The Voyage of Discovery                                                                                                  

Clark & Lewis with Sacagawea

         In 1804, President Thomas Jefferson sent Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on a Voyage of Discovery across the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase.  While the primary purposes of the trip were political and strategic, secondary purposes included a survey of the plants and animals found west of the Mississippi and to learn about the culture and practices of the Native Americans living there.                                    One of the specimens Clark brought back to the President was a unique flower, which subsequently was named “clarkia” in his honor.  At the Granada Native Garden, you can find one of several Clarkia species, Clarkia amoena.  Its common name is Farewell-to-Spring, because it flowers just around the time spring is about to segue into summer (or maybe earlier, if we have an early spring, like this year; or later, if the winter is dry.)                                                                                                        

          The Clarkia blossoms come in two forms.  The species present at the Granada Native Garden, C. amoena, has cup-shaped blossoms, pictured above and on the left.  Other species have a unique wheel- or spoke-like arrangement, like the C. concinna, on the right.  Both are lovely, in mauve to pink to white, often with blotches of a contrasting color.  (Hint:  To enlarge a photo, just click on it.)

More Than Just a Pretty Face!                                                                                                  In 1895, Will Green, the surveyor-general of California, reported having seen Clarkia flowers of different hues covering the plains.                                                                                  In Pleasanton, California, a late prehistoric cremation site was discovered containing tens of thousands of charred Clarkia seeds, as reported by archaeobotanist Eric Wohlge- muth.  They were placed there by Native Americans as offerings, along with remnants of other plants.                                                                                                                                  Altho the seeds are very small, 20-30 pounds of the seeds could be gathered in one day for use as food.  They could be eaten dried, or cooked into a form resembling oat- meal, or blended with water and other ingredients to make a pinole-like beverage.  Large patches of Clarkia, along with milkweed (Asclepias) and yampah (Perideridia) supported vast populations of butterflies and insects that, alas, no longer exist in these numbers.

Tending the Wild                                                                                                                         Native Americans employed several strategies, mainly burning, coppicing and selective pruning, to increase the health and vigor of many of the plants they depended on for their needs.  These included food, medicine, tools and utensils, weaponry, and even toys and musical instruments and trade with other tribes.  Fire was an especially critical tool used to increase the abundance of Clarkia and other edible and otherwise useful plants.  In addition, fire was used to control insects and disease that could damage plants that were used for the above categories, and to re-seed patches for future growth.

A Good Choice for a Child’s Garden                                                                                          If your love of gardening and native plants has inspired your little one to start his or her own plot, Clarkia is a good wildflower to start with.  A high percentage of the seeds will germinate in 5-6 days, if sown indoors in early January.  Just sprinkle a few seeds over some dampened planting mix in small pots, cover with a little more soil, and don’t let the soil dry out.  When the seedlings are about 2 inches tall, they can be transplanted directly into the ground where they will get full sun, or sun most of the day, and keep them watered.  Remove weeds as soon as they appear.  And maybe protect the seedlings from slugs, snails and earwigs with a sprinkling of environmentally safe iron phosphate, until the seedlings get big enough.                                       Or, if you prefer, you can sow the seeds directly on the ground in the fall and wait for the autumn rains.  They will bloom in March or April.  After the spent flowers are trimmed off, they may re-bloom a second time.  You may plant more seed in early spring for blooming in late spring.  Clarkia re-seeds itself readily, so you can expect to see more seedlings coming up in the same place the following year.                                                             Or plant some in pots and some in the ground, and see what works best for you!
Seeds can be purchased inexpensively from the Larner Seed Company in Bolinas (www.larnerseeds.com), although there is a minimum purchase of $20 if you order by credit card.  However, you might want to order seed packets of a couple of other Clarkia species in order to see the variety, and/or other types of California native wildflowers.  California poppy (Eschscholzia californica) is another good choice for a child’s garden, and Larner’s can suggest other wildflowers you might want to try.  Miner’s lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata) doesn’t have an impressive flower, but it does have an unusually cute perfoliate leaf, and it is edible, resembling butter lettuce or spinach in a salad.  And it re-seeds itself freely, from year to year.                                                   A list of suggestions for a child’s garden is too long for this edition of the Granada Native Garden.  If you would like to see the list, just email Jim at  JIMatGNG@gmail.com, and he will forward it to you!

Other Current Attractions                                                                                                          Visit the Granada Native Garden soon, and see if you can locate these two flowers that are currently in bloom.  Or better, let your little one(s) explore the Garden and find them for you!  (Maybe he or she will want to start a California native plant garden!)

Yarrow, white variety

Yarrow, pink variety

California wild rose

Quote du Jour:                                                                                                                            “I’ve been obsessed with plants since I was 8 or 9 years old, particularly the plants I found in the woods and fields around where I grew up on the Connecticut River.  I used to drive my family nuts, because it was all I would talk about.  I remember my mom once raising her hands in frustration and saying ‘Can’t you talk about anything besides plants?’  Now, they’ve just kind of accepted it and we all talk about plants a lot when I’m visiting them.”                                                                                                                                                                       – Peter Veilleux, owner of the East Bay Wilds nursery, Oakland, CA

Smith School Discovers the Granada Native Garden!                                                            Recently, a class of 5th Graders from Emma C. Smith School stumbled upon the Granada Native Garden when they stopped to have lunch during a mini-field trip:  “We never knew it was here!“.  There they learned some things about the importance of plants to the native people who lived in California before the Europeans arrived – such as how gumplant (Grindelia sp.) had many medicinal uses, in addition to being a cheap substitute for chewing gum, owing to the sticky substance that collects in its young flowers and coats its leaves.  And many of those plants are growing at the Granada Native Garden, waiting to be discovered.

