Plants for Alkaline Soil
Not only do we have to deal with extreme heat and scarce water, but an issue which is just as important to take into consideration is alkaline soil. Soil in Searles Valley has a PH of over seven which is high on the alkaline scale. Although there are things that can be done to lower the soil PH, it's probably better to just get plants that can tolerate high alkaline levels. (BTW, another issue to take into consideration is winter temperatures. It gets cold enough here to kill a lot of plants that you might see down in LA or even in San Bernardino.)
MORE INFO: http://www.hortmag.com/headline/plants-for-alkaline-soil