California Native Plant PR

Tribute to Griffith Park

2007-05-10T10:25:00.000-07:00

Above photo of Heteromeles arbutifolia (toyon) in Griffith Park by Carmen Wolf

This past Tuesday, Wednesday and part of today a massive, aggressive fire torched over 800 acres of our beloved Griffith Park, one of a few special places that has been the source of my love for California native plants. It is truly a haven in the midst of this often miserably vapid, superficial concrete jungle.

Over the past 10 years I have hiked in Griffith Park countless times with friends, dogs, family visiting here for holidays and my husband. It is where our third dog, Vida, was rescued after a month of failed attempts by myself and three other people who watched and worried about her from afar.

I have stumbled upon some of the most beautiful flora and fauna, always inducing wonder and awe. Just two weeks ago, my sister and I were walking my dogs when we spotted an enormous deer sitting down for a spell at the top of the nursery, just below cedar grove (areas that were burned). I shudder to think of the fate of that beautiful creature.

There's probably no telling how many of our vulnerable wildlife were killed, harmed and displaced from their homes.

As for the plant life in Griffith Park, there are ways to tell how many of the old trees were lost. LA Recreation and Parks can likely determine this, if they haven't done so already. They will then make a plan for how to restore the vegetation.

I hope they will include the following plants:

Artemisia californica
Baccharis pilularis
Encelia californica
Eriogonum fasciculatum
Fremontodentron
Gnaphalium
Heteromeles arbutifolia
Juglans californica
Malacothamnus
Mimulus aurantiacus
Quercus agrifolia
Rhus integrifolia
Rhus ovata
Ribes speciosum
Salvia apiana
Salvia leucophylla
Salvia mellifera
Sambucus mexicana

It would be a terrible mistake to plant non-natives; now is a chance to start fresh. We have the opportunity to do a genuine restoration and, in some small part, bring back what was here prior to human intervention. Seeding the slopes after this fire is a huge mistake, which I hope city officials avoid like the plague. There are mounds of evidence that show seeding of non-native grasses, which has been commonplace for years, destroys the ecosystem of the hillside, crowds out the native plants that re-sprout after fire and leads to a cycle of erosion. Las Pilitas Nursery in Santa Margarita recommends, "Sandbags, check dams and making sure your grades and drains work . . . before the first rain."

I hope Rec and Parks are on the same page. Griffith Park needs help to defend against the invasive exotics that will begin to pop up over the next few months. If the folks in charge could also somehow mitigate voracious castor bean, mustard, non-native tobacco, etc., before it comes back with a vengeance, the park could be on it's way to breaking free of the stranglehold these invaders have had on it for so long. It's the least we could do for this precious space.

Then, from this point forward, our city has got to 100% restrict smoking in the park. I am perpetually confounded and outraged every time I pass by golfers on the green of Roosevelt Municipal Golf Course smoking like chimneys. This behavior is extremely dangerous. It puts us all at risk.

Perhaps if we can allow this tragedy to galvanize some positive change, we can help secure a safer Griffith Park for the future. That is my hope.

Time to Whack Weeds!

2007-05-05T18:25:00.000-07:00

As I was walking in Griffith Park today with husband and dogs, I suddenly was overcome with the need to weed. I couldn't help myself - the mustard is just starting to sprout and, in some cases, bloom. At this stage, it's pretty easy to pull up by the roots. I grab it underneath the leaves and wiggle it out of the ground. I encourage anyone to whack as many weeds as they can by this method (ROOTS AND ALL, none of this cutting off the top stuff). Best to get them now, before they go to seed!

In your own garden, get pulling! Whenever you see a tuft of grass or some other green puff that you didn't plant, jiggle it from the base and extract the whole thing. Forget about Round-up. There is absoultuely NO GUARANTEE that it breaks down as the manufacturer claims. There are reports of it showing up in groundwater and in wildlife. It's poison and we have enough of that on this planet.

Take the pledge with me: no poisons in the garden! Good old fashioned manual weed removal is the ONLY 100% safe way to rid your garden of invasive plants.

When it comes to pests in the garden, look into integrated pest management. Pesticides are too dangerous. So, too, are other 'cides. They make their way into birds and wild mammals, often causing diseases that they wouldn't otherwise get, such as mange and cancer. We are the stewards of this planet; let's treat it with care. Our actions always have consequences. Everything is connected. We're all one big ecology. Everytime someone purchases a toxic product, it ends up in our environment.

Next time you see an aphid on your plant, get the hose and blast it. Or, put in plants that attract beneficial insects. Get this book: "Good Bugs for Your Garden" by Allison Mia Starcher. It has beautiful illustrations and tons of great info on how to bring in the good bugs that get rid of the ones you don't want.

4th Annual Theodore Payne Garden Tour Showcases Beauty and Versatility of California Native Plants

2007-03-26T10:33:00.000-07:00

Above: Santa Monica garden on Theodore Payne Garden Tour

If you’ve long considered using California native plants in your garden but weren’t sure how they’d measure up to the old stand bys available by the truckload at the local nursery, the annual Theodore Payne Native Plant Garden Tour on April 28th & 29th may just be what you’ve been waiting for!

With 30 gardens throughout Los Angeles – in neighborhoods like Echo Park, Atwater Village, Glendale, Eagle Rock, Altadena and beyond – there is a design style and plant palette for people of all aesthetic tastes.

The Tour is a unique opportunity to go beyond the fences and walls of private homes and also to step into larger-scale non-private gardens that are generally not open to the public with the guidance of the garden hosts and knowledgeable docents.

Tickets to this wonderful self-guided garden journey are $20 and can be purchased at the Theodore Payne Web site, where you can also see photos of gardens on the Tour, or by phone at: 818-768-1802. The price of admission includes a free presentation on gardening for butterflies, given by Chris and Trish Meyer of Wildscaping.com the evening of Saturday, April 28th at Barnsdall Gallery Theatre in Hollywood.

Some of the highlights of the Tour include: a sloping hillside garden in Topanga with rambling trails and mature specimens of manzanita, toyon, pine and California lilac; a welcoming cottage-style garden beneath a large western sycamore in Westchester; an innovative, eclectic garden in Santa Monica with multiple artistic elements, including handmade grapevine fencing, one-of-a-kind fountains, a recycled concrete bench, antique manhole covers and a flowing stream next to a teepee for camping; a terraced garden of local plants abuzz with fluttering winged friends in Echo Park; a “California Natural” garden wrapping around an environmentally-sound Brentwood home that hugs a ridge overlooking the city; a hidden haven of habitat in Altadena and so much more!

There is no better way to learn the ropes of gardening with native and all the benefits that brings than to attend the Native Plant Garden Tour. Whether you’re the small space gardener or a large-scale landscaper, there is inspiration to be found in these botanical beauties. Call to get your tickets early so you will receive your guide well-enough in advance to plan your own Tour route. That way, you’ll get the most for your money. Enjoy!

March 2007 Native Harmony - “Perfect Plants for Hanging Pots”

2007-02-23T08:41:00.000-08:00

Mimulus (species unknown) photo above.

If you’ve grown weary of the same old plant offerings at the nursery and are seeking something that will make a splash in a fabulous hanging pot, try one of these cascading California natives.

Arctostaphylos edmundsii ‘Bert Johnson’ or ‘Carmel Sur’ are two lovely low-growing manzanitas. ‘Bert Johnson’ has petite white flowers in spring, grows a bit slower and stays more compact (1’ high and 2’ wide) than ‘Carmel Sur’ (1-2’ high and 6’ wide), which has light pink flowers in the winter. Both are evergreen, attractive to hummingbirds and other birds, grow best in some shade around these parts and will put out adorable apple-looking fruits after flowering (hence the name manzanita, meaning little apple in Spanish). There are other manzanitas that will do well in hanging planters. Look for the ones that are classified as groundcovers; they will grow low and trail over the sides of pots.

Many of the Mimulus (monkeyflower) species are superbly-suited for suspension due to their habit of draping the area around where they grow. There are a wide variety of flower colors (white, yellow, hot pink, dark red, to name a few) from which to choose, making for fun plant selection. Most monkeyflowers need a little shade to flourish, especially when placed in a pot, and they are loved by hummingbirds, bees and butterflies.

Lessingia filanginifolia (California aster) ‘Silver Carpet’ (see a gorgeous photo of it here) is simply splendid spilling over the side of a hanging basket or other planter. Tolerating full sun during cool times of the year and needing a little shade in hot times, its silver, curled leaves sparkle in the sun and moon light. But they take a back seat in the spring and summer, when small daisy-like pale purple, yellow-centered flowers appear and are frequented by hummingbirds, bee and butterflies – all eager to gather the sweet nectar.

Last on this list but certainly not the last of the options is Epilobium/Zauschneria (California fuchsia), a feathery-leaved friend to the hummingbird with scarlet tubular blossoms in the late summer/early fall when there is little else in bloom. Like the others mentioned above, California fuchsia benefits from a partly shady exposure.

For all California native plants in hanging pots, use a standard potting soil, water when the soil is just about dry, fertilize once a year and transplant after a few years. Once the roots have maxed out their space in the pot, the plant will start to suffer. There’s not much else to do besides that. Just enjoy the sights these special specimens bring to your garden.

February 2007 Los Feliz Ledger Column, “Lawns That Give Back"

2007-01-15T12:41:00.000-08:00

Bouteloua gracilis lawn at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden

We’ve all become quite familiar with the sights and sounds of the Southern California landscape: gasoline-powered blowers and mowers bellowing through neighborhoods while disbursing dusty leaf debris and choking fumes into the air and powerful sprinklers shooting water into streets well beyond the area intended for irrigation.

What if we could change all that? And, better still, what if we could keep our lush patches of green in the process of improving our air quality and conserving our precious water supply?

With the right plants, we can take the traditional notion of a lawn and turn it on its head. In place of lifeless mats of turf consuming hundreds of gallons of water per week per house, imagine fluttering wings of butterflies and hummingbirds, re-programming the sprinkler system to only turn on once every two weeks or less, flowing mounds of green and more.

A whole new crop of lawns that give back are not only possible, they’re appearing all over the city in place of the common sod we’re used to seeing. These lush lawns are easy, rewarding and urgently needed.

In July 2006, the Public Policy Institute of California (www.ppic.org) published a report entitled “Lawns and Water Demand in California,” which revealed that single-family homes consume twice as much landscaping water as multi-family complexes. And, the report cautions, “without efforts aimed specifically at reducing outdoor urban water use, the demand will pose significant financial and environmental challenges for California.”

Here’s one immediate thing we as individuals can do to help solve this serious problem: say goodbye to the sod. With a pickax and some muscle, rip out the old grass and get the area ready for new life. Be careful to avoid damaging sprinkler pipes or any electrical conduit or wiring. Place all old material in your green bin.

Next, plant a native lawn. Most will flourish without any or very infrequent mowing with a human-powered push mower (quiet and pollution-free). Try one of the following plants by seed or 4-inch or 1-gallon pots (check with the nursery to see which method is preferable for the plant you choose): Achillea millefolium (perennial herb with white flowers, handles moderate foot traffic, needs full sun to part shade, rocky to sandy soil, water once a week or less in cool season, mow once a month or less), Carex pansa (perennial sedge, handles moderate foot traffic, needs full sun or part shade, sand to clay, water once a week or less in cool season, not necessary to mow), Bouteloua gracilis (perennial grass, handles moderate foot traffic, needs full sun, sand to clay soil, water twice a months or less in cool season, mow once a month or less), Festuca rubra molate (perennial grass, handles moderate foot traffic, sun to part sun, sand to clay, water twice a month or less in cool season, mow once a month or less), Deschampsia caespitosa holciformis (perennial grass, handles light foot traffic, needs sun to part sun, sand to clay, water once a week or less in cool season, mow once a month or less).

There are many more options, such as a wildflower lawn and other native grasses and groundcovers. An Internet search for California native lawn alternatives or a visit to the following Web sites will give you lots of great ideas: www.laspilitas.com, www.theodorepayne.org, www.treeoflifenursery.com.

