Coffeeberry is one of California’s most common shrubs, found growing naturally in various woodland, riparian and chaparral communities. It is very adaptable; growing tall and rangy in the shade of Bay or Oak trees, or growing in a much more compact form in full sun or on exposed bluffs along the coast. Plants grown from seed display various traits in accordance with their habitat; larger and greener leaves in shadier situations; smaller, gray-green leaves in full sun. Young stems are an attractive ruby color.

In the garden Coffeeberry can be planted in full to part sun; it accepts average garden water, as long as the drainage is good. It is also possible to plant Coffeeberry during the rainy season and let it establish without regular water; it will just grow more slowly. Plants can be kept to size with careful pruning; healthy established plants can be cut to the ground and allowed to crown sprout.  Deer will browse the foliage, so it is best to protect young plants until they become established.

Small yellowish-green flowers held in tight clusters appear in late spring and attract many beneficial insects and butterflies. Pale Swallowtail, and Gray Hairstreak butterflies use Coffeeberry as a host plant for their larvae. Fruits ripen to a blue-black in late fall; many birds and small mammals relish the berries.  

Toyon is another of California’s common shrubs that grows naturally in a multitude of environments; it is at home in the chaparral and woodlands throughout the state, and into the mountains of Baja California. In the wild plants display a great deal of variability in leaf size and shape, color and size of the berries, and growth habit. In my hillside oak woodlands I discovered a Toyon that has grown to a 30 foot tree with a trunk about 6 to 7 inches in diameter!

Leaves of Heteromeles arbutifolia are medium green and leathery with serrated margins. Clusters of small white flowers appear in early summer and attract multitudes of butterflies, bees and other beneficial insects. A bounty of berries start to form in summer, ripening late in fall, and staying on the plant through much of winter.  The berries are relished by lots of birds; attracting residents like mockingbirds and house finches, and migratory songbirds like robins, and cedar waxwings. The native peoples also harvested the berries, but only after several months of ripening; using them to prepare drinks, meals and medicines. Toyon is the only native plant that continues to be commonly known by its native American name.

In the garden Toyon can be planted in average soil with good drainage with full sun and given average water. It can also be planted in the light shade of established oaks, and does fine without extra water once established. Toyon needs to be protected from the deer to become established.

 

 

Deer Grass is one of the most impressive of the native bunchgrasses. Established plants are large, and sometimes flowering stalks reach well over five feet. It is dramatic as a specimen and stunning when planted in a large drift. Be sure to give plants enough space  between them to allow for the graceful spread of the foliage. Deer Grass is easy and carefree, and also useful for erosion control on slopes.

This bunchgrass needs full sun and little water; but will adapt to regular water in a mixed border planting. Flowering stalks appear in late summer. Use deer grass with large leaved shrubs, such as Saint Catherine’s Lace or Silk Tassel Bush for maximum contrast. I also like to plant something small and flowery, like Bidens at the edges of this big grass.

Native grasses provide lots of seed in the fall for birds and nesting materials in the spring.  All year long insects find cover within the dense foliage. This plant is totally deer proof; they do not eat grasses, but do find cover, and a place to rest in amongst large drifts of Deer Grass.

Coyote Mint displays masses of purplish flowers in dense rounded heads all through the summer. The deer avoid this plant because of the minty fragrance of the leaves. Native bees, butterflies and hummingbirds are drawn to the flowers. Finches and sparrows eat the seeds in the fall.

Mature specimens are about 2 feet by 2 feet, with a nicely rounded shape. The main stems of a young plant are somewhat brittle, and break easily in a strong wind; when several are planted together the stems intertwine, and the plants suffer less damage in a windy site. Coyote Mint needs full sun and good drainage. It needs very little water, but will respond to additional water;  particularly if continual bloom is desired.

In the wild Coyote Mint is often seen in chaparral growing on rocky outcroppings, or at the edges of grasslands. In the garden it can be nicely tucked in between rocks, or allowed to spill over a short retaining wall. Good companions in the garden are Eriophyllums, with bright yellow flowers, or Zauschnerias, with their reddish orange flowers. Plant Monardellas towards the front of a mixed border, or at the edges of walkways to fully enjoy the fragrant leaves. 

The delicate beauty of the Alum Roots, particularly in full bloom, belies the hardiness of this plant.  The leaves are somewhat maple shaped, pale green, soft, and slightly hairy. The plant forms a mounded rosette, about two feet wide. In late spring, Heuchera maxima sends up numerous flowering stalks, creating an airy cloud of tiny greenish to white flowers. The flowers attract hummingbirds.

Heucheras are most effective in the garden when planted in drifts. They are at home in the shade of trees; perfect under the canopy of native oaks since they need only occasional water during the summer months. A deciduous tree creates the ideal situation to promote profuse flowering; plenty of sunlight during the cooler months, and partial shade during the summer.   