Speaking of Discovering …                                                                                                        William Rasor, a biology teacher at Granada High School, recently visited the Granada Native Garden with his camera, and found these attractions which are currently in bloom there.  He generously shared his photos with us.  They speak for themselves!  But the Garden is constantly changing, so they might not be there for long.  (Hint:  To enlarge a photo, just click on it.)          

Early buckwheat flowers

Immature buckeye blossoms

Late-season California poppies

Poppies with lupine

Redbud flowers

Flannelbush blossom

Bush poppy

First yarrow of the season

Thanks for the memories, William!  And thanks to the students and teachers at Smith School — come again soon, and bring friends!

A Reminder to Visitors to the Granada Native Garden …                                                                             

         You might find some white tubes next to some of the plants at the Garden.  No, they are not sprinkler heads – they are identification markers that tell you what the plant is and why it is important.  You may lift the tube off its support to read it, then put it back when you are done.

We weren’t planning on posting an article so soon after the previous one (on “Precocious Poppies”, archived in February, 2014), but a visit to the Granada Native Garden impressed us so much with the different colors that are currently on display made it imperative that we share them with our Followers.  So this post is mostly an album of photos (with very little added commentary) of the many colors that are on display as April begins.                          The field of poppies (Eschscholzia californica) and a couple of purple companion lupines (Lupinus sp.) are, of course, the first to meet the eye when you arrive.  But a casual stroll around the Garden will reveal many more details that are more or less obvious, but equally striking.  Some of these plants have already been written up in detail in earlier posts (see the Index to learn which ones), and others will be added in the coming months (or years).  Enjoy!  And visit the Granada Native Garden before they transition to the next seasonal generation!

Bush poppy, in front. Flannel bush in the rear.

At the north end of the GNG, along the chaparral birm, the bush poppy (Dendromecon rigida, above, in front) and one of many flannel bushes (Fremontodendron sp., behind the bush poppy) are in full bloom.  You can’t miss them!  (Hint:  To enlarge a photo, just click on it.)

Western redbud

Snowdrop

Near the same part of the Garden, the snowdrop (Styrax officinalis) has cute little white pixie-like blossoms that last only for a couple of weeks before they fall off like a light dusting of snow on the ground.  Catch them before it’s too late!  More attractive but only from a distance, the mauve flowers of the western redbud (Cercis occidentalis) might seem to conflict with last year’s brown seed pods, but,  hey!  brown is a color too!

Arroyo lupine

‘Dark Star’ lilac with a worker bee

California buckeye, with immature blossoms

There are more than 50 shades of green.  Explore the Garden and see how many you can find.  Here are three of them.  (Sorry, but we’re not sure which of the native bunch-grasses this one is! )

Sagebrush, with new foliage

Native California Bunchgrass

 Surprise Appearances!                                                                                                  

Five-Spot (Nemophila maculata)

This spring three new flowers appeared at the Granada Native Garden.  They weren’t planted or seeded by anyone other than, perhaps, birds or the wind, and you have to know where to look.  But they are welcome arrivals, and hopefully they will re-seed themselves so we will see them again next year, and become permanent wildflowers at the Garden.  Here they are; again, click on each photo in order to enlarge it and get a better look.

Fiddleneck (Amsinckia menzeii)

Scorpionweed (Phacelia ciliata

Two New Worker Bees!                                                                                                              Mike and Linda have joined the staff at the Granada Native Garden.  Mike is on sabbatical leave from Las Positas College, and Linda is a new Livermore resident.  Whenever their time and schedules allow, they join Jim, Mary Ann, Kerry, Dave, Malvika and Kirpa to keep the Garden looking good as the seasons change and work needs to be done.

          After a relatively bleak winter at the Granada Native Garden, with many natives dormant or slow to emerge because of the limited rainfall this winter, all is not lost!  There are signs of spring all over the place, but you just have to know what to look for.                   Take these poppies, for example.  Coaxed into blooming a few weeks early because of some extra water shared with a caged-in baby bigberry manzanita planted last year, they anticipate the display of California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) which usually floods this section of the Granada Native Garden in March and April, depending on the rainfall we get.

But the real eye-catcher this month are the golden currants (Ribes aureum), of which there are several currently (please forgive the unintended pun!) in bloom, like the one above along the bikeway at the north end of the Garden; an identification marker is there to help you find it and tell you about it.  Bees love the blossoms now, but later in the season, the blossoms form small purplish-black berries, the currants, which were an important food source, fresh or dried, for Native Americans — exactly the way we use raisins now.

A busy carpenter bee on golden currant

The buckeye – very much alive!

        And those visitors who thought our buckeye was dead might be surprised to see it in full leaf again.  That’s the life-style of the California buckeye (Aesculus californica).  It loses its leaves in late summer in order to conserve water; then it comes back in full foliage in the early spring.  Stunning blossoms will follow in May, and golf-ball size seeds later in the summer.

Less obvious additions to the Granada Native Garden are the soap lilies (Chlorogalum pomeridianum).  Last year we planted 12 of them at the north end of the garden, and 3 more at the south end.  All of them are leafing out now.  In May, they should be sporting tiny, lily-like blossoms several inches above the basal cluster of leaves.  We will write about those interesting plants, so very useful to the Native Americans, in a future post.