January 2007 Los Feliz Ledger Column: A Plant Lover's Dream Vacation

2006-12-22T08:30:00.000-08:00

Shots above from Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park

Destination: Big Sur, two weeks before Christmas.

Heading north on Highway 1, stresses of city life fade as the views start to seriously wow while passing through San Simeon. In addition to revealing breathtaking cliffs, undulating mountains and the ocean’s impressive foamy caps and crashing waves, the first few major twists and turns of the road yielded some of the most beautiful, diverse and plentiful native plant life: California fuchsia, red buckwheat, toyon, California wild lilac, California sagebrush and more.

Sights for sore eyes to feast on.

Toyon is at its best this time of the year. Plump red berries are seemingly lit from within and placed in perfectly festive positions.

California fuchsia’s last blooms are still showy enough to woo hummingbirds and humans.

Climbing the coastal hillsides are myriad California wild lilacs covered in tiny buds that’ll soon be abuzz with bees clamoring for nectar from flowers in a range of cool blue hues.

California sagebrush is scattered about the road’s edge. Most wouldn’t think much of it but accidentally bump into its thin, soft, pale grey-green leaves and the scent will bring you back for more.

These were just the “appetizers.” The main course – majestic towers of coast redwoods with squishy soft bark and miniscule cones, stately stands of oaks, big leaf maples shedding golden foliage, herbal California bay trees, humbly simple and statuesque coffeeberry, coy bells of manzanita flowers gracing artfully twisted branches and dainty carpets of redwood sorrel dotting creek banks – awaited and captivated us in Big Sur.

After a few days of many meals amongst the lush native flora, time spent closely inspecting sand-dwelling plants in a hidden seaside cove, hikes through the dense, welcoming forests and hours of mindlessly marveling at Mother’s Nature’s landscape architecture, all cares seem to be forgotten.

What a way to celebrate the holidays and get ready to start a new year!

December 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column: "Easy Transitions"

2006-11-14T11:50:00.000-08:00

Above photo of Fremontodendron by Mike Bauman

Shifting to gardening with natives doesn’t have to happen overnight. Gardeners can ease into it by removing a couple non-natives (exotics) in favor of more climactically correct choices and then continue the process at their own pace.

Walking around my neighborhood sparked this notion as I passed one house after another with gardens full of every plant from everywhere but here. I started to consider what would look similar but conserve water, bring in more native wildlife and not take over the neighborhood through invasive growth.

One typical Southern California garden favorite that stood out to me as having a striking native doppelganger was a yellow flowering hibiscus towering upwards of 10 feet tall. Hibiscus is popular here but is not meant for dry, hot climates. It requires regular water, hailing from Hawaii and tropical areas of Africa. Many of the specimens one sees around these parts have developed serious white fly infestations – a clue that something is out of balance.

Avoid this and other complications by replacing a golden-blossom hibiscus with Fremontodendron californicum. It reaches a similar height of 10-20 feet and wants virtual drought during the dry season. In fact, irrigating in the summer almost always results in death. Think of it as built-in protection from wasting our precious water supply.

It’s best to put Fremontodendron in the ground at this time of year. Post-winter installation can be problematic so if you want to give it a whirl, pick one out now and place in its new home as soon as possible.

A ubiquitous and, unfortunately, invasive (see the California Invasive Plants Council’s Web site for more info) landscape favorite, is fountain grass – purple and otherwise. It should be avoided at all costs in favor of natives, such as Muhlenbergia rigens (deer grass), that will provide a similar shape and effect but not spread indiscriminately. Deer grass offers wildlife cover and nest building materials and is excellent for erosion control. Plant it in either a full sun or partly shady place. This native is easy to please; it can withstand drought once established or take regular garden water.

So, if a California native garden is something you long for but seems too overwhelming, take a little sojourn out into your yard and have a look around. Maybe there are a few exotics that can be sacrificed to get the ball rolling. Just keep this in mind: start small and the momentum will build over time.

November 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column: “Hedge Your Bets with California Native Plants”

2006-11-02T09:15:00.000-08:00

Above: Ceanothus species at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden

A surprising array of California native plants make excellent hedges for screening unpleasant views or creating privacy. And you don’t have to settle for bland foliage with these green fences. Bring on the color, with interesting leaves, gorgeous flowers, fruit and fabulous fragrance.

I was reminded of this design idea recently when a friend of mine whom I have indoctrinated into gardening with natives, and who is now hooked on the concept, told me she wanted to plant a row of Ceanothus thyrsiflorus ‘snow flurry’ (a spectacular shrub that produces a profusion of white flowers in the spring) along one wall of an apartment complex she manages.

Our conversation began with her asking me about her loss of one of that type of Ceanothus over the summer. It was particularly distressing because she had so admired the plant and did the best she knew how to care for it.

When I asked how often she watered it, she replied that underwatering was not a problem; this plant had received regular water all summer. Aha, I thought. Now I had the answer.

What my friend had done – thinking she was doing the plant a favor by applying conventional gardening wisdom to a California native plant – was kill it by giving it something it really doesn’t want: summer irrigation.

I broke it to her as gently as I could that her best intentions had inadvertently sent the beloved Ceanothus to an early demise.

Armed with this information and determined to make a go of landscaping with native plants, she proclaimed that – not only did she want to get another Ceanothus ‘snow flurry’ – she wanted many for a unique hedge to soften the bland stucco wall.

I commend her for thinking outside the box and persevering with native gardening, even in the face of adversity. This is what it takes to learn the ropes, so to speak: what kills your plants makes your green thumb stronger. Once you’ve had some treasured plants die, don’t give up; charge ahead more informed.

So, now that my friend knows what her beloved Ceanothus ‘snow flurry’ needs, she is determined to make a sound bet on it as a gorgeous hedge.

What she’ll have to do first is measure the space where she wants to create the hedge and then research the ultimate size of the plant, its sun requirements and soil preference to make sure that it will survive where she wants to plant it. Then she can go to a plant sale or nursery this fall or winter and buy as many as will fit into the planting area. She will have success if she gets them in the ground before winter, to take advantage of Mother Nature’s sprinkler system, and then leave them alone – save for a few early morning waterings – through the summer.

If a native hedge is something you’d like to try too, let the experience of my friend be your guide: seek out the right plant for your space and do your homework. You’ll reap the rewards of playing it safe. For plant suggestions, visit the Web site for Orange County’s Tree of Life Nursery: www.treeoflifenursery.com. Click on “Sage Advice” under the “Information” headline on the front page and then scroll down and click on “Natives for Screens.”

And if you want to learn more about Ceanothus, check out David Fross and Dieter Wilken’s fantastic book by the same name. You can buy it at Theodore Payne Nursery, Bookstore and Education Center in Sun Valley (818-768-1802) or online: www.theodorepayne.org.

August 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column, "Made in the Shade"

2006-07-30T07:56:00.000-07:00

Iris douglasiana (Douglas iris) photo by Mike Bauman. Douglas iris is a great California native for bright shade. If you wish to plant it under a native oak, do so in the late fall or winter and don't disturb the oak's roots. For more information on California oak trees, please see: California Oak Foundation website.

During heat waves—like what we’ve experienced lately—I often think about one of the cardinal rules of gardening with California native plants: "install in the fall."

It is the simple concept of working in concert with nature that is conveyed in this dictum. Sadly, though, it continues to elude many Southern California gardeners, especially those who hail from the East Coast or other wetter-in-the-spring and summer climes. They tend to hold onto the notion that spring is the time to kick the gardening into high gear.

After living here for several years now, the idea that water is scarce and temps are high from spring until late fall is finally sinking in and making me alter the way I deal with my garden.

The life and growth cycle of California native plants follows the weather patterns here, and thus functions symbiotically. They've had to adapt over the years, in order to survive in the wild.

We see an example of that with wildflowers, the way they bloom profusely in the early spring (after a nice long drink) and die back as the heat increases in the summer. Their seeds then scatter with the wind, facilitating a grand show the next spring provided there is enough winter rain.

Perennial and evergreen natives are not unlike wildflowers. Although they do not die, many of them don't do a lot of growing during the heavy heat. Generally, they like to be left alone—the way they would live in the wild. Fremontedendron is an example of a gorgeous California native that has to be planted in the fall because that is the only time it can handle irrigation. It will die if watered in the summer. An unknowing gardener will cry out that Fremontodendron and other natives with similar needs are so difficult to grow.

That is precisely why it is so important to learn about the plants we purchase for our gardens. By researching a plant’s cultural needs (what kind of soil it grows in, how much water it should get, what climate it grows in, how much sun or shade it should receive) we can help them live a long happy life and, in the process, avoid a lot of stress ourselves.

The good news for people intent on putting in plants this time of year is that there are natives that absolutely love the bright shade of the north side of a house or under an arbor or tree (just don’t plant under an oak in the summer; moisture in the dry months triggers oat root fungus) and consequently will be more amenable to being planted during the heat. These shady characters have the benefit of a cooler microclimate in which they are protected from the harsher elements just beyond the canopy.

Desert and riparian plants will also do alright if planted during the heat. Just be sure to provide them with ample protection from the direct sun.

If you choose to put natives in the ground now or in the near future, plant them in the early morning for success. Irrigate in the mornings too.

July 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column, "Keep It Contained" - Gardening Above Ground With California Native Plants

2006-06-28T10:44:00.000-07:00

Having no yard or only minimal outdoor space doesn’t mean you can’t plant California natives at home.

Ceramic, plastic or concrete pots, galvanized tubs, wooden wine boxes, old wheel barrows and practically anything else one can dream up provide excellent means for starting a container garden.

So if your balcony is bare take comfort in knowing that you, too, can create a habitat, restore a little bit of ecological balance and bring winged friends to your corner of the world.

Follow these few simple steps and your contained native plants should thrive and give you plenty of enjoyment for years.

Make sure that the container to be used can accommodate a few years’ growth of whatever plant you intend to put in it. The roots must have enough room to spread out.

Unless you’re planting a water garden in a container, any vessel that holds a plant should have drainage holes. For many California natives, it is essential that the water has a place to escape after saturating the roots. Don’t allow the pots to stay drenched. Skip a saucer beneath the container; it just inhibits drainage.

It’s best to use standard potting soil that isn’t too thick or dense.

Before putting the plant into the container, cover the drainage holes with pieces of broken clay pots. This prevents the soil from dropping out of the pots and enables water to more easily empty from the container.

Then pack the container with potting soil until it is full enough so you can place the plant in its nursery pot into the new container and the top of the soil in the nursery pot is about 2 inches below the rim of the container. Once that’s determined, pull the plant out of the nursery pot and gently place it in the container. Fill in soil all around the roots of the plant and up to the top of the soil surrounding the stem. Top off the soil with mulch. Natives do well with shredded redwood bark, redwood chips or oak leaves. Desert plants prefer inorganic mulch such as gravel or rocks. Keep it 2 inches away from the stem to prevent rot.

Mulch is a key ingredient to gardening with native plants, even in containers. It keeps the soil cool, moist and deters weed growth. It is especially crucial during the summer because of the intense, dry heat.

There are myriad natives that do well in containers, from bush anemone, buckwheat, tule mint, heuchera, ‘golden abundance’ barberry, ferns, sages and much more.

Important to keep in mind is: even plants that usually require full sun will do better in part shade when living in a container. This is because they do not have the advantage of endless ground in which roots can grow and seek out nutrients and moisture.

One of the advantages of container gardening is that you can move plants around if they start out in the wrong place.

Be sure to water the newly potted plant right after transplanting it and keep an eye out for droopiness during the heat. As a rule, water every other day or so during the heat and much less in the cooler months. If you're not sure when to water, stick your finger two inches into the soil to see if it's dry. If yes, give the plant a nice, deep drink.

Potted natives should get a little fertilizer once a year. Besides a little TLC, they're super low maintenance so sit back and admire the view!

Free Talk on California Natives This Saturday, June 17th -AND- Positions Available at Theodore Payne!

