2021 Self-Guided Fall Front Garden Tour

Thank you to these generous residents for sharing their gardens on this fall’s tour:

  • Cambrian Avenue (St. James & Sandringham)

  • La Salle Avenue (St. James & Indian)

  • Sea View Avenue (at Hampton)

  • La Salle Avenue (at King)

  • La Salle Avenue (Muir & Florada)

  • Requa Road (Wildwood & Hazel)

  • Wildwood Avenue (Winsor & Prospect)

  • Boulevard Way (Crofton & Warfield)

  • Rose Avenue (Greenbank & Echo)

  • Fairview Avenue (at Oakland)

  • El Cerrito Avenue (Ricardo & Blair)

  • Hillside Avenue (Blair & Park Way)

  • Mesa Avenue (Moraga & Park Way)

  • Hillside Avenue (Oakland & Vista)

(Bold type indicates California native-dominant gardens, with >80% native plantings)

Cambrian Avenue

This newly-planted (June 2021) native wildflower meadow combines 6 varieties of deep-rooted California native grasses which use less water, sequester more carbon, and provide superior stormwater management. A huge assortment of birds, bees, pollinators, and grasshoppers visit this garden. Many wildflowers, which reseed themselves year after year, provide a changing palette and orientation of colors through the seasons. This garden has been certified by both the National Wildlife Federation and by the Xerces Society as an official Monarch Waystation, providing the botanical elements needed to support the annual Western monarch migration.

This newly-planted (June 2021) native wildflower meadow combines 6 varieties of deep-rooted California native grasses which use less water, sequester more carbon, and provide superior stormwater management. A huge assortment of birds, bees, pollinators, and grasshoppers visit this garden. Many wildflowers, which reseed themselves year after year, provide a changing palette and orientation of colors through the seasons. This garden has been certified by both the National Wildlife Federation and by the Xerces Society as an official Monarch Waystation, providing the botanical elements needed to support the annual Western monarch migration.

Transition Year

In stages, beginning with parking strips in 2015. Lawn was removed from the main section below the walkway and replanted in June 2021. Ivy was dug-out by hand from the section below the driveway and replanted in 2020-2021.

Motivation

To minimize irrigation, eliminate chemicals and fossil-fuel use, and create a vibrant wildlife habitat visited by an abundance and wide variety of creatures.

Goals

To establish, to the greatest extent possible, a California native-dominant wildlife garden that attracts plentiful wildlife, supports migrations, minimizes supplemental water use, eliminates chemical and fossil-products use (either gas-burning tools or petroleum-based fertilizers) and benefits a healthy local biosphere. Another goal is to harvest on-site rainwater, reduce wastewater, and replenish groundwater.

Prior Landscape

Conventional lawn, mixed with ornamental shrubs and hedges like camellia, azalea, rhododendron, fringe flower.

Removal Techniques

Sheet mulching was used where there was little infiltration by invasive Bermuda grass which is difficult to eliminate without physically removing the roots or using potent poisons. The lawn areas which were laced with Bermuda grass were dug up by hand. Occasional hand-weeding keeps Bermuda grass from spreading again. No toxic chemicals are ever used.

Who

Homeowner with support from gardener. As we have reduced our lawn areas, we have reduced the frequency of our gardener visits, and our gardener no longer generates disturbing neighborhood noise or harmful fumes because there is no mowing. Gas-powered lawn equipment generally uses 2-stroke engines that generate high levels of particulate matter which are particularly irritating to respiratory systems.

Water Features

A bird bath and “bee bowl” are in the back garden. A bee bowl is a smaller, shallower bowl filled with water and either small pebbles or floating cork discs which allows smaller flying bugs like bees, dragon/damselflies, and butterflies/moths to alight safely and drink water.

Irrigation

Homeowners capped-off a pop-up sprinkler system which had misting sprinkler heads in the south-facing parking strip and replaced it with a drip irrigation system. All other existing pop-up ‘misting’ sprinkler heads in the front planted areas were replaced with high-efficiency MP-rotor streaming sprinkler heads. Not all garden areas receive supplemental irrigation. These areas are hand-watered selectively.