A soap lily, not yet flowering

One of many lupines

And last year we made an attempt to increase the population of blue and gold lupines at the Granada Native Garden, because they are such colorful harbingers of spring (a separate post about lupines was posted on April 29, 2013 and can be viewed in the April, 2013 archives).  We germinated a few lupines in pots for transplantation recently, but we also spread seeds of both types in the Garden.  The lupine above is one that was started from pots.  The lupines from scattered seeds are just now appearing in the Garden, and we are looking forward to seeing them brighten up the Garden when they mature.  Lupines self-seed freely from year to year.  Unfortunately they are also reportedly highly relished by slugs and snails!

Other Coming Attractions                                                                                                          The early season native grasses, especially purple needlegrass (Stipa pulchra, formerly Nassella pulchra) and California melic (Melica californica) are appearing in bright green at this time of the year.  The Garden’s lone native sycamore (Platanus racemosa) and the ubiquitous interior wild roses (Rosa californica) are showing their first leaves.  A little harder to find is the bed of flat-topped goldenrod (Euthamia occidentalis) which threatens to take over the south end of the Garden.  Last year’s Farewell-to-Spring (Clarkia amoena) is popping up again around the table area.  We recently saw this year’s first flower on the columbine (Aquilegia formosa), one of the Garden’s original members.  And California aster (Aster chilensis), which is supposed to go dormant at the end of the summer, never did entirely disappear, even without much rain.  All of these will be much more evident in the coming months.  So take a walking tour thru the Garden, and look for these and other signs of spring!  Look closely, and you’ll be surprised how many things you may find.

Quote du Jour:                                                                                                                    “If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”                                                     – Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman philosopher, politician and orator

Why Is It Called Coyote Brush?                                                                                         As far as I can determine, no one knows for sure why this underrated native plant is called “coyote brush”, Baccharis pilularis.  Perhaps the best explanation is that coyote brush (or “bush” as it is sometimes called) is very adaptable and comfortable in different habitats, soil types and climates.  A similar suggestion is that it grows in the same habitat as that of coyotes; but coyotes aren’t especially particular about their habitat either, as long as their prey is available (an irreverent and scientifically untenable explanation is that it pops up wherever coyotes happen to have urinated).  Another possibility is that the seed pods have a crown of white hairs that give the appearance of a mass of fluffy white flowers – maybe resembling coyote fur?  More than one writer agree that it propagates very readily, both from its abundant seeds and from the roots, and that it “is very difficult to get rid of once established”, leading to the question of whether you consider it a blessing or a curse.                                                                                                                                    Another mystery is the origin of the scientific name, Baccharis.  The name refers to Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and various convivialities, among other things.  But how this is related to the plant, no one seems to be very sure of that either!

Fluffy blossoms

Why Is It Underrated?                         I once learned that there is a fan club dedicated to the advance- ment and popularization of coyote brush.  When one sees coyote brush growing in the wild, you might wonder what the attraction is all about.  With its small leaves and inconspicuous, fluffy blossoms, it isn’t particularly appealing or showy.  In fact, as it gets older, most of the growth is at the tips, and the branches look rather bare and skeletal.  For this reason, many native plant gardeners recommend that older specimens be coppiced, that is, cut down to the ground every few years.  Because of its large tap root system, the plant readily grows back.  This is especially important after a fire or flood has devastated an area, because coyote brush is one of the first shrubs to appear after other plants have disappeared.  For that reason, coyote brush is called a pioneer species.  When someone set fire last year to a field of dry needlegrass at the Granada Native Garden, the coyote brush growing there was scortched on one side, so I cut out the burnt part.  The photo at the right shows the re-growth just a few months after the fire.

So although coyote brush isn’t exactly an eye-catcher, it is useful horticulturally for hedges and fence lines, and as a background plant where its 6-8 foot height towers above shorter plants, but it can get up to 12 feet high and looks best when it is cut back occasionally.  The specimen in the photo at the top was planted from a seedling only 2-3 years ago in poor soil and was watered only for the first year, and not very regularly at that.  So it isn’t particular about its habitat.  Like a coyote.

Small leaves help conserve water

However, there is a dwarf form of coyote brush, ‘Pigeon Point’, which is highly regarded as a low-growing ground cover, especially for a slope where erosion control is important.  In addition, it is fire-resistant, has dark to medium green foliage that contrasts nicely with ceanothus (California lilac), toyon and manzanita, and doesn’t get woody in the middle.

An Insect Magnet                                                     Coyote brush fans and admiring horti-culturists aren’t the only ones who prize coyote brush.  It is an important habitat plant for birds and butterflies, and attracts predatory wasps, skippers and native butterflies.  Las Pilitas Nursery says that “you will see the weirdest bugs on these plants”!   The plant is dioecious (“dy-ee-shus”), which means that male flowers and female flowers are found on separate plants.  Furthermore, it flowers at the end of the summer and into fall, providing a late source of nectar and nutrients for insects that need to over-winter.

So, Just What Is That Smell?                  Some varieties of coyote brush
are said to have a honey-like fra- grance which attracts many butter- flies.  One native plant devotee reports that “Long before I knew what coyote brush was, I noticed its delightful and aromatic herbal fragrance when hiking near the Sonoma Coast, where it grows in profusion”.  When we lived in Sacramento and I often biked along the American River Bicycle Trail, I enjoyed the medicinal odor of sagebrush (Artemesia), especially on hot summer evenings when the odor can easily be detected in the air, and of coyote brush, which reminded me of motor oil.  Lori, a friend who visited us recently, asked me if there is coyote brush in our yard, because she could smell it even from a distance.  There is, in fact, one single coyote brush in one corner of our yard; Lori eventually concluded the aroma reminds her of dill.  As if to agree with Lori, another commentator describes the fragrance as “unmistakable” and “intoxicating”, like “a fresh blast of sweet dill and sea air”.  Still another says that the male flowers smell like shaving soap.  In any case, the aroma (and taste) apparently seems to help protect it from being eaten, especially by deer.  Whatever it smells like, it is just something else that contributes to our pleasure and enjoyment of California native plants!

