How green are your mountains? (Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley: live, price, smog)

[rdv57]

Was looking at the overall Conejo, Moorpark, Camarillo geographic area (remotely) on Google Earth and Bing Maps, and struck by how barren most mountain areas look. Got to wondering if that is a seasonal or year round condition.

Looking in on 15787 Graduate Circle 93021 on Google broad areal view and then street view will show you what I mean.
Bing seems to show a different time of year, but barely more green close up. Its broad areal view shows considerably more green areas, but these change so abruptly to brown at some photo splices as to look artificial.

So, those of you who see these mountains year round:
1. Are they mostly brown and barren, or do they turn a lively green for a handful of months?
2. Are the conditions the same for the entire Conejo, Moorpark, Camarillo area, or do they vary with distance from the ocean, prevalent wind directions, etc.?
3. If varies, where do they tend to more green?

Thanks.

[nightlysparrow]

They turn green for a few months during the rainy season. But in the draught times, they stay brown.

They are more green in the deeper slopes generally, although the grade over to Camarillo gets fog, so sometimes the elevation causes those hills to be green.

Camarillo except by the freeway is mostly flat. Moorpark is probably greener, but only by a little.

[BRinSM]

nothing stays green for long anywhere in socal except for peoples' front/back yards. while much is brown, i wouldn't call it barren. some of the most beautiful landscapes i've seen are in the LA/Ventura area (rolling hills with chaparral and oak trees). you just have to learn to appreciate a different type of natural beauty.

[rdv57]

Originally Posted by BRinSM

... you just have to learn to appreciate a different type of natural beauty.

Thanks. Do appreciate the 'sage' advice.
Hope to get the chance to learn.

[Senno]

We can see the Sierra Nevadas from here when the smogs not to bad.

Mountains are mostly green, but along the roads trees seem to be dying out. I have attributed this to car exhaust fumes over time, but I'm not sure about that.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Chaparral stays a sort of dull green at all times as do the Coast Live Oaks and other various evergreen trees. The grass (which is non native European stuff brought inadvertently via Spanish livestock) sprouts in fall / winter with the rains and dies off every spring / summer (e.g. during the dry season).

[socalmommie]

Thousand Oaks/Newbury Park tend to appear greener than Moorpark/Simi Valley because they have more dense, green undergrowth. On the surface, however, all the hills around these areas are brown in the summer/fall and year-round when there's light rainfall (which is most of the time).

As a Midwest transplant (I've lived here for 30 years now, so I'm used to it), it took awhile for me to become accustomed to the landscape, but it now holds a dear place in my heart. The drive up to San Luis Obispo is a good view of how I imagine the Conejo must have looked at one point in time before so much development cropped up. Rolling golden (not brown - haha) hills dotted with majestic, gnarled oaks... nothing quite like it when kissed by the sun's rays in the late afternoon or envelope by an early morning fog.

[Onething6]

Green means humidity or snow. It looks nice, but you pay the price in the winter or summer depending on where you live.