In their natural habitat, Alum Roots grow in rocky outcroppings, often on very steep slopes that are inaccessible to deer. In a garden they need protection from the deer.  

Coast Buckwheat is found growing in the wild along coastal bluffs and dunes, and within the  coastal scrub community. Various Eriogonum species also grow further inland at the edges of chapparal, in grasslands and in montane habitats. All Eriogonums need full sun and good drainage; and are wonderful garden plants when these conditions are provided.

In the garden Eriogonum latifolium adds both visual interest and habitat resources to a mixed border planting. The grey-green felted leaves contrast beautifully with various shades of green; good companions are Seaside Daisy or Pacific Reed Grass. The low mounded shape of the plant makes it a good choice for the front of the border, and allows it to grow nicely between decorative rocks.

Coast Buckwheat flowers are a creamy white, which dry to an attractive rusty brown, and persist on the plant through the fall season. The abundant, and long-blooming pom-pom like flower heads attract many beneficial insects, including bees and butterflies, which come to sip nectar from the individual flowers. Birds and insects eat the tiny seeds. The plant also serves as host of the larvae of many of the “Gossamer Winged” butterflies; such as Acmon and Dotted Blues in more inland locations, and Blue Coppers and Hairstreaks in coastal areas.

E. grande x latifolium – Red-Flowered Buckwheat
Flowers are a variety of colors; from a white-touched pink to cherry red
 

Milkweeds are wonderful habitat plants that provide resources for a host of creatures. Various Asclepias species grow throughout the northern hemisphere; some are restricted in range, and others are widespread and adaptable. Diverse cultures during the course of human history have discovered many uses, including medicinal, for all parts of these plants. The genus name is derived from Asklepios, the Greek god of medicine.

In the wild Asclepias speciosa is often found growing in seasonally wet low spots. It is a plant that spreads by underground stems to colonize an area; so be sure to allow it room in the garden. It is drought tolerant, but will respond to water. It can sometimes take a frustratingly long time to establish a blooming stand, but it is well worth the wait!

Flowers in large, showy clusters are produced from late spring to summer. They are beautiful and fragrant, and attract an array of interesting large insects and pollinators, including of, course, the Monarch butterfly. An often, unwanted guest of Milkweeds is the imported orange Oleander aphid.  Although this aphid is host specific, it is best to control populations right away; this can be done by simply washing the bugs off the plant with a strong spray of water. Large aphid populations weaken the plant and lessen the resources available to the Monarch butterfly larvae.

The seed pods produced in fall are also large and showy; especially when they split open to reveal rows of flat seeds, each with a delicate silken parachute. Many invertebrates eat the seeds, and I like to collect the silk, to make it available as nesting material for the songbirds in spring.  Milkweeds are poisonous plants; the deer do not eat them.

In the wild Narrow-leaf Milkweed can be seen growing in meadows, sometimes in large, spread out stands. In the garden it is equally effective in drifts or scattered stands, blending and mingling with other drought-tolerant perennials. The flowers are not large, but there are many flowering stalks, and the plant is somewhat wispy; so it looks good combined with larger leaved sturdier plants and native bunchgrasses. It needs full sun, and little to no water. The plant is not long-lived, but reseeds itself readily; in my Novato garden it often dies out where I’ve planted it, but persists vigorously where it seeded itself! It is drought tolerant and deer proof.

Milkweeds are wonderful habitat plants that provide resources for a host of creatures. Summer blooms attract an array of pollinators, and the plant can host both Milkweed bugs and beetles; as well as the larvae of the Monarch butterfly.  All these living creatures on a Milkweed plant also attract a number of interesting predatory insects, including the large and spectacularly colored Tarantula Hawks.

An often, unwanted guest on Milkweeds is the imported orange Oleander aphid. This aphid is host specific, and will not show up on other garden plants; but try to reduce populations on the Milkweeds right away. This can be done by simply washing them off the plant with a strong spray of water. Large aphid populations weaken the plant and lessen the resources available to the Monarch butterfly larvae.

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.

Tufted Hairgrass is native to the cool, coastal bluffs, and as such performs best in gardens with a little extra water. In inland gardens, it will also appreciate some shade. The foliage is a vibrant dark green, and typically forms clumps about a foot tall and wide. The graceful flowering stems appear in late spring or early summer, sparkling in the gentle spring sunlight. All the bunchgrasses, with their extensive fibrous root systems, are great for erosion control on hillsides.

Deschampsia cespitosa could be used in a meadow planting, combined with other coastal species such as Iris douglasiana, Sisyrinchium bellum, and Sidalcea malviflora. Hairgrass could also be planted with water-loving natives from riparian plant communities like Columbine, Wild Ginger, and Chain Fern. Bunchgrasses provide cover for all sorts of insects, and caterpillars of some species of Grass Skippers will use the plant.

Grasses also provide both seeds and nesting materials for birds. Deer do not browse any of the native bunchgrasses!