2006-06-14T09:15:00.000-07:00

Join Barbara Eisenstein, of Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Claremont and Metropolitan Water District, at Theodore Payne Foundation in Sun Valley for this free, colorful talk and Power Point presentation called "California Native Plants Belong in Your Garden."

She'll be speaking from 9 am until 11am. It's a great way to become more familiar with native plants and discover why they're the perfect fit for any garden!

www.theodorepayne.org

Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants in Sun Valley (just north of Burbank) is currently seeking a salesperson for the native plant nursery and someone to work in propagation. Please see the website above for more info!

June 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column, "Nibbling Natives"

2006-05-14T18:22:00.000-07:00

Sambucus mexicana (blue elderberry) photo by Carmen Wolf

If you’ve never snacked on freshly plucked golden currants, you’re missing one of the joys of growing California native plants at home.

The edible landscaping craze is gaining popularity but, for some reason, Ribes aureum (golden currant), a 3-6’ high and wide shrub native to our area and other fruiting plants that have grown here naturally for eons aren’t often included in the palette of these enticing gardens.

Long before the arrival of Europeans, Native Americans lived off the bounty of California flora in a balanced way, maintaining the land that provided long-term sustenance. “Edible landscapes” were everywhere. Though that is no longer the case, each of us can create something similar at home by starting with the following food-rich native plants.

Come summertime, abundant bunches of berry clusters cascade along branches of Sambucus mexicana (blue elderberry), a large shrub (10-30’h X 8-20’w) that grows in full sun or part shade and can take garden water or drought (after it’s established). Birds will compete for the fruit, which is delicious in muffins, pies, jam or wine.

If you enjoy mint but dread its invasive behavior, try the dainty native herb, Satureja douglasii (yerba buena – San Francisco’s first name). Delicate leaves on this 6” tall, filtered-shade-loving groundcover are so coolly aromatic that you’ll long for it in lemonade, iced tea or steeping in a pot of hot water on a nippy night. It spreads to about 3’ wide via soft, rooting stems that produce sweet little white flowers in spring and summer and it can take regular water or some drought once established.

For a yard with lots of space to fill, consider Rubus ursinus (California blackberry) – a sprawling, deciduous and thorny 6’ high X 20’ shrubby vine that makes a good barrier along a property’s perimeter. White flowers in February to June are followed by red fruit that ripens to black from July to August. Berries are highly edible raw or in baked goods.

Oenophiles and grape lovers alike will delight in discovering garden-friendly California native grape vines with gorgeous globes of juicy goodness, especially the ‘Roger’s red’ cultivar of Vitis californica. It is a robust rambler, reaching about 40 feet in width. Train it over an arbor and fence or use as a groundcover. Fruit of late summer is quite tasty and fall color is fiery crimson. After the brilliant hues, foliage drops for the winter leaving behind rustic gnarled branches. It grows well in sun, part sun or filtered shade and needs intermittent irrigation once established.

Rounding out the gastronomic group is Fragaria vesca ssp. californica (woodland strawberry). Excellent as a groundcover (good on slopes too), it does best in part sun with occasional water after becoming established. Cheery yellow-centered white flowers precede small, flavorful red berries in July.

If you’re inspired by this list, I recommend further research before beginning an edible garden: always know the plants and be sure they are safe to eat. With that certainty comes not just the satisfaction of spontaneously snipping a strawberry out of your own yard but also of bringing back a little bit of what used to be here.

April 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column, "Swooning for the Moon"

2006-03-16T07:43:00.000-08:00

Dudleya brittonii (Britton's live-forever/dudleya) at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, photo by Carmen Wolf

Salvia apiana (white sage) at Griffith Park, photo by Carmen Wolf

As the weather begins to warm and signs of spring surreptitiously sprout, the time is ripe to make plans for future chilling under the stars alongside a garden designed to complement outdoor evenings.

Start by pulling together a collection of silver, gray and white leaved and flowering plants. They will glisten in the lunar glow and wow both you and your guests as you gather around an open fire pit or crackling chiminea and sip wine until all hours.

Some of the best botanical candidates for a moonlight garden are, of course, California natives. A vast number of them seem to have been designed just for this purpose. There simply isn’t enough space here to list all appropriate species, so I’ve selected a heavenly eleven. Each one needs full sun or part shade in the hottest areas, excellent drainage and occasional deep waterings in the summer. All are perennial and attractive to winged pollinators, making their presence enjoyable and beneficial. Plant them in the ground with the tallest in the back working your way down to the shortest in the front. Or, plop them in colorful pots on a patio, in which case they’ll need water about once a week or more, depending on the heat.

Salvia apiana (white sage) - an icon of California natives - is prized for intensely fragrant 3-4” long and 2” wide gray-green leaves that have been used in Native American traditions for years. Foliage and pale purple tinged white flowers beautifully reflect the light of the moon and stars. It eventually matures at about 3-5’ high and wide.

Several other sages satisfy the requirements of a moonlight garden. Try these two in particular: Salvia ‘Vicki Romo’ is a compact hybrid of S. apiana and S. clevelandii that grows to about 4’ high and 5’ wide and has lavender blue flowers and gray green leaves that are narrower and shorter than apiana.

Salvia ‘Allen Chickering,’ a hybrid of S. clevelandii and S. leucophylla (also a good candidate for moonlight gardens) grows to around 4’ high and wide, produces pale purple whorled flowers stacked along 1’ tall stems that blow gently in the breeze.

During late summer and early fall, Zauschneria californica (California fuchsia) produces some of the most stunning tubular scarlet flowers that are irresistible to hummingbirds. Fine, feathery silver leaves sparkle day and night. An arching habit makes Zauschneria sublimely suitable for trailing down terrace walls or crawling over the edges of large pots. Songbirds eat seeds so allow spent flowers to stick around for a while. When seeds are gone, cut back scraggly stems.

Two species of California buckwheat have such shockingly silver white leaves that they can’t be left out of a moonlight garden. Eriogonum crocatum (saffron buckwheat) is low and compact, reaching 1.5’ high and 2’ wide. Woolly white stems support 1” roundish leaves and yellow flowers that appear in flat clusters atop dainty stems from early spring until late summer.

Eriogonum giganteum (St. Catherine’s lace) looks like it is covered in old-fashioned white lace curtains when in bloom – from late spring into late summer. Broad oval leaves are 1-2.5” long and the plant can grow anywhere from 3-8’ high and branching freely out to about 5’ wide or more.

Butterflies and bees abound when both buckwheat beauties are in bloom and birds appreciate the seeds left post flower show.

Eriophyllum nevinii (Catalina silverlace), which matures at around 4-5’ high and 3-4’ wide, is a mystical match for the moon with silvery white, finely divided fern-like leaves. Butterflies and bees utilize orange-yellow flowers that appear in the fall.

Leymus condensatus ‘Canyon Prince’ (blue giant wild rye) is a 3’ high and wide striking gray-blue grass with sword-like leaves that are magnificent in massed plantings or interspersed with other perennials.

The following two native succulents will stop visitors in their tracks and shine brightly under a starlit sky. Dudleya pulverulenta (chalk dudleya) and Dudleya brittonii (Britton’s live-forever or Britton’s dudleya) are both compact with chalky white, plump and pointy wide foliage and long stems of red flowers in springtime. These guys will grow right out of the side of a cliff.

Last but not least is the luminous Lupinus albifrons (evergreen lupine) with shimmering silver star-shaped foliage and tall spikes of purple white flowers in the spring. It can get quite large, ranging from about 4-7’ tall and 4-8’ wide, especially when in bloom.

Feel free to experiment with other radiant natives that you may find in your travels. I haven’t included any of the silver bark trees and many other species that lend themselves to a moonlight garden. The possibilities are endless. Let your imagination run wild and reap the rewards every night, all spring and summer long.

Soka University Spring Native Plant Sale on March 11th

2006-02-27T21:35:00.000-08:00

Soka University in Calabasas is having a
"Native Plant Clearance Sale"

Saturday, 9:30 to 11:30 AM
March 11, 2006:
Limited supplies / Spring Clean-Out.

Address:
26800 W. Mulholland Hwy.
Calabasas, CA. 91302

Don't Miss the Theodore Payne Foundation's 3rd Annual Native Garden Tour on April 1st & 2nd

2006-02-27T20:19:00.000-08:00

Here are the details, straight from the Foundation:

"31 gardens show how easy & satisfying it is to garden
with California native plants

- Native plants use less water
- They attract birds, hummingbirds and butterflies
- Require no pesticides or chemicals

(Los Angeles) – Interest in gardening with California
native plants is growing every day. More and more
Californians are learning how to garden with natives
to reduce their outdoor water use, create a backyard
habitat for wildlife such as birds and butterflies,
and reduce the use of pesticides and chemicals in
their lives, among other goals. In the process,
Californians are discovering that native plants are
beautiful, breaking the stereotypes they may have
about them.

Los Angeles and Southern California residents will
have a chance to explore their growing interest in
natives at 31 private and public gardens during the
third annual Theodore Payne Native Plant Garden Tour
on Saturday and Sunday, April 1 and 2, from 10 a.m. to
4 p.m. Gardens throughout the Los Angeles Basin will
be featured, from Monrovia to Santa Monica, from
Madrona Marsh in Torrance to Quail Hollow in Tujunga.

Tickets are $10 per person. Ticket and garden
information, including plant lists and photos of
gardens, can be found at the Theodore Payne website. Tickets may also be purchased
by calling (818) 768-1802.

One of the key and unique features of the tour is that
gardens will be hosted by garden owners and docents
who share their passion and knowledge of gardening
with natives with tour attendees. Most garden tours do
not include the people who actually create and take
care of the garden.

The gardens reflect a range of styles and ages. Some
gardens on the tour follow a traditional or formal
design, while others allow their natives to reach
their wild potential. Some of the landscapes are
mature and reflect years of experience in gardening
with natives, while a few are developing gardens two
or three years old. Garden owners and docents at each
location will offer unique advice to gardeners of all
skill levels and interests.

“The tour gives attendees a unique opportunity to talk
with garden owners and see firsthand how they dealt
with particular garden conditions, like shade or
erosion or a lack of water,” said Keith Malone, garden
tour coordinator. “If you were thinking about
gardening with natives and not sure where to begin,
this is a great way to start.”

The gardens are located throughout the Los Angeles
Basin, including Downey, Culver City, Beverly Hills,
Mid-Wilshire, Santa Monica, Manhattan Beach Torrance,
Studio City, Sherman Oaks, Sun Valley, Tujunga,
Granada Hills, La Canada Flintridge, Pasadena, South
Pasadena, Altadena, Monrovia, Highland Park, Echo Park
and Atwater Village.

For more than 40 years, the Theodore Payne Foundation
for Wild Flowers and Native Plants, Inc. has dedicated
itself to helping Californians discover the beauty of
California native plants. The Foundation operates the
Theodore Payne Nursery in Sun Valley, which offers
more than 400 native plant species for sale to the
general public. It is the only nursery in Los Angeles
County devoted exclusively to native plants. In
addition to the nursery, the Foundation has gardening
classes and operates a wildflower hotline every March
through May. The Foundation and nursery honor the
legacy of Theodore Payne, who opened his first nursery
in 1903 in Los Angeles. In his lifetime, Mr. Payne
introduced more than 400 species of native plants into
cultivation for public use."

March 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column, "Demystifying Native Plants"

2006-02-20T22:41:00.000-08:00

It occurred to me recently that I have not yet taken the opportunity to define the term “California native plants.”

Boiled down to their essence, they are plants that have grown here naturally - without human intervention - since before the Europeans stepped foot on this soil.

This astounding array of indigenous flora survive symbiotically with the environment but, strangely, are not used to their potential. The majority of plants populating the sides of our freeways, parks, botanic gardens and home gardens are from everywhere else but here (“exotic”).

Natives grow under many different conditions, as California is climatically and geographically diverse. There are plants that naturally grow near or in streams and other waterways, in high altitudes, deep within dense forests, along sandy bluffs, in dry deserts and on rocky cliffs. Not all are “drought tolerant,” a blanket term often mistakenly ascribed to all California native plants.

