Rich McDrew’s Garden
Walnut Creek
Gardening experience: 31 years
Years gardened at this location: 26 years
Size: 1 acre
Showcase feature: Stately coast live and valley oaks and a grove of redwoods grace this woodland garden. Steep terraced slopes meander through bunchgrass meadows on their way to the to the lower part of the garden. Near the house, an elaborate Trex deck (through which hole was thoughtfully sawed to accommodate a large oak) leads to a gazebo which offers magnificent views of Suisun Bay. This garden, affectionately called Buena Vista Acre, was designed and installed by the gardener.
Other garden attractions:
- Note the animal artwork, such as the bear loveseat and bighorn sheep.
- Garden receives little or no summer water.
- Alice Gillibert will have unique hand painted original California native wildflower tile art and vases for sale.
Gardening for Wildlife: The mature trees and diversity on native plants create a haven for wildlife in this peaceful woodland garden. Four bird baths provide water, and a diversity of understory plants provide food, shelter, and nesting areas for wildlife. Bats flit overhead in the evening. Twenty species of native wildflowers drive the pollinators into ecstasy in the spring. Barn owls nest in their barn owl nest boxes, and bluebirds and squirrels nest in the houses provided for them. A few of the 40 species of birds that live in or are seen from this garden include: red-tailed, sharp-shinned, and sparrow hawks (American kestrels); barn, screech, and great horned owls; acorn and downy woodpeckers; purple martins; lazuli buntings; evening grosbeaks; and California quail.
Garden talk: 2:00 "Sudden Oak Death: What It Is, and How to Prevent It" by Janice Alexander of the California Oak Mortality Task Force
Plants sold or given away: Native plants, reference books, posters, and Garden Tour t-shirts will be sold by the California Native Plant Society.