Pop Quiz!
We have introduced three important concepts in this post.  Without looking back, see if you remember what is meant by these terms:  pioneer species, coppice, and dioecious.  No cheating now!

The Practical Film & Media Workshop                                                                              The Practical Film and Media Workshop is a vocational program designed to provide adults with developmental disabilities an initial entry-level working knowledge of film produc- tion and related industries, then to build those skills over subsequent twenty-week work- shops.  Late last year, the PFMW chose the Granada Native Garden as a site to film a skit written, played and directed by the students of the Workshop.  The weather cooperated nicely, and the event exceeded their best expectations.

The Prophet

The skit involved the inhabitants of an small fictitious frontier town, Chepeka, and one individual who has prophetic powers and is warning of an impending catastrophe.  None of the citizens believe him, until he is befriended by one special person who convinces the citizens of Chepeka of his authenticity.  In the end, Chepeka is saved (if you can overlook the 21st century evidences in the background)!

Quote du Jour:
“There is a place for this indispensable shrub in every California garden!”                                                                                                                                              – From the Tree of Life Nursery

Toyon at the GNG, December, 2012

          With its dark evergreen leaves and clusters of bright red berries that ripen precisely in time for Christmas, the toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) is also called California Holly and Christmas Berry.  It is the basis of the name “Hollywood”, because the hills in that part of southern California were populated with toyons.

          In fact, collecting toyon branches for holiday decoration became so popular in Los Angeles during the 1920s that the State of California made it illegal to harvest “any tree or shrub … growing on state or county (property) … without a written permit from the owner of the land” (CA Penal Code § 384a).  Of course, the cedar waxwings, robins, mocking- birds and other birds that feast on the berries are exempt from the law!

Toyon, June 2013

Choosing Toyon for Your Landscape                                      If you have enough space, your multi-stemmed toyon can spread out up to 15-20 feet tall and equally wide.  But if you pinch it back a little each year, it will remain dense and manageable.  Just be sure to prune it back after the berries ripen but before the new flowers form in early spring, or you will end up pruning off next season’s berries (a mistake Jim made his first year at the Granada Native Garden).  Time it right, and you will be rewarded in late spring with an equally dramatic display of white blossoms.

Toyon’s Importance to Native Americans                                                                         Most of the plants at the Granada Native Garden were used by the Native Americans in one way or another – for food, medicine, tools or clothing.  Like a number of other native plants, toyon berries contain a small amount of toxic cyanide-forming compounds “which can kill you if you eat a few pounds”.  But the toxic ingredient is removed by cooking or roasting, and the berries were gathered by many Indian tribes (Chumash, Tongva, Tataviam) and roasted over coals or boiled, then mashed and eaten out of hand, or made into a jelly or a beverage, or dried and stored for cooking into porridge.  Tea made from the leaves was used as a remedy for upset stomach.

Fire Blight?

Fire Blight?                                                 The toyon at the Granada Native Garden has had no water except what falls from the sky during the winter.  Toyon is a member of the family Rosaceae, which includes pears and apples.  (Botanically speaking, this also means that the berries are not true berries, but rather miniature pomes, like apples and pears.)  These fruits are famously susceptible to fire blight, a disease caused by a bacterium, resulting in the youngest leaves of some branches turning brown and drying up; the disease can destroy limbs and even entire shrubs or trees.  This year, we suspect that fire blight has attacked our toyon!  We hope that it eventually overcomes the attack and regains its former splendor.

Current Updates                                                      The Granada Native Garden is now identifiable to passersby, thanks to an anonymous benefactor who made signs (the one that says “Granada Native Garden”, not the other one) for each of the three entrances to the GNG!                                                              The GNG is becoming a destination!  Last spring, when the poppies were in full bloom, one family considered the Garden as a location for an engagement party.  And this month, the Practical Film and Media Work- shop, a vocational program designed to provide adults with developmental disabilities an initial entry-level working knowledge of film production, has chosen the GNG as a site to produce a film about their activities.  The precise date and time has yet to be confirmed, and of course it depends on the weather.

Quote du Jour:                                                                                                                    “If Californians ever decide to have an official state shrub, toyon would be a fitting candidate.”                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      – Marjorie Schmidt, in Growing California Native Plants

Tiger swallowtail on toyon at the Granada Native Garden

Mariposas                                                                                                                                There are a number of places in California named “mariposa”.  There is the town of Mariposa in Mariposa County, California.  There is the famous Mariposa Grove of sequoias in Yosemite National Park, and the Mariposa Bakery in Oakland.  Not to mention any number of streets around the state and country named mariposa.                                                 Why “mariposa”?  Mariposa is the Spanish word for “butterfly”, and the sight of butterflies made a big impression on the first European visitors to California.  Padre Pedro Muñoz recorded in his diary that he had observed thousands of tortoise-shell butterflies (Nymphalis californica) possibly at what is now Mariposa Creek.  M. Kat Anderson quotes the Native American elder, Pauline Conner, reminiscing about the time when the wild- flowers were so abundant that “butterflies would come in clouds and you could reach out and touch them.  Sometimes they would land on you.”  These included the buckeyes, anise swallowtails and orange sulfurs.                                                                                             Numerous concerns have been raised about the extensive decline in the numbers of monarch butterflies in the last several years.  The blame has been laid on herbicides which reduce the food source (milkweed) of the monarch larvae, on genetically modified organisms, on the destruction of forests in Mexico where the butterflies hibernate, and on droughts and wildfires in critical parts of the country thru which the monarchs pass.  The naturalist, David Attenborough, states that he used to see buddleia bushes covered with red admiral butterflies, but now he sees practically none.