The concept that all natives are able to withstand prolonged dryness and intense sun is one of the biggest misnomers about them. “Native” doesn’t equal water-free.

Another puzzling perception is that all natives look like weeds or completely dry up in the summer. This is false. During the hottest months, only a small percentage of the thousands that have grown here over the ages go dormant to conserve energy for survival.

A large portion are evergreen. Many native groundcovers, vines, perennials, shrubs and majestic trees - like the coast live oak - always have leaves on their branches. But this is not to dismiss the outstanding plants that happen to be deciduous. Even without foliage, several plants have unique shapes and look divine during dormancy.

Natives provide gorgeous flowers – something not always acknowledged about them. If the right species are chosen, it is possible to have a completely California garden that will bloom throughout the year.

A giant myth I’ve encountered is that a native plant can be put in the ground and survive without any water or is somehow indestructible just because it is native. Wrong!

Natives require a lot of water when first planted and on-going T.L.C. for at least the first year (sometimes longer) to become “established,” i.e. getting to the point where roots have grown into the soil and are strong and long enough to acquire moisture and nutrients on their own. Some will still need regular waterings throughout their lives while others will be OK with limited supplemental irrigation. All thrive with minimal maintenance – occasional pruning and dead-heading (removing spent flowers and their stalks) and yearly mulching. Fertilizing and amending soil is generally not advised (but research each plant to be sure).

Lastly, it’s crucial to put a plant in the right place at the right time. A sun-loving native simply will not survive in an all shade location and vice versa. Also, each plant must be given the appropriate soil type and drainage ability. And most should be installed in the cooler months (with a few exceptions).

Understanding native plants may seem complex but it really just boils down to a few guidelines: they come in many different shapes and sizes; they’re in short supply in public places and home gardens; and they require a lot of the same things given to non-native plants. Once they’ve had the initial care they need, natives that have adapted to drought can be practically forgotten about and the rest need occasional attention. However, we cannot expect miracles; they’re not superheroes of the botanical world. They’re special and integral to the ecosystem and must be understood in order to be successful. Given the right conditions and correct amount of water, they’ll outshine any exotic interloper, hands-down.

To shop a wide assortment of native plants, visit the spring sale at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden on Sat., April 1st.

Lupine Sighting

2006-02-10T19:25:00.000-08:00

I can never remember when I start seeing wildflowers. I guess I'm always surprised when they pop up and think that it's much too early.

Such was the case this past week when I was getting on the 5 north from Los Feliz Blvd. As I looked down to my right, I spotted beautiful Lupine flowers growing just off to the side of the road.

Another place I find the quirky purple blossoms each year is to the left of the road, just past the Glendale Blvd from heading north on the 5 freeway. They're literally growing in a crack on the curb.

Noticing details like that gives me good ideas of where they'd flourish in my garden.

Where do you see wildflowers in the city and elsewhere around this time of year?

Mad About Mulch!

2006-02-01T12:42:00.000-08:00

I have one word for gardeners of all stripes out there: MULCH!

Mulch is the key to keeping weeds at bay, saving water and making a garden look more polished. I cannot for the life of me bear to see bare ground around plants. Empy dirt surounding shrubs and perennials is so drab.

There are many different kinds of mulch available at garden and hardware stores. Make sure you do some research into what would work best with the plants in your garden. For instance, some desert natives want an inroganic mulch that won't break down. Those plants do well with gravel.

Popular among native gardeners is "gorilla hair" mulch, which is just shredded redwood bark. It looks great, is easy to apply and most closely mimics what many of our native plants would have surrounding them in the wild.

If you can get ahold of leaves from coast live oaks trees, certain plants will have a field day.

I've noticed that cocoa mulch doesn't do well with natives and I have ethical problems with it due to the overwhelming amount of slave labor used in cocoa farming on the Ivory Coast. (Side note: best to purchase fair trade, organic chocolate to support human rights.)

So, mulch your heart out. Your plants will be much happier, weeds will start to disappear and you won't have to turn on the hose as often. Plus, it'll look prettier too!

An Incoherent Landscape

2006-01-31T14:39:00.000-08:00

Walking around my neighborhood can be very frustrating for me. Sure, the houses are lovely for the most part, and owners do a good job of keeping their homes clean. I appreciate all that.

What gets me down is the plant chaos. It is such a hodgepodge of everything from tropical to asian to east coast and beyond. There is little to no logic to how the plants are chosen. They just seem to be crammed in randomly.

If I were to be plunked down in the middle of one of these gardens, I don't think I'd be able to tell where I was. The mixture of greenery is utterly confusing, incoherent.

I'm going to write more on this topic. I just wanted to get it out while it was at the top of my mind.

Thoughts?

More Pix (taken by me) of Plants in Bloom at Rancho

2006-01-28T14:08:00.000-08:00

Mimulus (don't know exact species)

Ceanothus crassifolius

Mimulus 'ruby silver'

Arctostaphylos (don't know species - any ideas?)

Recent Pix (taken by moi) of Plants in Bloom at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden

2006-01-28T13:57:00.000-08:00

Salvia leucophylla (I think)

Dendromecon rigida

Ceanothus 'Concha' (I think)

Dendromecon rigida

2006-01-28T13:44:00.000-08:00

Black sage (Salvia mellifera) new and old, January 28, 2006. Photos by Mike Bauman.

Black Sage Making a Comeback

2006-01-23T07:33:00.000-08:00

While on a quick hike with the dogs and hubby at Griffith Park yesterday, I noticed how beautiful the black salvia (Salvia mellifera) looked. It's re-emerging with a vengeance from a summer/fall slumber.

The leathery, textural, medium-green leaves that had gone a little crispy to conserve energy and water are plump once again. And new leaves are appearing on brown branches.

Other favorites making a resurgence include: Ribes, Rhus, Artemisia, Romneya and more. With the clear, cool air to entice us out of our cocoons, there is no excuse not to explore the open air galleries (parks, botanic gardens) of California plant life, which works in concert with our special climate. When other parts of the country see little to no green this time of year, here in our state, rain and cooler temps are re-awakening so many indigenous species.

February 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column, “Sensible Substitutes Series – Focus on Manzanitas”

2006-01-18T07:04:00.000-08:00

Photos of Arctostaphylos 'Howard McMinn' courtesy of Barbara Eisenstein

In considering what to write about this month, I decided to showcase a seasonally appropriate genus (group of plants) while keeping the theme of substitution in mind. Manzanitas went right to the top of my list. Now is a great time to consider these magnificent natives. There are plenty to choose from, given that California boasts more than 40 species plus numerous cultivars (varieties of plants selected and grown for particular features).

Bestowed with a Spanish common name for small apple-like fruits that appear in bunches a couple months from now, manzanitas (Arctostaphylos) are in glorious bloom this time of year. For about six weeks starting in January (and earlier for some species), dangling clusters of small, upside down urn/bell-shaped subtly scented flowers ranging in color from white to pink adorn curled red, purple or burgundy-colored branches.

A great place to experience this diverse group of evergreen California native plants is Rancho Santa Ana Botanic in Claremont. There you’ll see low-growing ground covers to large shrubs that reach about 20 feet high.

Manzanitas are happiest when planted in well-draining acidic soil that is low in nutrients, rocky and sandy being the most preferable. Definitely do not fertilize and always give new plants ample air circulation.

Manzanitas are versatile when it comes to sun exposure. The popular ‘Howard McMinn’ hybrid of Arctostaphylos densiflora takes full sun or part shade/sun and is an easy, garden-tolerant (accepts a fair amount of moisture but doesn’t want to sit in water) shrub that matures at about 5 to 7 feet high and 6 to 10 feet wide. Beaucoup blooms of dainty pale pink flowers and light green, upright leaves are lovely attributes of this variety.

Its edible fruit is a magnet for many animals and birds. Birds also appreciate the dense twisting branches for shelter; while butterflies, hummingbirds and honeybees are drawn to the flowers’ nectar.

Try ‘Howard McMinn,’ its cousin, ‘Harmony,’ and relative ‘Sentinel’ in place of non-native hedge plants such as Buxus (boxwood), Escallonia, Ligustrum (privet), and Rhaphiolepis.

Most Arctostaphylos species are highly drought tolerant once their root systems have been established. You can help them reach that stage by regular, careful watering (don’t overdo it) after planting. Avoid drip irrigation; it kills manzanitas and many other natives. Within a couple of years, you should be looking at minimal to no supplemental watering.

Wild manzanitas have dwindled significantly (some species are endangered or threatened), so I can’t recommend them highly enough for the home garden. They’re such a valuable plant to wildlife and the ecosystem.

Try the following two species native to Southern California in exchange for invasive exotics and non-natives consuming our landscapes and feel great restoring a bit of the original California.

‘Frazier Park’ big berry manzanita (Arctostaphylos glauca cultivar) takes full sun, has gray foliage and white flowers, grows to about 3 to 4 feet tall, sports red bark, does well in pots and in the ground, is deer tolerant and attractive to birds and butterflies.

‘Los Angeles’ big berry manzanita (A. glauca cultivar) is native to the Santa Monica Mountains. White flowers, light green leaves and smooth red bark grace this 4 to 12 foot tall plant. Birds and butterflies love it. Deer don’t care about it. It takes full sun or part shade.

For more information on manzanitas and other valuable natives, check out the Las Pilitas website, the Native Sons website and "California Native Plants for the Garden," the new book by California’s three premier horticulturalists – Carol Bornstein (of Santa Barbara Botanic Garden), David Fross (of Native Sons Nursery) and Bart O’Brien (of Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden). There are more resources than you may realize. Set aside some time and enjoy the search.

Januar 2006 Los Feliz Ledger Column - "Sensible Substitutes, Part One - Vines, Groundcovers & Grasses"

2005-12-15T12:25:00.000-08:00

The New Year has arrived! What better way to celebrate than turning over a new leaf in your garden? Literally!

In December’s Native Harmony, I unveiled the truth about invasive plants in our midst and listed some of the worst offenders actively destroying our ecosystem and driving out native species.

Now is my chance to share with you tips on what to plant instead.

Since my personal plant nemesis is morning glory (Ipomoea indicia, not our native morning glory), I will begin with invasive vines and groundcovers.

I find nothing glorious about this type of morning glory and in the morning it is the last thing I want to see. Some people are still hooked on the flowers and speedy growth whereas I, knowing all-too-well the damage it wreaks, have no pleasant thoughts about it whatsoever. My husband and I are constantly battling this beast; it never stops infesting our backyard and basement from the neighbors’ yards around us.

It is with great pleasure that I offer several sensible substitutes to non-native morning glory, ivy, lantana, periwinkle, red apple, iceplant and mint – all of which should be removed post haste.

Depending on your sun exposure (research each plant before purchasing), the following native groundcovers and vines will be more suitable to our climate and thus behave more appropriately: Arctostaphylos edmundsii (manzanita) ‘Carmel Sur’, ‘Bert Johnson’ & other low-growing cultivars; Artemisia californica ‘Canyon Gray’; Asarum caudatum (wild ginger); Baccharis pilularis (coyote brush) ‘Pigeon Point’; Berberis aquifolium (Oregon grape) & repens variety (creeping barberry); Calystegia macrostegia ssp. macrostegia ‘Anacapa Pink’ (Anacapa Pink California morning glory); Ceanothus (California wild lilac) ‘Anchor Bay’ & ‘Centennial’ & other low-growing cultivars (there are many); Clematis lasiantha (chaparral clematis); Eriogonum fasciculatum (California buckwheat) & cultivars; Fragaria vesca & chilensis (woodland & beach strawberry); Salvia (sage) ‘Bee’s Bliss’, S. leucophylla ‘Point Sal’ & Point Sal Spreader’, S. mellifera ‘Terra Seca’ & more; and Vitis californica & cultivars (California wild grape).

