SC Ecoregions

To understand native plant communities, we need to know about our state’s ecoregions—regions that offer similar resources to plants based on underlying geology, rainfall, and other factors. Initially formed by continental collisions, the uplift of mountain ranges, and the movement of ancient seas, the state continues to be shaped by erosion and deposition.  Plant communities are further shaped by factors like local topography and the availability of rainfall, groundwater, and light.

In general, the state is divided into these zones:  the Blue Ridge/Mountains, Piedmont, Sandhills, Coastal Plain and Coastal Zone, although as the map shows, each of these regions can be subdivided into several others.

Visit NameThatPlant.net for a detailed description of the many individual regional communities within the Carolinas and Georgia, as well as plants typical of each region. And for more information on South Carolina Native Plants, check out our plant directory.