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California’s coast redwoods are adapted to cool, fog-influenced coastal summers, but drought and heat can disrupt the water and carbon processes that keep them growing. Field measurements in Mendocino County found that some leaves became nearly 20°F warmer than the surrounding air during summers with temperatures above 86°F. Laboratory tests reported reduced photosynthesis at temperatures up to 110°F even when leaf samples had water and open stomata. Those results show real heat stress, yet they do not establish a temperature at which every redwood dies.

The most accurate answer to “How does drought affect redwood trees?” is that drought reduces water available for transport and evaporative cooling, while heat can suppress photosynthesis directly. Fog partly moderates both pressures, but its benefits vary by topography. Seedlings and forests near the southern and eastern edges of the coastal range may face greater regeneration and growth risks than trees in cooler, foggier settings.

What drought and extreme heat change inside a redwood

Redwoods move water from soil to foliage through their vascular system. Leaves release water vapor through stomata, microscopic pores that also admit carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. That water loss can cool a leaf, so a hot, dry atmosphere creates two linked problems: soil moisture may be insufficient to replace water leaving the crown, and the air may demand more evaporation than the tree can safely supply.

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When water becomes scarce, stomata can close or partly close. This conserves water but restricts carbon dioxide entry and reduces photosynthesis. A closed or restricted stoma also limits evaporative cooling. Heat therefore does not act only by drying the soil; it can raise leaf temperature and impair photosynthetic machinery even when water is present.

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Why leaf temperature matters more than an air-temperature reading

A weather station records air temperature, but a sunlit leaf can be warmer or cooler than that air. In the Mendocino County field work summarized by the University of California, Davis, some redwood leaves were nearly 20°F warmer than surrounding air during summers that included temperatures above 86°F. The researchers interpreted this difference as consistent with leaves losing the ability to cool effectively, potentially because stomata were closing to conserve water.

The lead author, Lily Klinek, described the physiological result this way: “With this work, we see there’s a significant impact of heat on photosynthesis and physiology.” The observation does not mean every leaf in every grove reaches the same temperature. Canopy position, sun exposure, wind, humidity, soil moisture and fog all affect the leaf–air difference.

What the heat study actually demonstrated

UC Davis summarized measurements collected over three summers in a Mendocino County redwood forest. The field observations included summers in which air temperatures exceeded 86°F, and some leaves approached a 20°F excess over the surrounding air. The same report described laboratory tests on redwood leaf material at temperatures up to 110°F.

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Observation What it means What it does not establish
Above 86°F in the field Hot episodes occurred during the monitored summers, and leaf temperatures could diverge sharply from air temperature. A statewide heat limit for redwoods.
Leaves nearly 20°F warmer than air Some leaves were unable to shed heat as effectively as the surrounding conditions would normally allow. That every leaf, tree or grove experiences the same difference.
Tests up to 110°F Photosynthesis declined at high leaf-test temperatures even when water was available and stomata remained open, indicating a direct heat effect. A 110°F mortality threshold. The tests were not a forest-wide death experiment.
Three summers of field measurements The result reflects repeated seasonal observations at the Mendocino site. A complete picture of all years, elevations or coastal redwood forests.

The laboratory result is especially important for separating heat from drought. If photosynthesis falls while a sample has water and open stomata, water shortage cannot be the only mechanism. Heat can directly constrain photosynthetic reactions. In a forest, that direct effect can occur at the same time that drought forces stomatal closure and reduces cooling.

Klinek cautioned that “We don’t know what the upper temperature thresholds are for redwood photosynthesis and mortality.” The evidence therefore supports a statement about stress and reduced carbon uptake, not a precise temperature at which redwoods die.

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How drought and heat reinforce each other

Drought limits the tree’s cooling budget

During a dry period, soil water may not replenish water lost from leaves. Closing stomata slows that loss, but it also removes one of the main routes for evaporative cooling. A leaf can then run hotter than the air, increasing heat damage risk and reducing photosynthesis.

