Lot size: 2,000 sq. ft. front garden, 3,000 sq. ft. back garden, 70% native
Garden Age: Garden was installed in the spring of 2015
Years on the Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour: New this year!
Showcase Feature
Ann and Steve wanted a garden that would use less water than their large lawn required, be low maintenance, and have a natural look. So, they were very happy when, in May of 2014, thirty people attending a “How to remove your lawn (and get paid for it, too!)” sheet mulching workshop at their home covered the lawn in cardboard and wood chips in just two hours. Kat Weiss of Kat Weiss Landscape Design created the design, and in early 2015 the new garden was installed. In the front garden, urbanite (used concrete pieces) was used to make the gracefully curving retaining walls.
Other Garden Attractions
• Five types of manzanita (Pacific Mist, Woods Compact, Point Reyes, Sentinel, and Austin Griffiths), prostrate coyote brush, two types of California lilac (Snowball and Yankee Point), and coffee berry provide structure and greenery throughout the year.
• Zone 7 Water Agency provided a $750 rebate for the removal of this lawn.
• Water use will be reduced next year, when the garden has become established.
• Prolific herb and veggie gardens, along with fig, nectarine, pear, apricot, and kumquat trees, flourish in the back garden.
• Designer Kat Weiss will be at this garden from 1:00-5:00.
Gardening for Wildlife
Finches, doves, towhees, phoebes, hummingbirds, and native bees frequent this garden. Lizards bask on the dry stacked walls, and shelter in the brush piles. Toads can be seen in the cool of the mornings and evenings.
Garden Talks
2:00 “Five easy design ideas to do your own front garden, using four rocks, one pot, and twenty one plants” by Kat Weiss