Pampas grass, fountain grass and other non-native grasses are spreading aggressively and choking out natives in our area and throughout the state. Give them the heave-ho immediately. Keep in mind that wind, birds, animals and humans can disburse the seeds from these and other exotics so don’t even keep them in pots.

California is graced with elegant and stately native grasses and plants that resemble grasses (sedges, rushes and certain shrubs, subshrubs and succulents). They are integral to maintaining increasingly rare bio-diversity.

Try the following for a flowing meadow effect, an upright, dramatic architectural element in your garden or in a container: Aristida purpurea var. purpurea (purple three-awn); Calamagrostis foliosa (Cape Mendocino reedgrass); Carex spissa (San Diego sedge); Festuca californica (California fescue); Hesperoyucca whipplei (Our Lord’s candle) is prickly and should be kept away from walkways; Juncus patens (wire grass) & cultivars; Leymus condensatus straight (giant wild rye) and the ‘Canyon Prince’ cultivar; Muhlenbergia rigens (deer grass); Nasella species (needlegrasses); Nolina species (beargrasses); and Sporobolus airoides (alkali sacaton). These beauties will cover just about every height, width, color and shape you’re looking for. Each plant needs varying amounts of sun and water so make sure your conditions match its requirements.

As illustrated by the extensive list of sensible native plant substitutes laid out before you (this is just scratching the surface), there can be no excuse for not replacing the invasive plants that plague our native flora and fauna. Possibilities abound. We can easily transform our gardens into refuges and, in so doing, preserve a sound environmental future.

I’ll tackle invasive perennials, shrubs and trees next month.

New Indispensable Native Plant Resource

2005-12-15T11:13:00.000-08:00

For all you native plant gardeners and enthusiasts:

Here is the latest and greatest resource for you from three of California's top Horticulturalists - Carol Bornstein, David Fross and Bart O'Brien.

It's called: "California Native Plants for the Garden" and it is wonderful. Extremely comprehensive and filled with lots of beautiful photographs, this book will become your best gardening friend. Go get one now and start marking it up with your notes. Bring it to the nursery and out into your garden to make sure you put your native plants right where they should be.

Green for the Holidays

2005-12-07T13:20:00.000-08:00

Upon visiting Whole Foods in Hollywood last week, I discovered their green lifestyle store offshoot of the grocery chain. I have to say, it took me by surprise. I wasn't expecting it; I was only intending to shop at the market for a friend's baby, who is turning one soon. I have been eyeing these cute clothes that are made from organic cotton, and I thought I'd check multiple Whole Foods for some more style options.

I happily stepped into the lifestyle store and began browsing. The selection was not that extensive and the variety was somewhat limited. The baby clothes were all pretty similar, which was a bit of a disappointment.

Nothing in the mix of clothes, shoes, bedding, bath and trinkets really jumped out at me. And then I saw the wrapping paper. I have been searching high and low for wrapping paper made of recycled or non-tree materials. Here it was: "Paporganics, Hemp Wrap." Like a beacon in the night, this gorgeous paper (available in several different original designs) was the answer to my virgin wrapping paper woes.

As a bonus, they were also selling the biodegradable "natural ribbon" made by the same company. After wrapping a few presents with this stuff and tying them up with the ribbon, I can attest to their claims that you can "tie it, shred it, curl it." It curls beautifully.

The cellophane that surrounds the paper is biodegradable too. I loved all the info such as that on the packaging.

Curious for more about Paporganics, I visited their website: www.paporganics.com. There, you can find out fascinating facts about paper. The most startling to me was: "If just 1% of U.S. households used this gift wrap instead of the conventional kind, in one year we'd save 11,457 fully grown trees, 1,981,830 gallons of water, 2.6 billion BTUs of energy, 210,263 pounds of solid waste, and 407,773 pounds of greenhouse gases."

Wow! That's reason enough to me to buy it. Thank you, Paporganics, for making this holiday season a little greener for those of us who are lucky enough to find your sustainable products!

December 2005 Los Feliz Ledger Column - "Invasion of the Eco-Snatchers"

2005-11-16T14:46:00.000-08:00

The preservation, perpetuation and survival of California native plants depend on many factors. First and foremost, we have to use them in public and private landscapes. Second, but no less important, we must eliminate existing invasive non-native plants—“exotics”—from our yards and refrain from purchasing them in the future.

Many plants that are not native to California, but are easy to grow and have been trusted to perform well for many years, are now decimating native species through rampant spreading.

In the process, they have wiped out and continue to decrease habitats for many of the native wildlife, dramatically reducing the state’s biodiversity and throwing its delicate eco-system out of balance. They block streams, cause flooding and create fire hazards by an over-production of biomass.

This leads to public safety hazards as well as increases in landscape maintenance costs to homeowners and the government. Public dollars have to be spent on clean up when invasive exotic plants reach wild areas, parks, sides and centers of highways and inside rivers.

Some of the worst offenders are in our own backyards, along the roads of Los Feliz and throughout our beloved Griffith Park.

Here are the worst of the worst: Morning Glory (Ipomoea indica), Pampas Grass (Cortaderia selloana—all cultivars and varieties), Fountain Grass (Pennisetum setaceum—all cultivars and varieties), Iceplant/Hottentot Fig (Carpobrotus edulis), English/Irish/Algerian Ivy (Hedera helix/hibernica/caneriensis), Lantana, Periwinkle (Vinca minor & major), Bridal/French/Portuguese/Scotch/Spanish Broom (Retana monosperma/Genista monspessulana/Cytisus striatus & scoparius/Spartium junceum).

But wait, there are more: Acacia/Western Coastal Wattle (Acacia Cyclops), Myoporum (Myoporum laetum), Mexican Fan/ Canary Island Date Palm (Washingtonia robusta/Phoenix canariensis), Brazilian Pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius), Peruvian or “California” Pepper (Schinus molle), Blue Gum/Red Gum Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globules/camaldulensis), Tree of Heaven (Alianthus altissima), Bailey Acacia (Acacia baileyana), Tamarisk (Tamarix spp.).

Most invasive plants look innocent enough. When they’re a foot tall in the nursery you certainly wouldn’t expect that they could cause much damage, like the Broom species have done by invading over 1 million acres.

The fact that the plants on this list are even for sale would seem to indicate that they’re perfectly suitable to put in your yard.

This is where personal responsibility comes into play. It is, unfortunately, up to customers to know which plants not to purchase. My hope is that there will, one day, be a ban on many or all invasives.

Until then, it is imperative to research any plant you’re thinking of using.

If any of the above-mentioned plants are in your garden currently or are in pots on your property, please remove them with great care not to leave behind roots or seeds. Stay away from herbicides. Recent research has found that most common brands—thought to be innocuous—stay bound up in soil, kill earthworms and beneficial insects, seep into the water table, cause environmental illness in farm and landscape workers and more.

The best approach to eradicating invasive plants is to pull them out. For trees, call your local certified arborist. For large shrubs and grasses, your gardener and a small crew should suffice.

If you want to find out what else in your yard might be invasive, please contact the California Invasive Plant Council at: www.cal-ipc.org. Their “Don’t Plant a Pest!” brochure (subtitled: “Give them an inch and they’ll take an acre . . .”) was a source of inspiration for this column.

All hope is not lost if your yard is currently swimming in a sea of these pesky plants. It may take a while to remove them, but I assure you it will be time well spent. You’ll feel good about your contribution.

When you’re done, you can choose from a long list of more suitable, preferably native, plants that should be growing in our area. They can be purchased by special order at the local nursery (Sunset, for instance) or through the website of a primarily native plant nursery, El Nativo, in Azusa: www.elnativogrowers.com.

I’ll provide some suggestions on sensible substitutes for the eco-snatchers next time around.

WAYS TO SAVE THE PLANET

2005-11-03T09:42:00.000-08:00

In no particular order at this point:

Garden with plants native to your state.
Buy organic products.
Eliminate all synthetic scents, such as chemical air fresheners like "Glade Plug-ins" and car air fresheners that car washes sell, from your life. This will save your lungs and the air. If you want to freshen the air, open the windows or use essential oils made purely from plant sources - preferably organically grown ones.
Recycle plastic bags, other plastics, glass, paper and anything else your municipality recycles.
Don't dump hazardous materials in your garbage. Dispose of them properly.
Never handwash your car at home - it wastes water and pollutes waterways such as rivers, lakes and oceans.
Never dump cleaning materials or any other products in the street - they end up in waterways, kills wildlife and create a toxic environment.
Unplug appliances like toaster ovens, microwaves, hair dryers, phone chargers, coffee makers, etc. when not in use.
Become a vegetarian. Instead of feeding cattle soy, corn and wheat, we could feed the entire world. We would also save millions of acres of land used to raise "livestock." Plus, waste from "livestock" gets into the water supply and pollutes it. The methane produced by cows is contributing to depletion of the ozone layer.
Grow your own food.
Don't use hebicides or pesticides - ever.
Rescue a dog or cat - avoid breeders at all costs. Most pounds or rescue groups have pure breed dogs AND puppies.
Install solar panels on your roof.
Buy a hybrid or electric car (the tango!).
Drive less or don't drive at all.
Walk or ride a bicycle for short trips.
Adopt a child.
Make kindness your number one priority.
Use a cloth diaper service.
Buy items made by people earning a fair wage and receiving health insurance.
Lobby your legislators for fair trade.
Support a community garden.
Support restoration of old buildings.
Question/fight new non-sustainable development in your neighborhood.
Install a gray water system.
Capture and re-use rainwater.
Prevent run-off from your yard.
Turn your yard into a Backyard Wildlife Habitat.
Dump standing water in your yard - prevent mosquitoes.
Cancel your newspaper subscription and read it online.
Reject disposable items.
Get off junk mailing lists.
Repair a broken appliance instead of buying a new one.
Wear more layers in the house instead of turning up the heat in the winter.
Flush the toilet less frequently - unless you absolutely have to.
Compost your green waste.
Turn off lights as you leave a room.
Change all light bulbs in the house to compact fluorescents (except in the bathroom for makeup purposes).
Turn off the sprinkler systems in the winter - water with the hose if the rain stops for a while.
Adjust sprinkler heads in the dry months to ensure they actually water plants and not sidewalks or streets. Set them to go on before dawn, around 5 in the morning. Don't water in the middle of the day during the heat. Water will evaporate before it even makes it to the roots.
Rip out your lawn and plant natives. If you must have a lawn, make it a small one that you don't water much.
Paint with low or no VOC paints (Safecoat brand is the best paint anyway - totally durable and comes in all forms, from paints, to stains to polyurethane alternatives).
Take showers every other day if possible.
Install a low-flow shower head.
Install a low-flow toilet.
Patronize only green dry cleaners and bring your own garment bags.
Use canvas bags at the grocery store.
Buy recycled paper products: toilet paper; paper towels; copy/printer paper; napkins; etc.
Buy biodegradable soap, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, dish soap, laundry detergent, dishwasher soap.
Stop using chlorine bleach.
Use white vinegar instead.
Stop buying non-stick pans and pots.

November Los Feliz Ledger Column - "Particulars of a Plant Palette"

2005-10-12T21:54:00.000-07:00

(photo of Toyon berries at right taken by blogger)

Drum roll please! Plants for our backyard makeover have been selected at long last—after three months of planning and construction. The palette we’ve chosen will please birds, bees, butterflies and me while working well with our garden’s conditions: eastern exposure with three mature trees, relatively well-draining soil and some sloping areas. All plants are native to California and survive with minimal water in the dry months once established, after about one to three years of regular watering.

One of the helpful rules of landscape design is to start with larger plants and work down from there. Since we already have enough trees, I moved directly to evergreen shrubs that will form the backbone of our garden’s greenery.

First up is Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia), beloved for gorgeous red berries that bejewel its branches right around Christmastime and provide food for birds. Flowers that precede the holiday display are a joy for pollinators. Toyon, which grows up to 24 feet tall, can also be used as a hedge or a small tree, by trimming the lower branches as it matures.

