Pictures of California's Coastal Redwood Forest

Coast Redwoods, (Sequoia sempervirens), the world's tallest tree, can reach in excess of 300 feet tall.

Coast Redwood trees, Sequoia sempervirens, tower over Elderberry, and Western Sword Fern, Polystichum munitum that

thrive in this small clearing.

Leaf litter keeps the soil under these huge redwood trees healthy with microorganisms and nutrients. People tromping around on the

wet soil under these trees can cause very damaging soil compaction.

Fallen Coast Redwood trees, Sequoia sempervirens, allow sunlight to penetrate to the dark moist forest floor. They also provide an excellent home for wildlife from fungi to insects and even the occasional mammal.

This fallen Coast Redwood tree, Sequoia sempervirens, has become a home for young Western Sword Fern, (Polystichum munitum).

Huckleberry, Vaccinium ovatum, is the scraggly Spanish moss laced shrub behind the log.

For more information on this California plant community, see the California Coast Redwood Forest page.