Oh my darling Clementine! A sweet, tangy and juicy clementine will be a sure way to brighten a winter's day....another blessing of living in the golden state.

As you might imagine, we only have so much room for so many plants! Thankfuly smarter minds than ours have mastered the art of the espalier. We'd like to try our hands at growing an espalier tree on the sun facing walls of our house.

Have you ever tried a perfectly ripe Hachiya persimmon? If not, imagine a texture similar to custard and an almost date like sweetness. A beautiful tree with flaming red leaves in the Fall!

We've learned a lot about growing fruit trees in planning for this garden... One interesting fact, is even though fruit trees might not need another tree for pollination and fruit production, they produce more fruit near a tree that flowers at the same time. This yummy Burgundy Plum will be our Santa Rosa Plum companion!

This gorgeous California native is one of the best plants for wildlife, providing nectar for butterflies, hummingbirds and native insects. Many of the manzanitas regulate their nectar to attract different insects, butterflies and hummingbirds during the day. The smooth red bark on its sculptural limbs is a stand out!

A California native loved by many types of birds, including one of our favorites...hummingbirds!

This California native beauty loves to be nestled on shady hillsides or near creeks and streams where they are hosts to caterpillars and buterflies.

Currants are some of the neatest California native plants. They have great flowers, tasty fruit, fragrant foliage, good fall color, and much more. Currants are loved by many birds including the California Thrasher the Hermit Thrush, the American Robin... and hummingbirds!

Native Buckwheats work in a native garden as babies breath does in a floral arrangement. They are some of the most popular nectar sources for butterflies and great nectaries for many of the insect predators. Blue and hairstreak butterflies especially like buckwheats and many of these species suffer from dwindling habitat.

In California, the sages are visited by hummingbirds, bumblebees, wasps and bees. Hummingbirds kill for sages. They defend the sages in their territory like they are the only water in the desert.

Pozo Blue Sage is really showy and forms a nice round shrub. It is especially popular with California Quail, hummingbirds, and lots of butterflies including the California Dog Face.

The main pollinators for White Sage are the humble bumblebee and small native wasps. These guys are hard little workers that bother no one but whose nectar sources have been replaced in California with weeds. They'll fly into the flower face and then crawl into the flower's neck and sip the nectar.

Western Yarrow provides a profusion of cream colored flowers all summer long! Great for a butterfly garden. Excellent for pollinators.

This California native holds a special place in my heart...not only is it beautiful and very fragrant...It's one of the first California natives Russ learned to identify on our hikes. Admittedly, the first few months he kept calling it lavender. 😊

These native plants to California are named for their funny-face-flowers that look like grinning Monkeys. You won't find these monkeys swinging from trees, but they can often be found growing in almost solid rock with very little moisture even on south facing slopes. They will often survive drought by going summer deciduous. This little wonder supports the habitat of hummingbirds, bats, birds, bees, caterpillars and butterflies!

You'll find this native fern growing wild in nearly all our shady forests as a host plant to butterflies and moths. Come visit and we'll show you them nestled among majestic Redwoods. Unfortunately, we can't lay claim to any redwoods in our garden, but we do have a lovely, mature Coast Live Oak that could use the company of this stately fern.

Showy milkweed is an important butterfly host plant, especially for the Monarch butterfly. Adult butterflies feed on the flower nectar and caterpillars eat the leaves. The blooms also attract hummingbirds. Like other milkweeds, this plant produces alkaloids that, when consumed, protect the caterpillars from predators.

We enjoy this bright, California beauty in our front garden for the bold color almost as much as the show it creates with the hummingbirds! The hummingbirds literally dive bomb at each other to defend their fuchsia territory.

Trailing Sagebrush is a natural cultivar of California Sagebrush (Artemisia californica) from San Miguel Island, one of the Channel Islands in Southern California. It's not native to our part of California, but it's so cool that we can make an exception. 😉

Who's the hardest at work in our garden? Not Russ, not me, but the bees and other pollinators. There are one thousand species of California native bees, 26 of these are bumblebees and most of the rest are solitary bees. That is, they do not live in a hive with drones and all the rest. Some bee species are very specific in their needs and will prefer natives from their area. Others will work the available flowers that are in the families of flora they are used to. Go native!

Birds, butterflies, berries and beautiful...need I say more?

This grass-like native not only supports habitats for bats, caterpillars and butterflies, it stays green all year round, even without water. That's pretty special in our wildfire-prone dry summers.

This versatile grass is one of the few plants that can be planted under our sensitive Coast Live Oak. It provides valuable forage for wildlife and its deep root system helps it withstand dry conditions and supports beneficial soil fungi. Plus it's blue!

Purple needlegrass provides many ecological benefits, supporting wildlife & plant diversity. Its deep roots bind the ground, bring nutrients to the surface & make them available to other plants. Deep roots also reduce erosion, especially important on our steep hillside. Traditionally, California Indigenous peoples used it for basket weaving & food. Topping it off with purple plumes that sway in the wind!.

Because digging holes for all those plants isn't enough exercise for Russ...who needs to go to a gym when there's work to be done!

Creating paths with flagstone throughout the garden is Russ's idea...I wonder if he'll still think it's a good one after going up and down a flight of stairs with a ton of these heavy babies? It will hurt, but it will be gorgeous!

OK, so maybe Russ could use some help with the heavy lifting after all ...If you're not around on tree or boulder day install, we know some amazingly, hard working guys who can take your place. I'll be the one pointing to where things go on the sidelines 😉

One of the great things about living in California is the joy of the Avocado. We found a local grower who sells already established large trees and with one of his beauties, we'll be harvesting within the first year. Come visit for some guacamole!

One of our favorite plum varieties that grows well in our area. Perfect for eating fresh off the tree, making jams, or Russ' special plum galettes!

California Lilacs are some of our most fragrant and colorful native shrubs in California. The bees absolutley love them!

Would a rose be a rose by any other name? Introducing Wood Rose... our simple native, wild rose.