Heat increases atmospheric demand

Hot air can draw water vapor from foliage more rapidly. If the roots cannot supply that demand, stomata must restrict flow or tissues experience increasing water stress. The tree may continue to function, but growth and carbon allocation can change as water conservation takes priority.

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Heat can suppress photosynthesis independently

The UC Davis laboratory tests found reduced photosynthesis despite available water and open stomata. This means irrigation or a brief rain event would not automatically remove all heat effects. Water status and temperature should be considered together rather than treating drought as the sole cause of reduced photosynthesis.

Why fog is important to redwood forests

Summer fog is part of the dry-season climate in which coast redwoods evolved. It can wet foliage, lower leaf temperature and reduce the atmospheric demand for water. Fog also changes how quickly soil moisture is withdrawn. These influences help explain why redwood habitat is concentrated along a relatively cool, humid coastal belt.

Fog is not uniform, however. Hillslope position, wind exposure, canopy structure and seasonal timing determine how much fog reaches a particular stand. Fog can moderate drought and heat without eliminating either one.

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What the Caspar Creek measurements found

A 2025 U.S. Forest Service study monitored fog, climate, soil moisture, sap flow and streamflow at the Caspar Creek Experimental Watersheds in northwestern California. Measurements covered the 2020, 2021 and 2022 fog seasons, each from May 1 through September 30. Researchers compared shoulder and ridge positions in harvested and unharvested third-growth forest.

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Measured response Finding at Caspar Creek Interpretation
Fog-related leaf wetness Higher on the hillslope shoulder than at the ridge. Topography changes how much fog reaches foliage.
Soil moisture Fog events tended to produce small increases or reduce withdrawals, with variation through the season. Fog can influence the soil-water balance, but the effect is episodic rather than identical everywhere.
Transpiration All sites showed lower transpiration during fog periods. Foggy conditions reduce water loss from vegetation.
Forest density The study found effects were influenced by topography but not apparently by forest density. The observations do not support a blanket claim that thinning always removes fog benefits.

These findings explain why “fog prevents drought” is too broad. Fog’s hydrological effect was measurable but varied by position and season. A ridge and a shoulder in the same watershed can receive different leaf wetness and soil-moisture responses.

Effects on growth, seedlings and regeneration

Physiological stress matters because trees must divide carbon among maintenance, roots, stems, foliage and reproduction. If stomatal regulation lowers carbon uptake, aboveground growth may slow even when a seedling avoids severe wilting. A tree can therefore show reduced growth before researchers can attribute any mortality to heat.

The Forest Service seedling comparison

A U.S. Forest Service report described a 2015 growing-season study at the L.W. Schatz Demonstration Tree Farm in Maple Creek, California, following a 2014 variable-density retention harvest. The experiment compared coast redwood and Douglas-fir seedlings under heavy-thinning, moderate-thinning and unthinned treatments. The site was outside coast redwood’s natural range, and observations covered one growing season.

Result Reported finding Scope
Species water stress Redwood seedlings had significantly lower water stress than Douglas-fir seedlings. Seedlings at this site during the 2015 season.
Aboveground growth Redwood seedlings had lower aboveground growth than Douglas-fir seedlings. Does not represent all mature redwood stands.
Stomatal behavior The authors suggested stronger stomatal regulation could conserve water while reducing carbon uptake and aboveground growth. A proposed explanation associated with the experiment.
Thinning treatments Seedlings in the heavily thinned treatment had the least water stress and highest growth among the three treatments. Not a universal thinning prescription; the study was outside the natural range and lasted one growing season.

The authors also discussed possible belowground carbon allocation. A seedling that invests relatively more carbon below ground may improve water acquisition or storage while producing less visible shoot growth. That trade-off is one reason a single growth measurement should not be treated as a complete measure of drought resilience.

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Why regeneration is especially sensitive

Seedlings have small root systems, limited stored water and foliage close to the hotter, drier boundary layer near the ground. A mature tree can access deeper or wider soil volumes and may buffer a short heat pulse better than a new recruit. The available evidence supports greater concern about regeneration and growth under longer, more extreme dry periods, but it does not provide a universal survival threshold for seedlings.

Which redwood settings face greater risk?

