The Columbia Plateau Steppe is wide spread across eastern Oregon. Having grown up in this part of the state, I can say that it has historically been very undervalued and that it is only in recent years that agencies and private citizens have become more interested in both protecting what remains as well as beginning to utilize it as a model for responsible landscaping in the area. The native evergreen shrubs which can dominate thousands of acres in this region are ‘designed’ for aridity with their small, tough, sclerophyllous leaves.