Torrey Pine Grove, Santa Rosa Island
Map SatelliteThis is one of the two stands of the rare Torrey pine, Pinus torreyana. The other (see Torrey Pines State Reserve) is on the mainland, 280 kilometers (175 miles) to the southeast.
The island grove is approximately 400 meters (1,300 feet) wide and approximately 800 meters (2,600 feet) long. It is on the north slope of a ridge facing the Santa Barbara Channel, with the grove ranging in elevation from 60 meters (200 feet) to about 150 meters (500 feet). A series of small north-south canyons dissects the area and the soil is a fine, sandy loam, though rock outcrops occur along the ridges.
All the trees on the exposed ridges are severely wind-pruned and even those in the more sheltered areas do not exceed 10.5 meters (35 feet) in height. Though Adenostoma fasciculatum and Heteromeles arbutifolia are scattered throughout the grove, most of the open space between the trees is grass-covered. In portions, mature trees, with trunks up to 1 meter (3 feet) in diameter, form a dense canopy.
There are genetic differences between the two stands and it is probable that this population may represent the older of the two forms, having persisted as the moist island climate remains closer to the climate of the past.
Integrity: Cattle graze in the vicinity, but the stand is virtually undisturbed.
Use: Private
Ref: Haller, J. Robert, 1967. A Comparison of the Mainland and Island Populations of Torrey Pine in Philbrick, R. l\l. (ed.) Symposium on the Biology of the California Islands, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden .
February 1975
Inventory of California Natural Areas
Revision © 2009 Steven Louis Hartman