Plant List

NATIVE TREES: 

NON-NATIVE TREES

  • Ornamental crabapple

  • Victorian box, Pittosporum undulatum

  • Pineapple guava, Feijoa sellowiana (beside driveway)

  • Red horsechestnut (2, in City parking strip)

SHRUBS:

NON-NATIVE SHRUBS (mostly legacy plantings)

  • New Zealand flax

  • Camellia

  • Lantana

  • Bird-of-Paradise

  • Rhododendron

  • Lavender (volunteers seeded from uphill neighbor’s bush)


PERENNIALS:

GROUNDCOVERS:

NATIVE GRASSES:

RESEEDING ANNUALS

Green Infrastructure

  • Greywater system (laundry plus 3 full bathrooms)

  • Native bee hotel (2) 

  • Bird bath

  • Bee bowl

  • Honeybee hives

  • Rooftop solar PV system (26-panels, 8.97 kW)

  • EV charger

  • All updated low-flow plumbing fixtures (faucets, appliances, and dual-flush toilets)

Certifications

View of Original Landscape

La Salle Avenue

Erosion control and drainage were important considerations in the design of this steep, newly-installed front garden along the St. James riparian corridor, which features an open creek that flows with water year-round.

Erosion control and drainage were important considerations in the design of this steep, newly-installed front garden along the St. James riparian corridor, which features an open creek that flows with water year-round.

Transition Year

2021

Motivation

I've had an appreciation for California native plants (ever since my college botany class) and find great pleasure in exploring wildflowers when hiking along the coast, in the mountains and in desert environments. I also feel a personal responsibility to do my part to reduce water usage in light of California's prolonged drought. Planting a drought tolerant garden was one way I could do my part to conserve water.

Goals

It has been on my bucket list for several years to replace the slope of ivy in our front garden with a natural looking rock garden featuring California native wildflowers and other drought-tolerant plants.

Prior Landscape

Ivy patch

Removal Techniques

Removal of the ivy was all done by hand - the landscaper's crew painstakingly pick-axed their way through the thick roots of the ivy and removed other invasive plants. No chemicals were used.

Who

Homeowner developed garden plan, landscape contractor removed the ivy, installed the boulders and drip irrigation system, then planted the plants and heavily mulched the entire area.

Water Features & Irrigation

The property backs onto one of our watershed’s major year-round above-ground streams. Deer and other wildlife depend on and frequently visit this riparian corridor. In addition, the new, automated drip irrigation system has several different feeds so that watering can be adjusted for differing water needs in the garden.

Plant List

I selected plants that were drought tolerant, deer resistant (we have a lot of deer because the back of the property abuts a riparian corridor), and which would attract bees, birds/hummingbirds and butterflies. I also selected plants that would be effective at stabilizing the slope and preventing erosion. I used volcanic boulders (feather rock pumice and lava rock) to be consistent with the volcanic bedrock we have in the area.

Native plants

Non-native plants

  • Japanese maple

  • Foxtail fern

  • Heart leaf bergenia

  • Bougainvillea

  • Swan river daisy

  • Camellia

  • Eastern redbud varieties

  • Breath of heaven (golden)

  • Dogwood hybrid

  • Daphne

  • Variegated flax

  • Coneflower

  • Santa Barbara daisy

  • Thyme leafed fuchsia

  • Jade mound

  • Veronica lake

  • Heliotrope

  • Siberian iris

  • Lantana

  • Leonotis

  • Lily turf varieties

  • Fringe flower

  • Banana shrub

  • Catmint

  • Sage varieties

  • Lily of the valley shrub

  • Sweet pea shrub

  • Rhododendron varieties

  • Azalea varieties

  • Rosemary

Sea View Avenue

rOcbzD3WTSCHpahBIUqeUA.jpg

Transition Year

2016

Motivation

Our home was surrounded by thirsty, labor-intensive, weed-infested lawn. We never liked to douse it with chemicals, which is necessary to keep it looking good. Moles always seemed to like it better than we did.

Goals

Reduce irrigation, maintenance (both the labor and the greenhouse gases burned by the equipment), eliminate weeds and chemicals used. Create a more aesthetically-pleasing environment.

