Los Angeles, CA - Home And Garden

The LA County Natural History Museum recently finished a comprehensive report on the plant and wildlife found in the vicinity of the Los Angeles River. The bulk of the plants and wildlife exist in the area between the Flood Basin and Frogtown. The many natural sandy bottoms in this area have enabled the return of life, as a significant number of trees, shrubs, and reeds are destroyed during winter floods.

Way back in 1769, the flora and fauna along the river was studied by intrepid explorer Juan Crespi during the Portola expedition. When arriving at a location that was probably near Frogtown, Crespi wrote that his group had found a very large valley, containing plenty of cottonwoods and alders, among which ran a river from the north-northwest, in reference to the Los Angeles River.

Members of the California Native Plant Society have been seeding many indigenous plants in the river basin. A part containing to flora that attract hummingbirds has also been placed in the area.

The following list contains some of the native plants that might be encountered along the river:

The sycamore tree, Platanus racemosa, actually played a part in the establishment of Los Angeles. A key Gabrielino Indian village was situated in the vicinity of a very large sycamore, which they called the council tree. The Spanish settlement that later became the location of Los Angeles was situated near the Indian village. The settlement was washed away in the Great Flood of 1815, but the great tree survived. It later died in 1892 and was cut down. An examination ascertained that it was approximately 400 years old.

The cottonwood tree was very widespread along rivers in early California. As industrialization has lowered water levels, these riparian trees have vanished from many riverbanks. Early explorers utilized the cottonwood�s riparian nature to help them in finding water.

Willow trees are another familiar riparian tree growing in the region. The tree leaves were utilized by California Indian tribes for medicine, while the small branches were gathered for basket making and the larger branches for wood.

The pollen of the cattail, Typha domingensis, was used by tribes for foodstuffs, while the roots served as a form of medicine, and the stalks were good for bedding and building material.

Jimson Weed was revered by California Indians as a ritual drug. It can be poisonous to both humans and animals.