Coastal Sage Scrub

Coastal sage scrub (or coastal scrub or CSS) is a low scrubland plant community found in the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion of coastal California and northern Baja California. It is characterized by low-growing aromatic, and drought-deciduous shrubs adapted to the semi-arid Mediterranean climate of the coastal lowlands. The community is sometimes called soft chaparral due to the predominance of soft, drought-deciduous leaves in contrast to the hard, waxy-cuticled leaves on sclerophyllous plants of California's chaparral communities.

Characteristic plants include California sagebrush (Artemisia californica), black sage (Salvia mellifera), white sage (Salvia apiana), California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum), coast brittle-bush (Encelia californica), golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertifolium), with the larger shrubs toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) and Lemonade berry (Rhus integrifolia), along with other shrubs and herbaceous plants, grasses, and in some places, cacti and succulents. Lists and photographs of organisms found in CSS can be found on the Robert J. Bernard Field Station website.

Coastal sage scrub is divided into two geographical subtypes – northern coastal scrub and southern coastal scrub.