Red admiral

Butterflies are widely accepted as good indicators of ecosystem health.  For that reason, the overall decline in butterfly populations is an alarming result with important implications for other insects and biodiversity.  And butterflies are only part of the picture.  The bees, birds, bats and beetles are equally important to maintain healthy ecosystems and ecological balance.  Messing with an eco- system is a risky business; unfortunately the nega- tive, potentially disastrous effects are not likely to be convincingly obvious for several years, or too late.

          Fortunately, many people are becoming aware of the implications of the loss of our native butterflies, and are taking steps to encourage more of them back into our environment by planting California native plants.  Here is a list of butterflies that have been observed and documented several years ago by Ranger Dawn Soles at Sycamore Grove Park.  To her list I have added the most common host plants used by their larvae and adults; plants that can be found at the Granada Native Garden are in italics.

                                                                                      
Acmon Blue (Plebejus acmon acmon)                                                                                  Variety of food plants such as Atriplex canescens, Eriogonum spp., Dudleya spp.,            Lupinus spp., Astragalus sp., Lotus spp., Asclepias, Baccharis
American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis)
     Artemesia, aster, goldenrod, milkweed, vetch, Prunella                                               Anise swallowtail (Papillo zelicaon)                                                                                     Members of the carrot family (parsley, dill, fennel).
Cabbage White (Pieris rapae or Artogeia rapae)                                                                 Members of the cabbage family; crucifers, nastursiums, horseradish; a great variety         of flowers.
California Hairstreak (Satyrium californicum)                                                                      Serviceberry, Prunus virginiana, Cercocarpus, California lilac, oak, willow, buckwheat.

Hairstreak on buckwheat

California Ringlet (Coenonympha tullia california)                                                                Grasses
California Sister (Adelpha bredowii)                     Oaks, buckeye, toyon                                       Checkered White (Pontia protodice)                    Members of the mustard family; composites,          legumes, alfalfa “and almost everything else”.
Common Buckeye (Junonia coenia)                    Plantain, monkey flower, rabbitbrush, sage,              coyote brush.
Common Checkered Skipper (Pyrgus communis)                                                              Mallow; numerous nectar plants
Coronis Fritillary (Speyeria coronis)                     Rabbitbrush, Viola, buckeye, aster, goldenrod, thistle                                                    Creamy Marblewing (Euchloe ausonides)                                                                            Members of the mustard family (this butterfly is rare and apparently close to                     extinction because of loss of habitat and its native host plant, Guillenia lasiophylla).  Fiery skipper (Hylephila phyleus)                                                                                      Nectar from flowers of a variety of plants including sweet pepperbush, swamp milk-         weed, asters and thistles.

Fiery skipper on tomato

Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus)                      Flowers and fruits from an almost endless                variety of plants, most often from pea                 and mallow families, including beans and                clovers.                                                       Great Copper (Lycaena xanthoides)                     Nectar of various flowers; several dock                   species.                                                             Great Purple Hairstreak (Atlides halesus)        Mistletoe growing on native oaks, sycamores    and cottonwoods.

Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae)                                                                                         Nectar from lantana, shepherd’s needle, cordias, composites, passion vine, and              others

Gulf fritillary chrysalis

Gulf fritillary larvae

The finished product!

Adult emerging from the chrysalis

Lorquins admiral (Limenitis lorquini)                                                                                      Willow, rabbitbrush                            Lupine Blue (Plebejus lupinus)                                                                                          Several species of buckwheat.  Flower nectar.
Monarch (Danaus plexippus)                                                                                             Milkweed; numerous nectar plants
Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa)                                                                               Willow, rabbitbrush
Mylitta Crescent (Phyciodes mylitta)                                                                                Many flowers, including thistles, yerba santa, heliotrope, rabbitbrush                       Orange Sulfur (Colias eurytheme)                                                                                         Members of the pea family.
Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)                                                                                              Asteraceae, rabbitbrush, thistles, mallows, numerous others.

Painted lady on buckwheat

Pale swallowtail (Papillo eurymedon)                                                                                   Members of the Ceanothus family, including California lilac, buckbrush, mountain                balm, red alder, bitter cherry, serviceberry, coffeeberry, California buckeye, yerba                  santa, and wallflower.
Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)                                                                                            Milkweed, clover, aster, alfalfa
Sara Orangetip (Anthocharis sara)                                                                                       Members of the mustard family.
West Coast Lady (Vanessa annabella)                                                                                  Mallows (including cheeseweed)
Western tiger swallowtail (Papillo rutulus)                                                                           Leaves of a variety of trees and shrubs; commonly cottonwood, willow,                               quaking aspen, yerba santa, California buckeye, milkweed, dogbane, lilies, coyote             mint, lilac (Syringa), buddleia, sycamore, ash, cherry and other stone fruits, willow,             privet, sweet gum.

More Help Planting for Pollinators                                                                                    A very useful field guide for identifying local butterflies and selecting their host plants, as well as information about the natural history of the butterflies, is the Field Guide to Butterflies of the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento Valley Regions, by Arthur M. Shapiro and Timothy D. Manolis.                                                                                                         Dr. Shapiro is an instructor at the University of California, Davis.  He also has a useful website, “Art Shapiro’s Butterfly Site”, at  butterfly.ucdavis.edu/crew/amshapiro.                    The Pollinator Partnership Guide, accessible at  http://www.pollinator.org/guides.htm, extensively lists butterflies and host plants specific for different regions of the State of California.

