Lot size: 1,000 sq. ft. front, 1,200 back, and 1,500 sq. ft. side gardens on tour, 90% native
Garden Age: Garden was installed in stages, beginning in the spring of 2008
Years on the Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour: New this year!
Showcase Feature
Got lawn? Would you like to know how to get rid of it? Just ask! In place of the sterile lawn they once had, Nalani and Anna designed and installed a sinuous path that leads past undulating, raised garden beds filled with attractive, drought-tolerant natives grouped by similar water needs. Bunchgrasses (Festuca rubra, F. californica, and F. idahoensis, as well as hairgrass, and deergrass), wave gracefully in the breeze. Native grape twines around the porch. And, yes! Those interesting rails really are rebar!
Other Garden Attractions
• Don’t miss the “before” photos.
• California lilac ‘Ray Hartman’ and flannel bush soften the fence line.
• A prolific veggie bed is tucked into the back corner; herbs are grown in pots scattered about the garden.
• Check out the nifty ET (evapotranspiration) controller, which self-adjusts its irrigation schedule every day, according to the weather.
Gardening for Wildlife
Skinks are at home in this garden, as are grasshoppers, bees, ladybugs, and butterflies. Hummingbirds are seen “all the time.”
Garden Talks
Every hour on the hour irrigation contractor/consultant extraordinaire Lori Palmquist will demonstrate the design and function of this garden’s drip system. Curious about how you can conserve water in your own garden? This is the right place—bring your questions!
