Judy Adler’s Garden
Walnut Creek
Gardening experience: from childhood
Years gardened at this location: 27 years
Lot size: 1/2 acre
Showcase feature: This eclectic garden, designed by Ron Lutsko of Lutsko Associates, embodies the principles of LifeGarden, a nonprofit organization cofounded by the gardener. “Nothing organic leaves this garden and nothing toxic enters” says Judy. The garden is part farm, part wildlife habitat and part serene resting place. It is an Eden of California natives and other Mediterranean climate plants, fruit trees, and herbs. Note the manzanita hedge bordering the driveway and the collection of natives near the pond. The garden is adjacent to open space.
Other garden attractions:
- Roses are used as decoys for the deer.
- Perhaps the tallest native grape in California is growing up a four-story redwood.
- More than 350 species of plants are included in this garden—though there was not a single plant here when the house was built.
- Fallen leaves are regarded as mulch, not mess.
Gardening for Wildlife: Native plants invite wildlife into the garden, where they pollinate more than 30 species of fruit trees and accompanying herbs, berries, and nuts. The manzanita hedge provides shelter for a flock of quail. Woodpeckers, flickers, yellow-rumped warblers, bush tits, Bewick’s wrens, and black-headed phoebes are some of the winged inhabitants of this garden. Brush piles are created here and there to provide shelter for wildlife, and, later, excellent mulch.