Kerry hard at work at the GNG!

Many thanks to Ranger Dawn Soles for her list of local butterflies, and to Kerry Johnson for her photos of the gulf fritillary and the monarch feeding on buddleia!                      And thanks to the Rotary Club of Livermore for gifting the GNG with a grant to replace vandalized and weathered acrylic faces on our informational panels!                                Finally, many thanks to Jacquie and Alden Lane Nursery for helping us to replace many of the original plantings and to expand our display of native California plants!          

Quote du Jour:                                            “When you try to take something out of the Universe, you find that it’s hitched to everything else.”                                                                       ~ John Muir

           If there is such a thing as a “miracle” plant, it must be the elderberry!  I know of no other plant that has so many uses – as food, medicines, tools and household goods, even musical instruments.  Furthermore, it grows amazingly fast, so that any culture that depends on it for their livelihood is not without it for very long.

Elderberry in April

Elderberry in January

The elderberry (Sambucus mexicana) is a shrub or small tree that can grow to 25 feet tall and just as wide.  The single specimen at the Granada Native Garden, down at the north end of the Garden adjacent to the bikeway (you can’t miss it when it is in bloom or laden with berries!), is routinely cut back each winter to a denuded skeleton of its yearly growth.  Within a  month or two, however, it starts to leaf out again, and by late spring it is fully leafed out and beginning to show its large clusters of cream-colored, clove-scented blossoms.  Almost immediately after that, the berries begin to form, and by mid-summer the branches are bowing over with heavy, juicy, deep blue berries, usually with a lighter blue waxy coating.

Elderberry in August

Elderberry in June

Native Americans Knew Best                               The archaeologist Paul Schumacher reported that he always found elderberries growing near ancient Native American settlements and gravesites.  This is not surprising or coincidental.  Native Americans found the elderberry plant – the flowers, berries, leaves, bark and wood – useful in numerous ways (almost too many to list!).

Blossoms and young berries

Tea made from elder flowers was regarded as useful for reducing fevers and upset stomachs; for mitigating colds, the flu, head- aches, indigestion, twitching eyes, itchy skin, dropsy, rheumatism and the pain of sprains and bruises; to stimulate perspiration and urination, treat inflammation of the appendix and kidney and bladder infections.  Poultices made from the flowers was used to treat wounds, improve the complexion, tone and soften the skin, and lighten freckles or spots.                                                                                                                                            Furthermore, the flowers have a pleasant aroma, suggestive of cloves, which can add flavor to pancakes, muffins and cakes.  Some people like the flowers dipped in batter, then deep fried and sprinkled with sugar.

Science, or Folk Medicine?                                                                                                          It is well known that willows contain the same active analgesic ingredient, salicylic acid, as in Aspirin.  Native peoples who had no other source of relief for physical dis- comforts, injuries and diseases had to rely on whatever was at hand in their environment to ease their ailments, and many of these naturally-occurring products were, in fact, effective in doing so.                                                                                                                       This is especially true in the case of elderberry.  All parts of the elderberry plant are considered to be a valuable healing plant in many folk medicine traditions, but as early as the beginning of the 20th century, the plant was entered in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia, the official source of established standards for medicines, food ingredients, and dietary products.  According to the United States Department of Agriculture Plant Guide, the flowers contain rutin, a strong anti-clotting agent, flavenoids which are known to improve immune function, especially when combined with vitamin C, and tannins which reduce bleeding, diarrhea and congestion.  Elderflower tea has been used to treat many of the same ailments described above.                                                                                                        The Pomo Indians stopped gathering clams and other shellfish when the elderberries flowered, and started again when the berries were ripe.

Ready for harvesting!

(Click on this for a larger view!)

The berries have one of the richest sources of vitamin C, comparable to navel oranges.  They also have a high content of vitamin A, calcium, phosphorus and iron.  Medicinally, they are said to act as a purgative and diuretic, to help with arthritis and rheumatism, and to ease the pain of burns and scalds.  Native Americans dried large quantities of the berries for use during the winter; they used the juice as a dye in basketry.  But currently the most popular use for the berries is probably in making jams, jellies, syrup (said to resemble boysenberry), pies and wine!

Even the leaves, bark and roots had uses for the Native Americans.  Made into a poultice, and mixed with chamomile, these plant parts were used to reduce the swelling of bee stings as well as for soreness, inflammations and stiff joints.  The wood was an important basketry material, and was also fashioned into flutes, whistles, ceremonial clapper sticks, fire drills, bows and arrow shafts, blowguns and popguns, combs, spindles, and pegs.  The soft pith from the inside of the branches could be used as tinder for starting fires.  The genus name, Sambucus, happens to be taken from the name of an ancient musical instrument, the sambuke or sambuca (which seems, however, to have been a stringed instrument, not a flute).  In fact, some Indians referred to the shrub as the Tree of Music.                                                                                                                                            Last but not least, the elderberry is also a wonderful source of food for birds, bees, butterflies, squirrels and chipmunks, bears, deer, elk and moose.

Important Elderberry Cautionary Notes!                                                                                   It is important to remember, when gathering elderberries, that the blue elderberries are the only edible variety, and only the berries at that.  Red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa), which is also found in the West, contains hydrocyanic acid and sambucine that produce cyanide in the body unless the berries are sufficiently cooked.  Even the stems, roots and leaves of the blue elderberry (such as S. mexicana) are considered poisonous and can cause nausea or worse or produce severe purging.   Don’t consume red elderberries in any form!

