• Summer fog frequency along the coast has declined ~33% over the 20th century (Johnstone & Dawson 2010); fog drip is the load-bearing summer water input for the redwood canopy, so the trend is structurally consequential, not just aesthetic.
• Sudden oak death (Phytophthora ramorum) has reshaped the tanoak / California bay understory; warmer wetter winters expand its viable window.
• Garden-relevant: redwood-zone natives (western sword fern, redwood sorrel, evergreen huckleberry) need careful siting in summer-dry inland gardens; pick species from the drier-edge end of their range.