Malva Rosa (Lavatera assurgentifolia) is the sensible California substitute for whitefly-infested, non-native Hibiscus—
exactly what it is replacing in our garden. It reaches about 6 to 10 feet high and 3 to 12 feet wide, has 3-inch striped purplish pink flowers almost year-round and granny-smith-green, maple-shaped leaves.

California Wild Lilac (Ceanothus) comes in many forms and will suit an array of our garden’s needs. The ‘Ray Hartman’ cultivar grows to about 20 feet tall and wide. It has dainty, clustered spires of fragrant, blue flowers. Deer devour Ceanothus, so steer clear of it if Bambi is a frequent visitor.

On the opposite end of the spectrum in the Ceanothus genus is ‘Carmel Creeper’ (C. griseus horizontalis). A ground cover with 2-inch glossy green leaves, it is excellent for slope stabilization and a stellar stand-in for invasive ivy. Flowers are powder blue.

Coffeeberry, (Rhamnus californica), no relation to your morning java, is a delicate shrub that offers birds dark, shiny, perfectly round fruit. Leaves are narrow, matte green and slightly wispy. I’ve chosen the ‘Bonita Linda’ cultivar. It matures at about 8 feet tall and 10 feet wide.

Rounding out the shrub shortlist is Bush Anemone (Carpenteria californica). It is a slow grower that reaches 4 to 6 feet tall and wide. I covet its waxy, pointed green leaves and large clusters of white, fragrant flowers with bright yellow centers. The ‘Elizabeth’ cultivar is great for a cutting garden—bring the blooms inside.

Up next are perennials and grasses. They’re shorter than shrubs and fill in spaces between them and the trees.

Pitcher Sage (Lepechinia fragrans) is deliciously aromatic and flowers draw in nectar-seeking friends. Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium bellum) looks just as it sounds—and is even cuter than you can imagine. Western Columbine (Aquilegia formosa) produces rich, red, arachnid-looking flowers in spring that—after setting seed—offer a valuable food source for several different species of birds. Island Alum Root (Heuchera maxima) comes in many different colors and sizes. The long, tall, strappy leaves of Giant Wild Rye (Leymus condensatus) and its relative, ‘Canyon Prince,’ will lend shape and color variation (gray-green and blue) to our garden. Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana) and its cultivars bring back memories of East Coast style Irises that I grew up with, but are even better in my view.

Finally, we arrive at the slope savers and terrace wall decorators—groundcovers. I’ve already mentioned my favorite, ‘Carmel Creeper.’ It will be accompanied by these beauties: California Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) with pretty white flowers and small, red, edible fruit; Evergreen Currant/Catalina Perfume (Ribes viburnifolium); California Fuchsia (Zauschneria californica), technically not a groundcover but low-growing enough to do the trick; and Coyote Mint (Mondardella villosa), also a little taller, makes the cut for a divine minty fragrance and flowers frequented by butterflies.

More plants will be added over time as I discover what works best. Building a dream garden is an ever-evolving process and that’s the magic of it. This palette is a great place to start. I’ll take it with me as I shop the plentiful plant sales of the season, including Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden’s on Nov. 5th and 6th (rsabg.org) and the one I am organizing at Eaton Canyon Nature Center in Pasadena on Nov. 19th from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. (cnps-sgm.org). I hope to see you there!

Catch Plant Sale Fever!!!

2005-10-08T19:50:00.001-07:00

Hello Southern California Gardeners,

We are entering the season of sublime synchronicity for installing native plants. In conjunction with the oncoming winter rains and cooler temps, fall is better than any other time of the year to create a consummately California garden.

Check out the California Native Plant Society's website (www.cnps.org) for a fall plant sale near you. Or, visit your local nursery with Sunset Western Garden Book in hand. Tell them you're looking for native plants that will grow best in your garden's conditions. Sometimes it's helpful to bring with you a list of them, such as sun exposure, soil type, slopes, size, etc. Most nurseries will order plants they don't have in stock. El Nativo supplies natives to retail nurseries.

If you're looking for a little more fun than the nursery and want to meet like-minded gardeners, don't miss these upcoming plant sales.

A mere fifteen minutes away from Los Feliz is the CNPS San Gabriel Valley's chapter sale, "Under the Oaks," on November 19th from 9 am to 2 pm at Eaton Canyon Nature Center in Pasadena. For more info, see: http://www.cnps-sgm.org/.

A little further from home but well worth the trip is Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden's fall sale on November 5th and 6th. Visit the link to Rancho on the right side of this blog for more details.

It's time to shop and plant your heart out!

October Los Feliz Ledger Column - Blog Version*

2005-10-08T18:13:00.000-07:00

Story of a Backyard Makeover – Part Two

[*Note: The version that was published in the October Ledger was incomplete and had a type-o in the paragraph about garden intruders.]

Plant selection for a new garden can be a little daunting, especially when you’re starting with a blank slate, as my husband and I are. We’ve cleared out the invasive plants, started work on the “hardscape” (everything in the garden other than plants) and now look out at bare dirt every day.

At this point, there are so many color, size and shape possibilities that I am a bit overwhelmed—like a kid in a candy store.
Comfort comes in reminding myself that the palette will ultimately be revealed as I plod through the process in a logical, methodical fashion I call “conscious gardening.” Those of you who have read this blog before might remember the concept.

“Conscious gardening” draws on basic landscape design principles but tosses in some ecological correctness for good measure. It achieves optimum results by working backwards from immediately identifiable factors. These include— direction the garden faces; potentially problematic vertical obstructions; slopes that need stabilization; soil type and drainage; garden intruders like dogs, cats, coyotes and other critters; existing plants that will affect new ones; dimensions of your planting areas and your ultimate goals for the garden.

An additional, equally important aspect of conscious gardening is the inclusion of plants from the local plant community (group of plants that grow naturally in the area).

The first things I look at are sun exposure and existing plants. Our yard faces east, so it gets morning sun and afternoon shade. There are three medium-sized trees that will partially block sunlight from new plants in the summer. Two of the trees are deciduous, allowing more sun through their bare branches in winter. The plants that make it onto my short list will have to be comfortable with a daily dose of part sun and part shade.

Next, I look to the soil. Upon close inspection, I discovered it is a mixture of sand, clay and maybe a little loam (a mixture of clay, sand and silt). To determine drainage, I dug a hole (the Sunset Western Garden Book recommends that it be two feet deep and two feet wide for an accurate read), filled it with water and waited to see how fast it drained. I did this two times and discovered it took less than an hour the second time. That tells me I’ll need to select native plants that grow naturally in well-drained soil.

As for garden intruders, our three bounding hounds claim the yard during the day and uninvited guests arrive at night - stray cats and wandering coyotes capable of leaping over our six-foot fences. Sturdier plants will be selected to increase survival rates in case of trampling, and we’ll likely construct a few enclosures to protect more vulnerable plants for the same reason.

We have no vertical obstructions, save for a few unsightly overhead power lines that won’t hinder the growth of new plants.

Our hillside was long ago stabilized with terracing (dividing the hill into multiple levels or tiers). To make the terrace walls more aesthetically pleasing, I’ll select plants that will trail down for a waterfall effect. Remaining slopes will be kept intact by native groundcovers with deep root systems and foliage that isn’t too heavy (never use shallow rooted succulent ground cover such as iceplant – not only is it invasive, but it pulls down hillsides and advances erosion - this is a problem on beaches throughout California, where iceplant is destroying dune systems). I’ll also include some native shrubs with multiple-branching habits. This is great for stabilization.

Dimensions of our planting areas still have to be determined. Knowing their exact sizes and mature width of the plants I’m considering will narrow down my list even more and dictate the amount I’ll order.

Throughout my conscious gardening process, I’ll stay mindful that I want to create a backyard wildlife habitat and check the requirements for certification (at: www.nwf.org).

And finally, the majority of the plants I will select are local to Los Feliz, part of the Coastal Sage Scrub plant community.

After all of the above information is compiled, I can begin my search for appropriate plants. Some favorite resources are the Sunset Western Garden Book, Native Landscaping from El Paso to LA by Sally Wasowski with Andy Wasowski and the Las Pilitas Nursery website (www.laspilitas.com). I’ll also attend lectures and peruse nurseries and plant sales.

Shopping and researching is the fun part but it’s also when I have to be flexible because the places I go to buy plants may not have everything on my list. A few backup ideas will come in handy.

September Los Feliz Ledger Column

2005-08-04T17:44:00.000-07:00

Story of a Backyard Makeover, Part One

"My Dream Garden"
Birds bunk in Toyon
Lizards race through Red Buckwheat
Bees buzz about Black Sage

Last December, the yard of our new house held promise and that was about it. Loads of space and multiple levels inspired our minds to race with grand outdoor visions.

It would take some doing to get there, though. What was planted at the time foreshadowed future headaches. Menacing morning glory (Ipomoea indica) spanned at least five or six backyards, including ours. Pernicious periwinkle (Vinca minor) and invasive ivy (not sure of exact species, but it was relentless) were also in abundance.

These rapacious plants and their cohorts had to go, every last one of them. Nothing was even remotely native to California. It was a tangled mess and only got worse over the next few months.

Thanks to unusually heavy rains, what once looked slightly appealing was, come spring, smothering everything in its path.

We were determined to make it all disappear. So, as soon as the final drops of precipitation faded into memory, our team set out to show the post-winter jungle who was boss.

Three days and five guys with pickaxes later, only bare Earth remained (although our battle with morning glory, ivy and periwinkle – the unholy trinity – rages on). We could finally acquaint ourselves with the “bones” of our yard.

As fate would have it, the bones weren’t in good shape. But we weren’t about to let crumbling concrete, trip hazard sprinklers and stacks of stepping-stones stop us. Our dreams were driving this ship now.

We had long since abandoned the fantasy of a salmon run and a pond with a small beach for the dogs and agreed to get real. We needed to concoct a design that wouldn’t break the bank but would fulfill our needs.

The husband had modest requests. Space for a hammock and a small lawn for lying on with dogs and wife would make him happy. As for the rest, he trusted me to come up with something appealing to both of us.

My first priority was to incorporate native plants in a way that would entice both human and animal friend alike. I wanted to create a sanctuary. Since reading in Sunset magazine 2 1/2 years ago about The National Wildlife Federation’s (NWF) Backyard Wildlife Habitat Program, I knew it was something I’d eventually try. Our new yard was the perfect opportunity.

In keeping with the theme of giving back to nature, I was intrigued by rain gardens, a concept I learned about from Elizabeth Schwartz, my native plants teacher at UCLA Extension.

Rain gardens ingeniously reduce the amount of polluting runoff from homes by directing water to strategically placed indentations in one’s property. When done correctly, rain seeps into the water table and is filtered naturally instead of heading into streets, carrying with it pesticides, chemicals and other toxic substances into storm drains and ultimately, the ocean.

To create our own version of a rain garden, I decided we would have three dry creek beds to be fashioned out of much of our existing hardscape (which would help us fulfill other priorities – recycling and saving money). Two beds along the outer edges of the yard will serve to direct rain downward and into terraces (irrigating plants there). Whatever water is left will, in theory, be caught by the small lawn and third creek bed along the bottom edge of the yard and drain into the ground.

Armed with our best ideas, it was time to seek a like-minded landscape contractor. With determination, faith in a landscaping deity and good luck, we finally found someone in Los Feliz after a search that lasted about three months.

They begin major work on all hardscape areas in September. Ours is a tall order but I’ve been assured that everything should be ready by late fall – prime time to install natives. I’m good with that.

My next step is selecting just the right California natives and food plants (fruit trees, herbs and vegetables) to bring our dream garden to life and getting it certified as an official Backyard Wildlife Habitat. More on that in part two coming next month.

For more about . . .
•Backyard Wildlife Habitat Program - check out the NWF website: http://www.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat/.
•Rain Gardens - simply do a search on Google. It yields a huge amount of information.
•Native Plants and Rain Gardens – consider taking Elizabeth Schwartz’s classes (Gardening with California Native Plants I & II) through UCLA Extension: www.uclaextension.edu.

