Lot size: 500 sq. ft. front, 1,350 sq. ft. back garden, 95% native
Garden Age: Garden was installed in 2017
Years on the Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour: 2
Showcase Feature
Gretchen, who has been on almost every Tour since it began in 2005, “was tired of wasting water and trying to grow a lawn on sand.” Through the Tour she found Lois Simonds of Gardening by Nature’s Design, who sheet mulched away the lawn, and designed and installed this peaceful and serene garden. In the front garden, orange poppies, blue Sonoma sage, and yellow monkeyflower and goldenrod welcome visitors. In the tranquil back garden plants of varying heights and textures, and a gracefully curving moss rock wall, contribute to the visual appeal. The fence line is softened by a medley of Island tree mallow, chaparral mallow, and the California lilacs ‘Snow Flurry’, ‘Wheeler Canyon’, and ‘Dark Star’. A rebate from the East Bay Municipal Utility District helped to pay for this project.
Other Garden Attractions
• In the front garden prostrate chamise, manzanita, sage, and coyote brush function as evergreen groundcovers.
• Carpenteria and coffeeberry will create privacy screens when mature.
• Restrooms are available at nearby Tillman Park.
• Designer Lois Simonds will be at this garden all day to answer your landscaping questions.
Gardening for Wildlife
The back garden was designed to attract birds. In addition to feathered visitors, skippers delight in chasing each other through the white sage; anise swallowtail butterflies flutter more gracefully through the garden. Bees buzz the sages.
Garden Talks
12:00 “How to design a garden and attract birds to your garden” by Lois Simonds
Video
“Gardening with California native plants: Gretchen Pivonka’s garden in Alameda, California” by landscape designer Lois Simonds
