Showcase Features: This small suburban lot is a bit of native paradise nestled among the old, conventional style landscapes of the surrounding neighborhood. The large lawns and neatly sheered exotic shrubs were replaced with a wildflower meadow in the front and colorful flowerbeds in the back. A large collection of natives can be found in containers as well.

Other Garden Attractions: Unique garden art and paintings by Roan Victor and Jana Morgan are showcased throughout the entire property. The front garden features a wildflower/bunch grass meadow with two western redbuds and a Ray Hartman ceanothus, and is highlighted in spring by blue flax, California poppy, Douglas iris, seaside daisy, checkerbloom, California buttercup, single leaf onion, and other annual and perennial wildflowers. Summer-blooming hummingbird fuchsia flanks the front pathway. Purple needlegrass is the unifying component of the meadow, while deergrass provides architectural accents. The large, brick planter by the house is graced with shade-loving plants from the redwood and riparian communities, including ferns, redwood sorrel, wild ginger, woodland strawberry, western azalea, spice bush, salal, and vine maple. An evergreen huckleberry seems quite at home in a recycled utility sink-turned-planter. Other unusual natives at the small, north side yard include a climbing wild cucumber and piggyback plant.

The garden gate to the back yard opens to a comfortable patio with a wall fountain and many potted natives. The garden path was recently updated with mariposa slate decorated by la paz gravel, and it meanders through a woodland and a coastal scrub area. A wooden bench under the rare, Santa Cruz Cypress, offers a cool spot with a view to a solar-powered urn fountain, favored by hummingbirds and pheobes. Pacific wax myrtle was planted for a tall privacy screen and provides shade for woodland shrubs and perennials, including snowberry, creek dogwood, ocean spray, pink-flowering currant, western columbine, hummingbird sage, coastal wood fern, woodland sanicle, fringe cups, coral bells, yerba buena, false solomon's seal, and elk clover. At the west side fence, a carpenteria trio with a western hawthorn overlooks a large copper birdbath that is surrounded by riparian perennials, including golden-eyed grass, iris-leaved rush, California gray rush, and scarlet monkeyflower.

Gardening for Wildlife: The garden is certified by the National Wildlife Federation as a wildlife habitat and attracts many kinds of birds, insects, small mammals and lizards.

Years of CA Native Gardening at this Location: 15

Garden Size: 5000 sq ft

Designer: Agi Kehoe
Installer: Agi Kehoe and Benz Godinez

Click here to download the plant list in PDF format.