Native Americans’ Role in the Food We Consume Today                                                        The Native Americans knew how to increase fruit production, increase plant vigor, and reduce insect predation and competition from other trees and plants.  They were experts in managing the environment on which they depended, both for the benefit of the plant community as well as their tribal community.  In her exceptional book, Tending the Wild,  M. Kat Anderson cites a contribution that the California natives made to the fruits and vegetables we eat today:  “California Indians’ management of fruit-bearing native plants in many ways laid the foundation for domestication of some of the berries grown today.  Picked from and tended over hundreds or even thousands of years, wild straw- berries, raspberries, blackberries and others had already become adapted to human cultivation when horticulturists began the selective breeding that led to modern varieties.  Further, many of today’s berries have benefited from crosses with wild genetic resources, which has conferred such benefits as disease resistance.  Thus the stewardship and preservation of these wild plant resources by California Indians has tremendous value today for the berry farmer.” (p. 280)

Quote du Jour:                                                                                                                    “Did you know that the most powerful wand in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is made of sambucus wood and is known as the Elder Wand?”                                                                    from “Elderberry:  The People’s Medicine Chest”,http://earthmother-
                               intheraw.blogspot.com/2010/08/elderberry-peoples-medicine-                                chest.html, August 20, 2010.

         Several weeks ago, Diana, a member of the Gardening With Natives group, submitted this request to the members:  “Do any of you know why people might choose NOT to garden with native plants?”                             

         She continued, “The primary reason may be that most people have never even thought about gardening with natives.  But there are probably many people who have been exposed to the idea, and decided NOT to.”                                                                            The volume of responses to Diana’s inquiry was astounding — I recorded all the answers, and they added up to 21 pages on my word processor!

          This article in the Granada Native Garden Newsletter is a compilation of the opinions that were submitted by the GWN group.  Because of the volume of responses, I have divided this article into two parts:   Part 1 presents opinions, reasons and excuses for why people do NOT grow native plants.  Part 2 will concentrate on what both we and the industry can do in order to promote greater interest in native California plants.

          The opinions stated have been edited by me, sometimes extensively, to fit the objective of this article.  While I generally agree with the statements below, the words, sentiments and opinions are primarily those of the GWN contributors.

PART 1:  Why People Do NOT Grow Native Plants

People Plant What They Like                                                                                         “While many people want their yards to look like a lush, formal garden, not all agree on what ‘lush’ means.  For some, it means tropical, or a wide expanse of lawn.  For others, it means a lot of different plants; or maybe a well-planned and managed native garden; or one filled with edible plants!  In any case, people might consider their yard as a gift to the neighborhood and be proud of their design!”

Bush anemone (Carpenteria californica)

“People choose plants based on what they think will bring them the most joy and satisfaction.  Many people want to create something in their yards which gives them joy, but which also requires very little maintenance to stay beautiful.  There are so many native plants that grow reliably and are never bothered by pests, but people don’t know about them yet.”

“Many people don’t know much about plants, and they make impulse purchases based on what’s in bloom.  Many natives aren’t in bloom at the best time for amateurs to plant them, and people browsing in a nursery stick with what looks good to them.”

“I do not understand why people think California native plants are not pretty.  I guess they have never seen Epilobium blooming, or manzanitas or Ceanothus or madrone or oaks.  But      I also want to add a good word for Baccharis pilularis.  I’ve heard a lot how good it is for wildlife, so I planted it.  Nobody ever mentioned how gorgeous it is when it is in bloom – so dainty and elegant.”

“As long as people can afford the water, they will have less inclination to plant natives which need less of it.”

“We still have abundant water in California, and we have many more people who are new to this environment and realize that they can provide the climate for any exotic they want.”

People Plant What They Are Familiar With                                                                   “People who move to new places love to take the old and familiar with them. This includes plants as well as animals.  In colonial America it was in style to have an English garden.  Going back even further, the English and other major colonizers no doubt traveled to Africa and Asia and brought plants with them back to their home countries and then to the U.S.”

“People grow whatever they are used to, whatever grew where they come from.  But the California industry mostly ignores California native plants as being unprofitable.”

Farewell-to-Spring (Clarkia amoena)

“When I first came to California, there were a lot of plants I didn’t recognize.  It took a long period of adjustment before I began to appreciate their beauty.”

“People are accustomed to buying what they see in nurseries and in other peoples’ yards.”

“Natives require a different watering regimen, and many household systems are not set up for that.  People aren’t necessarily familiar with those regimens, nor how to set them up.  Many natives require less water and care, but many others require some attention in order to keep them looking good.  Most commercial gardeners lack experience and knowledge of native plants, so they just do what they’ve always done.”

People Don’t Plant What They Consider Unattractive
“For some people, the word ‘native’ may connote something unattractive.  If it implies an untended, weed-covered lot – which in reality is probably a place filled with non-native invaders gone rampant – they are not likely to give true native landscaping a second thought.”

“I’ve known people who, knowing my interest in native plants, told me about ‘native’ front yards that turned out to be untended weed patches.  If people have unfavorable precon- ceptions about natives, you have to start out by showing them the plants without letting them know that they are natives.”

“People may consider native plants to be invasive weeds.  So the word ‘native’  might make people think of natives as invasive, that is, undesirable, plants.”