Prior Landscape

Conventional lawn

Removal Techniques

It took time and labor to be rid of the lawn. We substantially had it dug out and hauled off, replacing topsoil in areas where necessary to support many non-native plant choices. Gardening fabric, mulch and bark have been key tools.

Who

Bernardo Lopez of Latitude 37 Landscape + Design

Water Features & Irrigation

We have a bird fountain in the backyard. We used dark and light pebbles over fabric as a permeable element of our landscape. All irrigation is now drip-delivered. Every important plant is provided two drip emitters and each delivers half of the desired water. Why? Clogs happen in drip system, so having two emitters per plant mitigates the risk of a dead plant. Checking the system regularly is a key routine.

Plant List

We have to protect plants from deer, which come through every night. This means most of our plants are unpalatable to ruminants. Our showiest plants in season are Proteas, which are thriving on a slope in full sun. We also use several varieties of sages (salvia)  and euphorbia. The euphorbia grow (and seed) exuberantly. We use at least two varieties of native manzanita, which has beautiful bark and once established needs little water. We prune the big manzanitas regularly to control their size and reveal more of the deep red bark. (I am considering whether giving them no supplemental summer water will yield even fewer leaves). Citrus does well, once established, if protected from deer. We attract bees, with several varieties of lavender. 

For fragrance we love variegated daphne, which is slow-growing, and thrives here. For contrast we use a white-blueish oat grass.  There are a few others in the sun - lemongrass, kangaroo paw, leonotis (lion's tail). Aloe seems to need less sun than we expected. Succulents (mainly behind the house) are easy and pretty. We like brugmansia (angel's trumpet) for the fragrance and flowers but it isn’t water-wise. 

Above all, a big protea is an easy, beautiful, water wise choice with enough presence to replace an expanse of lawn. It’s evergreen and many varieties have long-lasting, eye-catching flowers. On the flip side, beware-- we are in an ongoing battle with wild onions, which will take over the universe one day.

Green Infrastructure

We have a large, 42-panel solar array and an EV charger (with an EV).

La Salle Avenue

The frothy foliage in a variety of shades and textures makes this wedding-cake Tudor visually stunning.

The frothy foliage in a variety of shades and textures makes this wedding-cake Tudor visually stunning.

Transition Year

2016

Motivation

I had wanted to remove my front lawn for years and finally got around to it in 2016. We re-landscaped with additional rock walls, steps, and a semi-permeable walkway.

Goals

Remove lawn and create a more visually interesting landscape.

Prior Landscape

Conventional lawn.

Who

Valerie Matzger completed the garden design and plant selection, supported by our gardener who built the rock walls and installed the walkways and plantings.

Water Features & Irrigation

There is a fountain in the back garden.

Example Plantings

Tibouchina heteromalla, Silver Leaved Princess Flower, fragrant Brugmansia ‘Charles Grimaldi’, and the firecracker plant on either side of the front stairs are favorite plants. More recently, we have added some native milkweed to assist Monarch butterfly populations whose numbers have been plummeting.

Green Infrastructure

We have installed rooftop solar power to generate clean electricity on-site.

La Salle Avenue

This garden provides wide ranging color, texture, visual interest and is actively visited by numerous pollinators.

Transition Year

2015

Motivation

I did sheet much my front lawn in 2015. It was hard to maintain a lawn on a slope, I was tired of mowing it, and it never looked very good. Also, I had learned about replacing lawns with drought-tolerant plants from Stopwaste.org, articles I had read and various speakers at the Piedmont Garden Club and the Garden Club of America.

Goals

Reduce water usage and labor required to maintain a conventional lawn.

Prior Landscaping

Conventional lawn.

