Tarweed is in full bloom from late summer through fall, providing pollen and nectar when little else is available for bees and beneficial insects. A great choice with asters, goldenrod and grasses; heavy bloomer, reseeds readily. Usually 4 to 6 ft. tall, full sun, very low water needs.
This species of Gilia is unique to California and very easy to grow. Each plant yields hundreds of half-inch flowers on upright stems surrounded by soft, lacy foliage. Gilia is very attractive to bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects. Spring blooms, low water, 18” tall, reseeds.
The red and yellow flowers of the native Columbines rise up on graceful stems from basal clusters of beautiful lacey foliage. Columbines are at home streamside, and in the light shade of a forest garden. The plant can adjust to full sun, or partial shade, and appreciates some additional water in summer. The red and yellow flowers that appear in summer provide nectar for hummingbirds and butterflies. The abundant seeds that form within urn-shaped seed capsules in fall are relished by songbirds.
Sticky Columbine (Aquilegia eximia) is sometimes found growing in serpentine soils in the wild. Plants may reach 4′ high and about 2 ‘ wide, with stems are stouter than Western Columbine (A. formosa), and covered with sticky hairs. This Columbine blooms later, in summer rather than spring, and is happiest with more sun, but still appreciates some regular water. Try combining Sticky Columbine with penstemons, Gumplants, Verbenas and sun-loving bunchgrasses.
Gilias are easy to grow, and will happily reseed when conditions are right! Annual wildflowers often mingle with other wildflowers in the Grasslands and sun spots in the Oak Woodlands. Plant them amongst bunchgrasses in the garden; and use wildflowers to fill in around newly planted shrubs.
The ferny foliage is beautiful, and the spring flowers attract many beneficial insects. Seed can be sown in the garden at the start of the rainy season, or in containers later in spring. Songbirds eat the seeds, so be sure to offer protection until seedlings are at least a few inches tall.
Phacleias are one of the very best bee forage plants! The flowers bloom in early summer, and also attract many other beneficial insects. Plant them anywhere you need the service of pollinators; they create a beautiful and beneficial understory in a fruit orchard.
Annual wildflowers can be started from seed in the fall; protect against songbirds, which will eat the seed and newly germinated seedlings. Wildflowers can also be grown in containers.
The flowers of this native penstemon are almost an electric blue, and very profuse. It blooms in spring, and creates quite a show in the garden when planted with California poppies and other spring wildflowers. Plant this small perennial close to the front of the border. The flowers attract hummingbirds and butterflies.
Penstemon heterophyllus needs full sun. It can tolerate average garden water, and most soils as long as the drainage is good. It grows naturally in Chaparral and forest openings in the Coast Ranges, and at lower elevations in the Sierra.
While traveling the forest roads through Mendocino National Forest, we came upon a recent road cut where the steep slopes on either side had been colonized by Foothill Penstemon — It was a memorable and breath-taking spectacle!
The seed is small but needs no pre-germination treatment when sown outside in early fall. Prepare your seed-starting mixture, tamping it down solidly into the pot; rough the surface just a bit and sprinkle the seed on the surface. Then cover it with a thin layer of perlite or vermiculite, and tamp that down over the seed.
Germination is somewhat slow; it can be 6 to 8 weeks before the first seedlings appear. I usually use plastic nursery pots or flats to start seeds, but they keep the soil really moist and sometimes also soggy at the bottom; this may be detrimental to the early growth of the seedlings. I’ve been using a clay “bulb” pot (large in diameter, but shallow) to germinate and grow on the Penstemon seedlings, and getting better results.
I set my seed pot outside in a somewhat shady and protected place, either watering only once when I set it all up and then letting the rainy season take over, or I’ll put the pot on my seedling bench where I have systems set for a light watering once a day. Within two months or so after germination, the seedlings will be large enough to transplant to individual pots. Note the nice reddish color on the healthy young stems.
This lovely Monkeyflower is found growing naturally in wet places. It is adaptable to full sun or part shade locations, but is at its showiest around a pond or seep. This plant also adapts readily to boggy conditions, and will spread by runners to colonize a suitable area.
The flowers are large, bright yellow, and profuse; blooming from early spring through the summer as long as it receives some water. Hummingbirds love the flowers, and the blossoms are also visited by a host of bees and other insects.
The plant is occasionally used as a host for the larvae of the Buckeye butterfly.
Pink-flowering Currant grows best in partial shade; perfect in the summer-dry conditions of an oak woodland. Drooping racemes of pink to red flowers emerge just as the scented leaves unfurl in late winter or early spring. The plant has a tall vase-shaped form which lends itself to espaliering; it can also be pruned to a rounded shape. It is adaptable to many situations and not fussy about soils; with additional water it will tolerate full sun in all but the hottest areas.
Combine Ribes sanguineum with a shade loving Ceanothus such as ‘Ray Hartman’, which blooms at the same time, to create a lovely pastel picture. All the Ribes species are ideal shrubs in an oak woodland garden. Pink-flowering Currant can also be planted stream-side or in a mixed evergreen forest.
The flowers attract hummingbirds, and berries produced in the fall are favored by songbirds. The berries are edible, though not tasty; native peoples harvested and dried the fruits to make a type of “pemmican“.
This sweet little aster is native to coastal southern California; and given the right conditions will spread happily in most gardens. The pale lilac, daisy-like flowers make a cheerful display in summer. Plant it in full sun to part shade; it is accepting of many soil types. The plant can spread vigorously if given extra water; withholding water will keep it in check.
Aster chilensis can be interplanted with bunchgrasses and native bulbs in a meadow or used to underplant a mixed hedgerow. The flowers are a source of nectar for butterflies and moths, and pollen for a host of beneficial insects. The plant sometimes supports the larvae of the Painted Lady and Field Crescent butterflies. The seeds are minute and provide a food source for insects and ground-feeding birds. In some situations the deer nibble on this plant, so a little protection will help it to establish.
Named Varieties include ‘Pt. St. George,’ which forms a groundcover with flowering stalks no more than 4 to 6” tall, and ‘Purple Haze,’ which is a taller form with deeper violet flowers on stalks to 2 ft.
This lovely native of coastal bluffs is a reliable evergreen perennial that blooms prolifically in the garden in late spring. ‘Cape Sebastian’ is a dense, low-spreading selection, ideal for use as a ground cover, with pale lilac flowers; ‘Wayne Roderick’ is larger in stature and spread, with deeper lilac flowers.
Plants require good drainage, and perform best with a richer soil and average water. Some afternoon shade in an inland garden keeps plants from scorching in the summer. As with most Aster family plants, butterflies and beneficial insects are attracted to the flowers for nectar and pollen.
This plant can be used at the front of a mixed border. Create a mixed planting with other members of the Coastal ‘Soft Chaparral’ community such as Eriogonums, Eriophyllums, and Dudleyas. Seaside Daisy can add color to the edges of a meadow or no-mow lawn planting. It also does well in a container!