Buck Knoll is a heterogeneous landscape, composed of redwood, oak, madrone forest and chaparral. There is a small grassland located at the 12 acres, visible on satalite. Redwood forest dominates the lower elevations, gradually giving way to more oaks, madrones, and douglas firs at higher elevations. Heading west towards Blue Rock, the landscape transitions to chaparral that includes sections of serpentine.
The California Chaparral
Chaparral describes both a type of vegetation as well as a community of plants and animals. Chaparral vegeation is characterized as evergreen shrubs that are drought- and fire-tolerant. The word chaparral comes from the Spanish word chaparro which describes a place with scrub oaks, and it comes from the root word "chaps", the leather pants worn to protect against thorny vegetation.
Mediterranean Climate
The Mediterranean Climate is characterized by a hot, dry summer and a mild, wet winter. It is a unique climate only covering around 3% of the world's landmass.
The Pacific High is a high pressure air mass that stretches from the central pacific ocean to the coast of California. The areas that are underneath the pacific high are protected from storms. As the pacific high drifts south for the winter, California becomes susceptible to storms again, leading to the characteristic wet winter; however, rainfall is unpredictible from year to year with large variations in the inches of rain recieved each year.
The Westerlies are winds that flow from the pacific ocean to