Removal Techniques

Sheet mulched front garden in 2015

Who

Homeowner

Plant List

California Natives

Non-Native Plants

  • Mexican sage (Salvia leucantha)

  • Rose Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens)

  • Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus)

  • Lily-of-the-Nile (Agapanthus africanus)

  • Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum superbum)

  • Sweet Scabious (Scabiosa atropurpurea)

  • Cyprus spurge (Euphorbia cyparissias)

  • Spiny-head mat-rush (Lomandra longifolia)

  • St. Andrew’s cross (Hypericum hypericoides)

  • Red valerian (Centranthus ruber)

  • Pot Marigold (Calendula officinalis)

  • Eastern gray beardtongue (Penstemon canescens)

  • Red Hot Poker (Kniphofia)

  • Spanish Lavender (Lavandula stoechas)

  • English Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)

  • French Lavender (Lavendula dentata)

  • Sedum (Hylotelephum telephium)

  • Japanese Anemone (Anemone hupehensis)

  • Rocket arugula (Diplotaxis tenuifolia)

  • Smoke tree (Cotinus coggygria)

  • King protea (Protea cynaroides)


Green Infrastructure

The patio has permeable flagstones (set with spaces between). We have rain barrels/urns in front of the house to collect rainwater from the roof. Hoses run from those rain barrels to water the south-facing back garden. We have a bird bath on the front patio. 

Requa Road

0zPm%ydcS4GX5yCTdoeGfg.jpg

Transition Year

2017

Motivation

Previously, the concrete driveway and front walkway pooled up with water. We wanted to improve drainage and establish a more sustainable front landscape.

Goals

Prevent excess on-site water retention and reduce irrigation.

Prior Landscape

Conventional lawn with a concrete front walkway and driveway.

Removal Techniques

We used sheet mulch in the backyard, but in the front yard we pulled the lawn, and tilled it. Because we moved so much dirt with the removal of all of the concrete (walkways and driveway), the grass roots didn't grow back in our new landscaping.

Plant List

A flowering bed of Lippia and sculptural bunch grasses lay the foundation for this captivating garden. All of the plants were chosen because they are drought tolerant with an emphasis on plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies.

Green Infrastructure

We have a permeable driveway and permeable pavers for the front walkway.

View of Original Landscape

Wildwood Avenue

A soft palette of silver-grey-leafed and mauve-flowered ground covers sets off the spectacular deep-wine-barked manzanita anchoring this front garden.

A soft palette of silver-grey-leafed and mauve-flowered ground covers sets off the spectacular deep-wine-barked manzanita anchoring this front garden.

Transition Year

2010

Motivation

​​A lifelong gardener, I enrolled in the landscape design degree program at Merritt College and was eager to put into practice all that I was learning.

Goals

Remove dull, traditional, thirsty landscaping. Replace with waterwise plants, many natives, habitat for pollinators and other beneficials. Focus on creating year-round interest and compatibility with the traditional architecture of my home by using form, texture and foliage color with minimal high-maintenance plants. Aim to use plants as “mulch,” to keep soil cool, retain water and create a lush look.

Prior Landscape

Conventional lawn, English laurel hedge, boxwoods

Removal Techniques

Sheet mulched a small lawn using collected cardboard and compost with wood chips from a neighbor’s tree pruning. Left sheet mulch in place for at least a year before planting.

Plant List

Native California Plants

Arctostaphylos ‘Austin Griffith’, large Manzanita (by driveway)

Asclepias speciosa, Showy milkweed (sprinkled throughout)

Eriogonum grande rubescens, Red-flowered buckwheat (along sidewalk)

Eriogonum latifolium, Coast buckwheat (along sidewalk)

Foresteria pubescens, Desert olive (small tree by path)

Heuchera ‘Rosada’ (in front of abutilon)

Rhamnus californica ‘Leatherleaf’, Leatherleaf Coffee berry (against house by driveway)

Salvia, Black sage

Non-native Plants

Abutilon ‘Rosalie’

Aeonium (maybe ‘Mint Saucer’)

Coprosma kirkii variegata

Coprosma (probably’Rainbow Surprise’)

Correa pulchella

Cuphea hybrid ‘Starfire’

Dianella ‘Baby Bliss’

Dianella variegata

Dogwood ‘Cloud 9’

Helleborus argutifolius

Lomandra ‘Katrinus Deluxe’

Lomandra ‘Platinum Beauty’

Oxalis Burgundy

Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Marjorie Channon’

Penstemon ‘Husker’s Red’

Sesleria ‘Greenlee Hybrid’

Teucrium ackermannii

Teucrium chamaedrys

Teucrium ‘Summer Sunshine’

Westringia ‘Gray Box’

Westringia ‘Smokey’

Viburnum sargentii ‘Onondaga’

Boulevard Way

A textured tapestry of low-growing grasses, succulents, and perennials, interwoven with spots of eye-catching color will dazzle this garden’s visitors.