No source establishes a complete ranking of California groves. Risk depends on several interacting axes rather than one label such as “drought-prone.”

  • Heat exposure and leaf temperature: Sun-exposed foliage that runs substantially warmer than air may experience stronger photosynthetic constraint than shaded foliage.
  • Water availability: Soil depth, groundwater access, recent rainfall and root distribution influence whether a tree can maintain transpiration.
  • Fog and topographic position: Shoulders, ridges and sheltered hollows can receive different fog wetting and cooling.
  • Life stage: Seedlings and young trees generally have less stored water and rooting volume than established trees.
  • Range location: Southern and eastern edges of the coastal redwood range are highlighted as places where reduced fog and drying could constrain forests.

A UC Agriculture and Natural Resources healthy-forest brief characterizes coast redwoods as not drought-tolerant and warns that longer, more extreme dry periods may stress them. It also identifies expected reductions in coastal fog as a potential source of moisture and temperature stress, with consequences for seedling regeneration and growth, particularly near southern and eastern range edges. This is an ecosystem-level risk summary, not a forecast for a particular grove.

The USDA California Climate Hub likewise emphasizes that forest types have distinct climate stressors and management needs and includes coastal redwood among the ecosystems covered by its healthy-forest briefs.

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Can redwoods survive extreme heat?

Yes, individual redwoods can survive hot episodes, but survival is not the same as unaffected function. The documented responses include hotter leaves, lower photosynthesis and altered water use. A tree may recover after a short event if water status and tissues remain viable; repeated or prolonged stress could reduce growth, regeneration or stored carbon.

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Current evidence does not justify saying that redwoods die at 110°F, 100°F or any other single temperature. The 110°F value belongs to laboratory tests in which photosynthesis declined, not to a measured mortality boundary in a forest. Field mortality also depends on duration, humidity, soil moisture, prior drought, canopy exposure, pests, disease and life stage. Klinek’s statement that upper thresholds for photosynthesis and mortality remain unknown is the appropriate qualification.

How to interpret reports of redwood decline

When evaluating a claim that heat or drought is harming a stand, separate direct observations from explanations. Leaf temperature, soil moisture, sap flow, transpiration and photosynthetic measurements are physiological evidence. Reduced growth or fewer seedlings is an ecological outcome that may have several causes. Dead trees are an even broader endpoint and cannot be assigned to a specific temperature without site-specific investigation.

  • Ask whether the measurement was made on leaves, seedlings or whole trees.
  • Check the location and dates: Mendocino County heat observations, Caspar Creek fog measurements and the Maple Creek seedling experiment represent different settings.
  • Distinguish field observations from laboratory tests.
  • Look for the water context: heat effects with water available indicate a mechanism beyond drought alone.
  • Do not convert one season or one treatment into a statewide management rule.

What the evidence means for forest management

The studies support monitoring both water and temperature conditions, especially where fog is less frequent or terrain exposes foliage to sun and wind. Measurements of soil moisture, sap flow, fog wetness and canopy microclimate can reveal stress that air-temperature records miss. Protecting natural regeneration requires attention to the conditions experienced by seedlings, not only the survival of large overstory trees.

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Management decisions must remain site-specific. The Caspar Creek study found topographic differences without an apparent forest-density effect, while the Maple Creek experiment found the strongest seedling growth in its heavily thinned treatment. Because that seedling study occurred outside the natural range and lasted one growing season, its treatment result should not be generalized into a prescription for every mature redwood stand. The USDA Climate Hub’s broader principle—that forest ecosystems have distinct stressors and management needs—fits these limitations.

The practical bottom line

Drought reduces the water available for transpiration and cooling; heat can then raise leaf temperatures and restrict photosynthesis, including under laboratory conditions where water is available. Summer fog helps by wetting foliage, reducing transpiration and moderating soil-moisture loss, but its benefits vary with topography and season. The strongest risks are likely to appear where heat exposure, limited soil water, reduced fog and vulnerable life stages overlap. Scientists have documented physiological stress and growth or regeneration concerns, but they have not established a universal temperature threshold for redwood mortality.

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