Something Borrowed and Brilliant

2005-07-28T08:37:00.000-07:00

I recently received a wonderful email from my mother that she got from her mother-in-law. It was an imagined conversation between St. Francis and God. God was asking St. Francis, patron saint of animals and the environment, about the disappearance of all the original flora. He wanted to know why he was seeing only patches of green. The answers St. Francis gave God shocked him. Nothing seemed to make sense. Finally, God couldn't hear it anymore.

That frustration with things being so backwards is what drives me to argue for native plants any chance I get. Knowing that natives will nourish wildlife, environmental stability, water conservation and ecological balance gives me a sense of peace. There is no better time to use natives in our landscapes. We have the opportunity to make our natural world right again, one garden at a time.

I'm including the St. Francis piece. I didn't write it. I wish I knew who did so I could thank her or him.

Enjoy:

God talking with St Francis.
GOD: Frank, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there in the U.S.? What in the world happened to the dandelions, violets, thistles and the stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees, and flocks of
songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of color by now. All I see are patches of green.
ST. FRANCIS: It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. They are called Suburbanites and they went to great lengths to kill the flowers and replace them with grass.
GOD: Grass? But it is so boring; it's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, bees, or birds, only grubs and sod worms. It's temperamental with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want grass growing there?
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing it and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.
GOD: The spring rains and the warm weather probably makes the grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites very happy.
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it has grown a little, they cut it, sometimes two times a week.
GOD: They cut it? Do they bale it like hay?
ST. FRANCIS: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.
GOD: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?
ST. FRANCIS: No sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.
GOD: Now let me get this straight: They fertilize it to make it grow and when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?
ST. FRANCIS: Yes, sir.
GOD: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.
ST. FRANCIS: You aren't going to believe this Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.
GOD: What nonsense! At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep the moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves become compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle of life.
ST. FRANCIS: You'd better sit down, Lord. As soon as the leaves fall, the Suburbanites rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.
GOD: No way!! What do they do to protect the shrubs and tree roots in the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?
ST. FRANCIS: After throwing the leaves away they go out and buy something called mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.
GOD: And where to they get this mulch?
ST. FRANCIS: They cut down the trees and grind them up to make mulch.
GOD: Enough!! I don't want to think about this anymore.

Whole Foods Update

2005-07-22T12:31:00.000-07:00

Great news! Whole Foods in Glendale is selling a California native plant, Ceanothus, to be exact. It was wonderful to see. I hope they continue the trend. Now, if only they'd use natives in their landscaping.

Problems: the parking lot is chock full of tropical and Mediterranean plants (which are a step in the right direction - Mediterranean, that is). And, there is very little shade, contributing to the "urban heat island."

Whole Foods would do well to practice what they preach. Their paper grocery bags offer tips on living a "greener" lifestyle - all well and good, but a little contradictory considering the way the run their stores.

Having visited many a Whole Foods bathroom (in stores from Madison, WI to Woodland Hills, CA), I can vouch for the fact that they use noxious chemicals, including synthetic air fresheners. Strange - they have a store full of natural, biodegradable, effective, germ-killing cleaning products but don't use them in the stores. Do they not believe in the very products they sell?

Getting back to the parking lots, outside of Whole Foods in Sherman Oaks is the sorriest display of poorly pruned trees. They're all "topped," which is a lazy and uninformed way of "trimming" the trees. In truth, topping a tree is just putting it on a faster road to death.

All that would need to happen to bring Whole Foods around to a less hypocritical policy regarding the creation and management of their stores, is for them to plant more trees native to each individual location, landscape the rest of the outside areas with natives, use biodegradable cleaning products and toiletries in restrooms, sell more native plants and install solar panels to help power stores.

They're a large corporation, they can afford these changes. In so doing, they'll set an example for everyone who visits Whole Foods. Frankly, these changes will SAVE them money in the long run (they'll help save the planet too, by the way). They were revolutionary in the grocery world, just imagine how much more GOOD they could do by bringing their green philosophy full circle.

City of LA's Wasteful Watering

2005-07-13T07:52:00.000-07:00

I am perpetually perplexed and, frankly, outraged at the fact that the City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department chooses to turn on their sprinklers in the middle of the day, sometimes for a half hour or longer. This is disturbing on MANY levels, not the least of which is the fact that a gross amount of sprinklers are so misguided that they are watering SIDEWALKS!!!

What's the deal, City of LA? Do you mean to tell us fair citizens that we suddenly have an endless supply of water with which to water our own lawns? Because, I gotta tell you, EVERYBODY who drives by one of your gigantic sprinklers spraying out hundreds of gallons of water in the dead heat of 12:30 pm is getting the message that this practice is A-OK with you.

It's very problematic, as I know that it simply is not that case that we've uncovered some vast water supply. Plus, we fair citizens are often getting messages in the form of commercials, inserts with bills, billoards, etc. from DWP and MWD that it is our duty to conserve water. I couldn't agree more.

But, if it's OUR duty, then why isn't it the CITY'S duty too? Why don't they reserve their watering for early morning? Why don't they re-direct their sprinklers to only water plants (a novel concept)? The answer is that there is no excuse. They have erred, on a grand scale, and must address the problem immediately.

C'mon! Get with it, City of LA. While you're at it, let Cal Trans in on the concept of water conservation. They're just as guilty: freeways are constantly being irrigated smack dab in the hottest part of the day.

Stop sending us all the wrong message. Start irrigating responsibly and stop wasting our precious water.

August Los Feliz Ledger Column

2005-07-06T23:15:00.000-07:00

Dog Days of Summer - To Plant or Not To Plant?

Summer planting of California natives is a hot button issue, depending on whom you talk to.

Some people argue you that you can plant throughout the year, but most experts simply say, “Don’t do it.”

It can be a confusing matter for home gardeners.

Barbara Eisenstein, Horticultural Outreach Coordinator for Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (RSABG) in Claremont believes the controversy over when to plant stems from a nationwide spring marketing blitz. Retailers take a one-size-fits-all approach to gardening, leading to a misguided public here in California.

The truth of the matter is: most of our native plants don’t do well being planted in warm weather for many reasons.

Eisenstein, who runs RSABG’s Native Plant Hotline, a free resource for home gardeners funded by Metropolitan Water District, explained that, because most of California experiences long periods of hot, dry weather, many of our indigenous plants are not used to getting water during that time. They have adapted over hundreds of years to slow down, or go dormant, in the summer and do the majority of their growing during the winter rainy season.

Part of the problem for gardeners planting natives in the summer is that they try to compensate for the lack of rain by inundating the plants with water. That, Eisenstein said, creates perfect conditions for disease to develop in dry-tolerant natives from an over-production of bacteria and fungi.

Thus it is with good reason so many native plant people will tell you to “install in the fall.” At that time (usually end of November is best), we can take advantage of winter rains to irrigate for us.

It’s a great rule of thumb to follow, but sometimes the thought of digging in the dirt and communing with the Earth is too tempting to resist. In that case, there are ways of getting around the rule, if you’re willing to use the right plants and give them perfect growing conditions.

Native riparian plants (those that grow near rivers), Eisenstein pointed out, are accustomed to year round wetness; and desert plants, which receive water during summer monsoonal rains, can take more water in the home garden this time of year. Both groups of plants, however, require a fair amount of shade (research each individual plant) if being planted in the heat. After establishing a healthy root mass (takes about a year of babying and watering), some of those plants may be more tolerant of full sun.

Holliday Wagner, Nursery Manager at the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wildflowers and Native Plants (TPF) in Sun Valley, was careful to emphasize that plants need large root structures to bring water up to cool the leaves. It is an essential process in the summer – unless you install shade plants.

If you’re going to plant any of the desert or riparian natives, try following these few tips for better success. After digging the right size hole for each plant, fill it with water and let it drain three times before putting the plant in the ground. Put the plant in the hole and then backfill the soil into the hole. Create a circular basin around the outer edge of the rootball for water to more easily seep into the root area and then water again. Add a 2-inch thick layer of mulch (shredded or chipped redwood bark works well) around your plants, keeping it 2 to 3 inches away from the crown to prevent rot.

Mulch is key to maintaining cooler, wetter soil, said Eisenstein. And, it keeps weeds down.

As for specific native plants that are more amenable to being installed in the summer, Eisenstein recommended: bunch grasses, Deer Grass (Muhlenbergia rigens) in particular, which “does fine [being planted] almost any time;” California Aster (Aster chilensis), a native ground cover known to grow rapidly; Island Alum Root (Heuchera maxima), which needs some shade; native Yarrow (Achillea species), which also needs a little shade; and Erigeron species.

She noted that these and other natives might also do well in pots during the summer. Pots provide portability if the sun exposure is too intense. Just be sure to stay on top of watering. A water meter will help you keep the right balance.

Wagner’s short list for summer planting included all shade-and-water-loving natives such as a stream orchid (Epipactus gigantea) with the largest flower of the California orchids, Spice Bush (Calycanthus occidentalis), a large shrub with big leaves and fragrant red flowers, and Button Willow (Cephalanthus occidentalis californica), also a large shrub.

Though both experts were willing to give specific plant names, neither seemed thrilled about the idea of summer planting, given all they know about native plants. Instead, each advised pulling back on the urge to garden in the hot months.

That seems wise not only for the reasons stated above, but also to conserve our precious water supply. And, for a lazy gardener, like myself, all the hoops and limitations of summer planting are just plain old unappealing.

There are other activities for those of us to whom the garden beckons in the summer. Try mulching and container gardening or (gasp!) killing your lawn through solarization and/or start thinking about a new landscape design that can be implemented in the fall.

The Theodore Payne Foundation (http://www.theodorepayne.org) offers great classes to spark the creative process and, of course, the Native Plant Hotline (909-624-0838) is always there to help you in your research.

Water in the Garden?

2005-06-29T10:22:00.000-07:00

Again, I feel compelled to answer back to the garden magazine I love so dearly. One might begin to wonder why I love it so much when I am always criticizing it. I'll have to think about that one.

In any case, there is an article in its latest issue about water in the garden. I felt so despondent reading it and thinking about the messages being sent to western gardeners. The magazine was condoning the use of fountains that have large bowls of exposed water. The kicker was that they were publishing this article just as the weather is really beginning to heat up - NOT the time to start using more water.

What the heck were these people thinking? It's irresponsible to promote more water usage in our parched landscape. It's one thing to present photos and descriptions of fountains with reservoirs that are submerged beneath the ground. These types of fountains conserve water.

In a climate where we get no rain other than during the winter months, we must change the way we think about water usage in the garden. Any exposed water during the dry months is bound to evaporate quickly. This applies to re-circulating fountains as well.

While I want to be respectful of my favorite western lifestyle magazine, I have to speak up when I read articles that promote environmentally unsustainable gardening practices.

I don't understand why they don't embrace the reality of our region. What will it take for them or others seemingly unconcerned with our water shortages to change their way of thinking?

Gardening with an eye toward conservation and ecological consideration is the only way of the future. If we continue to waste our resources, there will be no more greenery. And then what will this magazine promote?

California native plants are the logical solution to our problems with drought. They work in concert with the environment. We have to educate ourselves and those around us to the beautiful symbiosis of gardening with our indigenous flora. The magazine I speak of has the obligation to promote their use every time they publish a new issue.

July Los Feliz Ledger Column

2005-06-14T10:54:00.000-07:00

Friends,

Today's post is a copy of my first Native Harmony Column that I've written for a new newspaper called The Los Feliz Ledger. My plan is to post the columns here as soon as the final draft is available.

If you live in Los Feliz, look for the first issue on your doorstep on July 1st. Enjoy! And, please support local everything. Thanks!

Los Feliz Lovelies

In celebration of this brave new newspaper, I thought it only appropriate to have my first column sing the praises of native plants we can appreciate right in our own neighborhood.

Take a trip up to gorgeous Griffith Park and drink in the beauty of the Oak trees, Toyon, Sugarbush, Lemonadeberry, Matilija Poppies, Sages and so much more.

You’ve walked by them numerous times but may not have given them a second thought.