A textured tapestry of low-growing grasses, succulents, and perennials, interwoven with spots of eye-catching color will dazzle this garden’s visitors.

Transition Year

2017-18

Motivation

To create a native, drought tolerant habitat/pollinator garden.

Goals

In addition to creating a wildlife habitat garden, we needed to slow the movement of water down our lot’s slope to prevent soil erosion. To achieve this goal, we placed a number of small- to medium-sized boulders throughout the area.

Prior Landscape

Conventional lawn

Removal Techniques

We sheet mulched the front lawn.

Who

Homeowners

Water Features & Irrigation

My husband drilled one medium-sized boulder to make a pondless water fountain.

Plant List

Native Plants

Achillea millefolium, Common Yarrow

Aquilegia formosa, Western Columbine

Arctostaphylos, Manzanita species

Artemesia Californica, California Sagebrush

Artemisia douglasiana, California Mugwort

Asclepias fascicularis, Narrow Leaf Milkweed

Brodiaea californica, California Brodiaea

Drymocallis glandulosa, Sticky Cinquefoil

Epilobium canum, California Fuchsia

Erigeron glaucus, Seaside Fleabane

Eriogonum fasciculatum, California Buckwheat 

Eriogonum latifolium, Coast Buckwheat 

Eriogonum umbellatum, Sulfur Buckwheat

Eschscholzia californica, California Poppy

Frangula californica, Coffeeberry

Heuchera maxima, Island Alum Root

Heuchera pilosissima, Seaside Alum Root

Juncus patens, Common Rush

Monardella villosa, Coyote Mint

Pellaea mucronata, Bird’s Foot Fern

Pellaea mucronata var. mucronata, Bird’s Nest Fern

Penstemon centranthifolius, Scarlet Bugler

Penstemon heterophyllus, Foothill or Beardtongue Penstemon

Phyla nodiflora, Common Lippia

Polypodium scouleri, Leathery Polypody

Salvia leucophylla, Purple Sage

Salvia spathacea, Hummingbird Sage

Scrophularia californica, Bee Plant

Sedum spathulifolium, Yellow Stonecrop

Sisyrinchium bellum, Blue Eyed Grass

Solidago velutina, California Goldenrod

Tanacetum bipinnatum, Dune Tansy

Tellima grandiflora, Fringe Cups

Whipplea modesta, Modesty

Non-Native Plants:

Cirsium, Globe Thistle

Iris, ‘Canyon Snow’, Bearded, Iris sp.

Salvia greggii sp.

Salvia chamaedryoides, Germander Sage

Gaillardia sp., Blanket flower

Echinacea sp., Coneflower 

Lavender sp.

Echeveria sp.

Ophiopogon japonicus, Dwarf Mondo Grass

Verbena bonariensis, Purpletop Vervain

Scabrosa, Pincushion Flower

Green Infrastructure

A decomposed granite path runs along the upper side of the garden, now mostly grown over with Common Lippia (Phyla nodiflora), a native lawn substitute.

Rose Avenue

The contrasting hues and sculptural interest provided by these native manzanita, give the eye a colorful resting point and draw the eye over the plainer retaining wall to the softer native sword ferns, bunch grasses, and ground covers of this shady, West-facing front garden.

The contrasting hues and sculptural interest provided by these native manzanita, give the eye a colorful resting point and draw the eye over the plainer retaining wall to the softer native sword ferns, bunch grasses, and ground covers of this shady, West-facing front garden.

Transition Year

2007-08

Motivation

We opted for California natives because it seemed more appropriate than trying to recreate an East Coast garden and its rainier spring/summer.

