The Central Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe is a vast high-elevation ecoregion stretching across the Tibetan Plateau of China, reaching east to Qinghai Lake and extending into adjacent parts of India, with land ranging from roughly 3,500 meters to nearly 6,000 meters in elevation. Vegetation is sparse, typically covering only about a fifth of the ground, and is dominated by sedges such as Kobresia and Carex together with purple feathergrass (Stipa purpurea), alongside cushion plants and alpine forbs in more stable, moister soils; there are no trees. The climate is cold and arid, classified as a tundra (Köppen ET) regime with no month averaging above 10 degrees Celsius, and precipitation declining from the northwest toward the southeast. Because the harsh conditions are largely unsuited to agriculture, the ecosystem remains relatively intact and still supports roaming herds of wild ungulates, including the migratory Tibetan antelope, argali, Tibetan wild ass, and the endangered Przewalski's gazelle, along with predators such as the snow leopard and gray wolf. For gardeners, several alpine genera native here, including Saussurea, Leontopodium, and Arenaria, are familiar in cold-hardy rock and cushion-plant horticulture.

At a glance

About the montane grasslands & shrublands biome

High-elevation grasslands, meadows, and shrublands above the treeline or in mountain basins, including alpine and páramo systems. Cool temperatures, intense sunlight, and specialized, often endemic flora characterize them.

Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion

Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.

Collections for this ecoregion

Curated multi-plant collections whose members all fit this ecoregion's zone range — no won't-grow members smuggled in. Overall fit class shown per collection is the weakest link across its members.

Related ecoregions