tree leaves every fall...piles of them. The Mulberry trees, Ash trees, Oak trees, Sycamore trees, birch trees, all of them go bare for the winter. Few trees other than evergreens keep their leaves for Central and Northern California in the wintertime. However, the Fall colors aren't nearly so spectacular as the Midwest and Northeast. Where I live now in Missouri, the Fall colors are breathtakingly spectacular. In California you get some color change, but not like what you're used to. However, you won't see deciduous trees with leaves during the winter.

[claret]

Funny topic. I was just thinking about my garden while reading this post. I'm in Nor-Cal (East Bay) and my Crabapple, Wisteria, and fruit trees lose their leaves in Winter without much color changes. However, my Bougainvillea, roses, and tomato plants keep on going strong long into December. Go figure! Just proves that Cali. is a whole new ballgame. It'll be sad when I move to KY next year, not as much gardening fun!

[chasdwitt]

California has very distinct and varied climate regions. From Coastal Rainforest to Desert to mountainous terrain above the timberline. Coastal forests are made up of coniferous evergreens (Redwood, Douglas Fir, Pine), broadleaf evergreens (Madrone, Live Oak), grassland and chapparal up to about 30-50 miles inland.

East slope coastal regions are populated with oak, Digger and Coulter pine and grass and brush. Riparian (stream-side) environments which feed from the hills and mountains contain cottonwood and alder which are decidous and lose their foliage in the fall. Hills in both Northern and Southern California are covered with annual grasses which die off after about mid-May depending on what little rainfall and their proximity to water. These hills are also covered with Black Oak, Valley Oak and Blue Oak (all deciduous) and "Live Oak" which keeps it's leaves year round and sheds them like a dog sheds hair.

This dry semi-arid area is a Mediterranean Climate. The rain/snow falls from October through April-May and very little falls from June-September. As a result of this there are many drought resistant species that need only tap what little ground water there is. Shallow soils in the foothill region also limit the types of trees found in this area unless they are irrigated.

Urban trees are for the most part imports. Evergreen varities intermix with deciduous creating some bare trees and some in full leaf all through the year. Evergreen varities include some palms in Southern California which are at least partly native in that a sub-tropical climate exists there. Much like Florida. Eucalyptus which abound and grow well in California are native to Australia. Ficus line streets and parking lots and are native to China. There are still planted pines, firs, redwoods that hold their green all year.

Of course there are also deciduous trees planted for their shade and asthetic properties. Elms, birches, walnut, maples, sweet gum (liquidamber)and sycamore. These line many neighborhood streets and put off some good color in the fall months, after that, naked til late March/early April.

In the Sierra Nevada foothills begins an area called the Yellow Pine Transition Zone. Here Digger Pines and Scrub Oak give way to Black Oak, Ponderosa Pines, Cedars and Dogwood. This area runs the length of the Sierra Nevada Range and up through the Southern Cascades and Siskyou's of far Northern California at elevations ranging from 1,000 ft in the south to 2500ft in the north and continues in elevation to approximately 4,000 ft.. Then you're in the Alpine Region which is covered with Ponderosa and Jeffery Pine, Douglas Fir, White Fir, Cedar and Hemlock, all evergreens. There are also broadleaf deciduous trees such as Aspen, Alder, Birch, and Big Leaf Maple which, in the right arrangement can put on a fantastic show in the fall (which comes a little earlier here in the higher elevations).


Higher up, in the 10-11 thousand foot range, trees and any kind of shrub just won't grow and usually have snow most of the year, all that lives up here is lichen, small annual wildflowers, some succulents, but no trees.

The fall foliage is not nearly as vibrant or widespread through California's 900+ mile length and 300+ mile width as many areas don't vary in seasonal temperature much like in the Northeast. However, the mild climate allows hundreds of evergreen and broadleaf species to keep their leaves year round (and yes they shed most of the year too)

I hope that answers your question.