Goals

Reduce outdoor water and chemical use, and required maintenance.

Who

Homeowners

Plant List

We planted manzanitas, wild strawberries, lamb ears, and other plants which were reported to require little water once established. Additionally, the garden is currently full of a healthy population of “volunteers” from neighboring gardens.

Fairview Avenue

This provisioning garden melds a variety of fruit trees and edibles with healthy habitat and plenty of forage to support pollinators in every life stage.

Transition Year

Over time beginning in the 1980s

Motivation

To reduce water use and maintenance requirements.

Goals

The goal has been to blend human edibles, dye plants and pollinator friendly habitat into an aesthetically pleasing environment. The entire garden has been converted to a habitat garden where the landscape is designed to sustain all inhabitants - human and otherwise- with a particular focus on supporting pollinators.

Prior Landscape

Conventional lawn

Water Features & Irrigation

A slow-moving fountain bubbles in the back garden to provide a year-round water source for wildlife. Water to plants, where needed, is provided by a Netafim grid drip irrigation system. As co-founder of the Pollinator Posse, a non-profit which provides outreach, education and habitat development for pollinators, I speak frequently throughout northern California and beyond on the current state of our pollinators and what can be done to support them. Further information including talks, interviews, plant lists and other resources can be found on the Posse Web site.

Plant List

The front garden is an orchard with 10 varieties of fruit trees which are underplanted with a mostly native pollinator habitat, while non-native honey bee hives occupy the balcony over the front door.

Certifications

El Cerrito Avenue

Our front garden is planted with 95-98% CA native plants in about 1,250 sq ft. We removed the existing lawn, weeds, non-native plants and invasive roots in the fall of 2008 and planted the garden the winter of 2008-09. Our goal was to bring back a diverse, California native landscape, provide habitat, and minimize irrigation. We have been enchanted with our garden as we have watched it change with the seasons over the years. The variety of flowering plants, nectar, seeds and fruit attract numerous birds, butterflies, bees and beneficial insects.

The fine textures of native grasses and blooming perennials softens and complements the textural richness of the hand-hewn stone staircase and facade of this historic brown shingle home.

The fine textures of native grasses and blooming perennials softens and complements the textural richness of the hand-hewn stone staircase and facade of this historic brown shingle home.

Transition Year

2008-09

Motivation

My professional life is focused on sustainable design, and I work at incorporating more environmentally sound decisions into as many aspects of my personal life as possible.

Goals

Being an avid gardener, I decided I wanted to garden with only California natives and drought-tolerant plants. In order to move in this direction, I toured many gardens for a few years that were on the East Bay’s Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour. I focused on gardens in micro-climates similar to our own.

Prior Landscape

Conventional non-native lawn and other non-native shrubs.

Removal Techniques

Instead of using sheet mulch, we removed weeds and invasive non-native shrubs by hand, and dug up the yard very carefully.

Who

DIY by homeowners.

Water Features & Irrigation

We keep a bird bath for creatures in both the front and back yard.

Plant List

The garden is tiered with multiple canopy layers providing shelter and habitat for a variety of vertebrate and invertebrate life forms. Landscape structure is supplied by taller native shrubs including:

Manzanita (Arctostaphylos densiflora ‘Harmony’)

Flowering perennials abound with an array of colors and textures.  Here one can see:

And to beautify and enliven even the City parking strip, the homeowner planted native bunch grasses in varying sizes and textures along with annual flowering flax:

Certifications

Hillside Avenue

This garden is a visual feast for humans and a cornucopia for pollinators.

This garden is a visual feast for humans and a cornucopia for pollinators.

Transition Year

2019

Motivation

We live in a drought-prone area and wanted to do our part to conserve water.

Goals

To reduce irrigation

Removal Techniques

Our landscape contractor did not sheet-mulch but used an ecological technique called “soil scraping” which opens the hard surface layer and renews the underlying soil layers.

Who

Designed by Plant Stars’s Winnie Creason with installation and maintenance by Acorn Landscaping.

Plant List

The garden has a lovely structure provided by non-native trees with varying leaf hues and shapes.