They stand off to the side demonstrating their strength and survival skills. It’s up to you to see them for what they are.

Off a beaten path (but not too far off – we don’t want to damage hillsides or small plants struggling to emerge big and strong) you can often find the most outstanding species of natives.

For instance, a towering Flannel Bush once snuck up on me near the top of Commonwealth Ave.—to the right of the construction yard—and nearly took my breath away. It lovingly loomed five to six feet overhead requesting recognition of its profuse, saturated yellow flowers.

On another hike, I had the pleasure of encountering Fuchsia-Flowering Gooseberry on a path friends call “Shady Glade,” just past the horse trough.

This discreet stunner seemed to be waiting for an admirer.

It arched and puffed itself up only to be lightly weighted down by pinkish-red flowers that dangled like chandelier earrings from spiny branches. Hummingbirds couldn’t resist its allure.

Humble and lovely, native plants of Los Feliz are in our midst to be discovered and, ultimately, utilized (I recommend with calculated abandon) in the home landscape. What more could we ask for than a display of them in a wild setting? It’s a plant zoo, if you will. You can look but not touch and absorb as much about them as possible.

Taking inventory of details such as sun or shade exposure, growth habit, flower color, existence of pollinators, size and shape takes much of the guesswork out of buying these plants at the nursery.

The only trick left to master is learning plant names. That is a matter of time and is where I come in.

Each month, I will provide botanical and common names, as well as written illustrations of natives, that can be viewed here in Los Feliz at nearby botanical gardens and elsewhere. By doing so, I hope you will feel inspired and confident incorporating them into your own garden.

I will also give you tips on how to grow them, what not to plant and why, when to plant, nurseries selling natives, independent plant sales, garden tours and more.

Please join me next month as we continue our journey to native harmony.

Nothing Glorious About It

2005-06-04T06:02:00.000-07:00

Why did they name it Morning Glory? This plant is a nuisance and should be outlawed. It has taken over the neighborhood and I fear my battle with it will be everlasting. It should be called Endless Pain in the Neck!

To be specific, I am referring to plants from the Ipomoea genus. In my estimation, they are pernicious weeds. And, unfortunately, they span numerous backyards in Los Feliz showing no signs of stopping.

The sight that really puts me over the edge is it being copiously watered on a regular basis. My mind reels thinking that someone actually believes it needs help in its mission to grow everywhere or that our precious water supply should be mindlessly wasted for something so undeserving as this plant.

True, it has qualities that a novice gardener goes for: pretty blue flowers, fast-growing (ugh, I cringe when people say they want something "fast-growing."), evergreen, low-maintenance, and easy to find (THAT is the real problem).

But really, can it be that people are in such a hurry that they're willing to plant anything just to get some color or coverage for an ugly fence? I guess so. I see the evil stuff everywhere.

During a visit to OSH a while back, I managed to convince a group of people toting around one of these vixens (most likely Ipomoea indica) to forgo it for something much less aggressive. I felt good about my accomplishment but disappointed at the same time because I realized how easily people will purchase Morning Glory if no one is around to talk them out of it.

I'm not joking when I say that I'd like to see it banned. In some states, it is illegal to sell Ivy. I see no reason why we can't do the same for Morning Glory here in California (and Ivy too, while we're at it . . . and Vinca, and Lantana and other invasive non-natives). If anyone has suggestions on how I can get this ball rolling, please let me know. It will be a great day when you can't find the stuff anywhere.

There are so many excellent alternatives out there. The native honeysuckle vines, such as Lonicera interrupta, Lonicera hispidula (beautiful hot pink flowers) and Lonicera denudata are good options. Even Calystegia macrostegia, our native Morning Glory would be acceptable. This guy is a lot kinder and more tolerant of other plants than the interloper who shares its common name.

For the home gardener looking to plant a vine, all it takes is a little research to find one that will play nicely with other plants. In the meantime, we have to fight the good fight and eradicate this stuff from our landscapes. I just hope someone is out there reading . . .

How Could I Forget?

2005-05-23T14:19:00.000-07:00

In all my haste to announce the creation of my Conscious Gardening movement (now a copyrighted feature of this blog - not really, just sounds impressive), I neglected to mention the one element that is just as important as size, water needs, and sun or shade requirements of a desired plant. That is, of course, make sure the plant you want works in your climate! Hello, that's why I started this blog. How could I forget so quickly!?

The thing that reminded me of my mission in life was seeing all of the tropical plants for sale hanging in the blistering sun outside Whole Foods this morning. Without exception, each plant was in serious distress: wilting and/or fading from green to yellow or brown.

The sight of these poor, climate-challenged critters cemented my belief in Conscious Gardening (not that I needed any reassurance, mind you). I thought, "Now why can't Whole Foods, a supposedly earth-conscious company, sell plants that are appropriate for the region?"

I realize that the tropical plants they're hocking are meant for indoors (I can only assume), and I'm all for a nice dracena in the house in a snazzy pot next to a lovely picture window, but it wouldn't hurt Whole Foods to throw up a few native species in some hanging baskets. Clearly their customer base is already interested in non-mainstream items. That's why we shop at Whole Foods, right? [I can only speak for myself here, so, yes, that is why I shop at Whole Foods. I want to buy products that I can't find at, say, Albertson's. And I can get a dracena at Albertson's.]

Therefore, it only stands to reason that Whole Foods should offer us something different, something earth-friendly and ecologically sound in the plant department. That, my friends, would be California native plants here in Los Angeles. In Denver, they could sell Colorado natives. What a concept!!

I hope someone from Whole Foods corporate is reading this blog. If you're out there, please consider embracing my Conscious Gardening movement in your stores. You already sell organic herbs in pots. That is an excellent start. Selling native plants is the next logical step. Go for it!!

Conscious Gardening

2005-05-22T15:11:00.000-07:00

That's it! I've decided I'm starting my own movement.

At the point of being beyond-frustrated by seeing one garden after another packed with inappropriate plants that do not fit into the spaces where they were haphazardly planted, I cannot stay silent anymore and must devote my life to conscious gardening.

What exactly is conscious gardening? On its most basic level it is the practice of fully comprehending your garden site and the plants intended for it. That is to say, before shopping for plants, measure your garden site(s). Know its dimensions and then go to the nursery, plant sale, or farmer's market and shop accordingly.

While shopping, read the little information tags on the plants to see if what you're interested in buying will actually fit in your garden when it's fully grown and if your site has the right amount of sun or shade necessary for the plant to live.

Some information that you need to garden consciously will not be on the plant's tag. For instance, how do a particular plant's roots grow? Downward? Outward? Do the roots spread endlessly and pop up in your neighbor's yard? Does the plant continually multiply, or does its growth eventually slow and stop?

You can find out the answers to these questions by doing some research on the Internet (such as on this very blog!) and in great books like Sunset Garden Book. Devour all the resources you can find and many problems can be avoided.

That's all it takes to be part of my conscious gardening movement: a little time invested means you'll have less headaches, spend less time trimming unruly plants (because you won't purchase any), spend less money, use less water, and enjoy your garden more.

So, are you with me?

Romneya coulteri

2005-05-21T15:02:00.000-07:00

Romneya coulteri
Originally uploaded by gardenmania.

Thanks to the hubby for this gorgeous close-up of a Matilija Poppy flower. The petals resemble crepe paper and the large, puffy, yellow center invokes the image of a fried egg. These bold, profuse plants can be seen on the hillside as you enter Griffith Park through the top of Commonwealth Avenue in Los Feliz. They're on their way out so go see them soon. If you desire to put Matilija Poppies in your garden, be sure you have the room for them and the stamina to pull up unwanted shoots. They spread via rhizomes and can be a little unruly. They're impressively tall, so put them toward the back of a group of shorter plants.

It Worked!!

2005-05-20T20:00:00.000-07:00

Hooray! I'm posting pictures. Courtesy of Flickr, I can upload photos to this blog. How 'bout that Dudleya? It's so striking. With grayish-green, finger-like leaves and long shoots of star-like flowers, it is a lovely break amongst more traditional-looking plants. And, as I mentioned before, it is conducive to container gardening. Bees love the flowers. One could also use native Dudleya in a moonlight garden, where the plants all share a somewhat ghostly quality, i.e. they are silvery and shimmer against the light of the moon. More soon!!

dudleya hassei

2005-05-20T17:13:00.000-07:00

dudleya hassei
Originally uploaded by gardenmania.

Not being of very sound technical mind, I have been stumbling along with the creation of this blog. It is my hope that I can include photos of the plants I rave about here.
Let's start with trying to show a photo of my beloved Dudleya hassei. I took this picture some time in 2004, I believe, while on a field trip to Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden.

Easy Native Plants

2005-05-18T10:04:00.000-07:00

It's about darn time that California native plants get their own publicist. I nominated myself and so here I am, writing a blog devoted to everything Cal native. I want to spread the word about these under-rated plants because I'd like to see them in every nursery in Southern California, in every garden, in every median strip along our roads, and in every landscape. OK, OK, that may be a little too ambitious, but it's worth a try.
So, to that end, this blog goes out to all you SoCal gardeners looking to save some water, create habitat in your yard, re-create old California, create ecological balance, stem the tide of invasive plants, and just be responsible gardeners in general.
This blog is a space where gardeners of conscience can gather to swap ideas about using California native plants and gain new ideas.
This blog will also provide many resources for people looking to garden with California natives. In the future, look here to find out about garden tours, plant sales, nursery information, etc.
So, here's my first post:
In response to one of my favorite gardening/design/lifestyle magazines, I am offering my own suggestions for easy, foolproof perennials for lazy gardeners (like myself).
First, I highly recommend Iris douglasiana. It's striking. It multiplies. You can divide it in a few years and have more plants to spread around the garden. It needs light shade. It can be used safely under oaks (that is, once established, Iris douglasiana needs little to no water in the summer, a time when our native oaks cannot take watering). I love Douglas Iris. You will too.
One of my new favorite natives is Nassella lepida, or Foothill Needlegrass. This perennial bunchgrass has a lovely, dainty, flowy look. It gets to about 2X2 feet. It needs sun to part shade and little to no water once established.
You'll see me writing the above phrase a lot: "once established." What I mean by this is that, while many Cal native plants can boast serious drought tolerance, none are immediately drought tolerant once planted. They need some babying in the first year after they're planted. We'll get into that more later.
My third easy perenniall offering is Salvia 'Allen Chickering'. This beauty gives a one-two-three punch with its gorgeously fragrant leaves, shimmery gray green color, and eye-catching blue flowers (which, by the way are loved by hummingbirds and bees. So really this is a four-punch plant!). Size details: about 4 feet tall and 8 feet wide. Put this puppy near your garden's entrance and let it brush your pants each time you walk into the garden. Yum! 'Allen Chickering likes sun/light shade and is very drought tolerant - when? you guessed it: once established.
Onto number four. I love me some native Coral Bells. I just put Heuchera 'Chocolate Ruffles' (oops, actually not a native - edit: 7/6/05) into a container in our front courtyard and it is going gangbusters. It is currently in bloom. Give it well-draining soil, light shade and it'll get to its estimated foot and a half height and width. The label says it has pink flowers but they seem white to me, and that is fine by me.
Oh, my next new fave is Verbena lilacina, or Cedros Island Verbena or Lilac Verbena. This GORGEOUS perennial is also in containers in my courtyard, and, so far, it is quite happy getting part sun and part shade. Lilac Verbena looks magnificent in hanging baskets as it cascades over the sides. It has deeply cut leaves and clusters of lilac-colored flowers nearly all year in mild climates. Size: 1 foot hight by 3 foot wide or more.
Last but certainly not least, I'm going to throw you a little bit of a curveball here: Dudleya hassei. It's a stunning succulent perennial that sends out petite white flowers on branched stems. Oh do I love California native Dudleyas. They are fabulous in pots. They can take almost all day sun (probably half day in hotter areas when they are in pots). They need good drainage.
That should give you something to chew on until the next post. I'll try to put up photos soon!!
Happy native planting!!!