The
mediterranean climate is a specific climate type charactarized by warm, dry summers and cool,
wet winters. This climate is found, as the name suggests, in the Mediterranean. It is also the main climate zone of much of California, including
San Francisco and
Los Angeles. Mediterranean climates are also found in
Chile, southern
Australia,
South Africa, and the
Canary Islands.
Unlike most areas, Mediterranean climate areas get almost all of their rain in the cool months. In many areas, such as California, there is often no rain for up to 6 months of the year. Because of this, plants in the area have had to adapt to harsh conditions, including drought during the growing season, potentially heavy rains in the winter, and frequentfire. Most mediterranean plants have evolved with fire, and actually thrive in fairly frequent fire regimes.
Some plants common in mediterranean areas of California are oaks, sage, bay, manzanita, madrone, and various other chaparral plants. Most mediterranean climate areas are also very vurnerable to invasion by weedy vegetation.