A robust understory of larger shrubs includes some habitat-enhancing native selections such as:

A mixture of lovely native flowering perennials provides sparks and snatches of color while attracting plentiful invertebrate wildlife:

Native succulents add highlights and body to garden views, causing the eye to pause while roving through the palette:

And underlying this living painting is a native ground cover which fills in bare patches, protects soils from overheating and erosion, and provides early season nectar for overwintering birds and foraging insects:

Hillside Avenue

The set-back home has a spacious outer front garden where one meanders among bountiful floral displays on the approach to the main gate before entering the inner front garden.

The set-back home has a spacious outer front garden where one meanders among bountiful floral displays on the approach to the main gate before entering the inner front garden.

Transition Year

2016 to the present

Motivation

We needed to replace a diseased oak tree and we disliked the non-native ivy and bushes.

Goals

We wanted a greater abundance of flowers to attract and support declining pollinator populations and to reduce irrigation. A much greater breadth of pollinators are supported by native plants with less water usage and fewer amendments needed.

Prior Landscape

English ivy (considered invasive in California) and various non-native bushes.

Who

Owner with supplemental advice and guidance from Peter Veilleux of East Bay Wilds.

Partial Plant List

The homeowners removed non-native plants (root to stem) by hand, mulched the large front area and replaced it with a lush variety of native California blooming annuals and perennials:

and other long bloomers support a huge variety of birds and pollinators.  This landscape design established multiple canopy layers by planting many varieties of native trees including:

Green Infrastructure

This family is on the verge of achieving a zero-carbon home. They have installed the largest on-site solar electrical-generation system in Piedmont with a 44 panel array, distributed electric, on-demand/tankless hot-water heaters, an electric induction cooktop, 2 BEVs (battery electric-vehicles) with an electric-heat pump furnace soon to follow. The family is eating a mostly plant-based diet, flying less, and minimizing their use of plastics by buying zero-waste products, and buying in bulk by refilling existing containers. They have been global climate leaders both in charitable giving and in formulating and executing strategy for well-known environmental organizations, optimizing their carbon sequestration effectiveness by preserving dense, old-growth rainforest acreage across the planet.

Mesa Avenue

The West-facing portico is surrounded by a flood of year-round kaleidoscopic color from this Mediterranean-plant garden designed for succession blooming.

The West-facing portico is surrounded by a flood of year-round kaleidoscopic color from this Mediterranean-plant garden designed for succession blooming.

Transition Year

2016

Motivation

A concern for the excessive water use which lawns require plus, we saw an opportunity to make our front garden more aesthetically appealing. We had been using dry garden techniques at our Oakland house in the 1990’s.

Goals

Reduce water use and improve visual appeal by designing a front garden to achieve ‘succession blooming’. This technique selects plants whose bloom seasons overlap so that one or more plants in the collection is blooming in every season of the year to provide continuous visual interest and color throughout the year in our Wet-Dry climate.

Prior Landscape

Almost exclusively conventional lawn.

Who

A contractor suppressed the former lawns using a barrier method and installed the new garden. Homeowner is involved in maintaining the new garden.

Plant List

The garden consists of a range of flowering perennials, known to bloom in different seasons of the year. This horticultural design technique is called ‘succession blooming’ because different sections of the garden are spotlighted throughout the year as those plants and plant combinations enter their blooming period. This can increase the garden’s visual interest because the eye-catching flowering is ever shifting.

California natives

  • Ceanothus ‘Carmel Creeper’ a low-growing native lilac ground cover which blooms in the late winter and early spring

  • Epilobium canum, or California fuchsia, a hummingbird magnet which typically blooms prolifically with crimson-red tubular flowers in August through early October.

Non-natives

  • Kangaroo paw

  • Burmese plumbago

  • Meyer lemon

  • Breath of Heaven

  • Himalayan dogwood

  • Smoke tree

  • Coral bells

  • Lantana

  • Lavender

  • Fringe flower

  • Flax

  • Princess flower

Invasives

  • Mexican feather grass: In a small note of caution, the City of Piedmont warns against planting highly-invasive Mexican feather grass which is found in this (and other) Piedmont gardens.