June grass (Koeleria macrantha)

“Many natives look good for a short period, but they are not in bloom for very long and may look ratty at other times.  Thus, they have less appeal, and they might require more work to keep them managed and attractive, and many people are unwilling to invest the time and energy for this.”

“Most nurserymen and gardeners in California know little about the native ‘brush’ – the stuff that needs to be cleared out in order to plant a ‘proper’ garden.  So the industry has no profit motive to develop California native plants.  Besides, California has been developed in times when transportation and water issues were not as critical as they are now, so it has been more profitable to import and sell plants from other locales.”

“When the Europeans sailed up the California coast during the dormant season of California plants, they viewed the landscape as brown and ugly.  This impression was not what they were familiar with from their homelands.”

“Some people think native plants look ratty and brown; but they think eucalyptus is native.”

Western redbud (Cercis occidentalis)

“Some years ago I took a class in which a landscape architect who had done some work with CalTrans said that CalTrans didn’t want to plant the natives he specified because, they said, “natives don’t grow well”.  It turned out that the landscape crews over- watered and over-pruned, so it was basically a training issue.”

“I get the impression that ‘different’ is ‘bad’.  I have a mostly native yard — no lawn, lots of mulch, in a $1,000,000 neighborhood.  I have never got any com- pliments from my neighbors – even when my gorgeous Ceanothus are blooming – only complaints about bees that are going to sting everyone!  Then there are complaints about too many plants.  And there is the garbage and cigarette butts tossed on my yard.  But my hummingbirds, bees, birds, lizards and butterflies are happy – so I am too!”

People Buy What the Stores Sell
“Nurseries stock what they expect people to buy.  The nursery trade has long specialized in plants, especially hybrids and species from other parts of the world, that look good for a reasonably long part of the year or are particularly attractive, and are easy to maintain.  And that is what people look for, regardless of whether they are native or not.  I have spoken to nursery people who say that the cost of bring a hybrid or cultivar to market is too high for the small retail sales that they currently bring.”

Snowdrop (Styrax officinalis)

“Many independent nurseries accept special orders, but you have to know what you want.”

“Many Californian native plants are not in bloom when the customer is shopping.  It helps if nurseries have placards with photos and other information to show customers what the plants will eventually look like.”

“The nursery industry survives because it is able to sell plants that have colorful big flowers that are developed to survive in highly disturbed soils where most of the population lives.”

Our Mediterranean Climate Is To Blame!
“Something that confuses folks is the Mediterranean climate.  We have cool wet winters and long dry summers — there are only 5 places on earth that are like that.  Anyone migrating here has no idea of which plants are adapted to that climate.  And they water like mad in summer when our plants are asleep, and they die from too much water.”

“Native plants in California depend largely on an underground source of water, or a dormant seed bank in the ground.  Some depend on fire to stimulate their growth.  If this seasonal pattern is unfamiliar to people who like a manicured look, they might not appreciate native California plants.”

“People who have relocated to California from other parts of the country often say that they miss the change of seasons.  They don’t notice that there is a noticeable change in the seasons here, but it just isn’t what they are accustomed to.  For example, it is normal for some native plants to drop their leaves and go dormant in the middle of Summer, but this might not what people expect.”

Elderberry (Sambucus mexicana)

“Our Mediterranean climate opens many doors.  Warm, dry weather and the shade alongside a house let you plant camellias, fuchsia, azalea, fuchsias with larger flowers, longer lasting flowers, with a larger color range than any native equi- valent.  In sunny parts of the yard, you can plant a rose garden and enjoy beautiful roses from April through December.  Most of the exotics don’t even need protection from the cold during the winter.   Economics favors this trend to introduce exotics.”

“California native plants evolved to thrive on wet winters, when they are in full bloom, but have adapted survival techniques during the dry season by losing their leaves and aestivate during the late spring and dry summers.  On the other hand, the nursery industry has had many years to develop plants that look good all year long, especially during the summer, and so appeal to the public.  Also, many California natives that are on the market have come from other regions in California where the climate is cooler or wetter, but they might not do well in the dryer regions.  Many natives can be kept looking nice most of the year, but they need a carefully planned watering regime, and this takes time and know-how to establish.”

Gardening Is Not Part of Everyone’s Culture
“Gardening with natives requires either time investigating and learning about native plants, or paying someone who knows to redo the yard.  Many people don’t garden.  They don’t want to, don’t know how, don’t have the time or don’t want to spend the time.  They might buy a few pretty flowering plants that catch their eye, and stick them in the ground, and they look good for a few weeks but later the plants die from being misplaced or neglected.  They want something easy that a hired person can clean up once a week and keep green or doesn’t require any care at all.   Most people in my neighborhood can’t afford gardeners.”

“A lot of people don’t like to garden at all.  They move into a place and just retain the existing landscape.  To begin with, it takes vision to even think of something else being there.  Then it takes the initiative to actually change it.  So often, when people do decide to finally change and they update their yards, they just duplicate what was already there.  Aesthetically, people sometimes want lush green yards.  I personally like lots of edibles.“

“People work all day, and if they do have time to garden, they will use whatever they happen to find at Home Depot or OSH, things that are well labeled and look pretty.   Native plants need to be easier for working people to choose and buy!  If you have to go to too much trouble to find good natives, it’s not good for the movement as a whole.

Poppy Lane in May, 2013

            Part 2 of this article addresses what both we and the industry can do in order to promote a greater interest in native California plants.  It will be published within the next few days.

Quote du jour                                                                                                                “We are silence, We are golden,                                                                                        We are billion-year-old carbon,                                                                                       And we’ve got to get ourselves back to the Garden.”                                                                                                   – Joni Mitchell, “Woodstock”