5 Native Plants for the Danville Urban Garden
Local native plants are habitat for local wildlife. Our bees, butterflies and birds need native plants to survive. They need them for food and shelter. Growing just one locally native plant helps provide an important "bridge" to nearby open spaces thus supporting your local ecology. Grow natives and enjoy backyard viewing of wildlife. Watch hummingbirds and song birds in your garden. Watch fuzzy bumble bees and ladybugs.
The following is a list of easy to grow, local native plants that are easy to start with and are fairly easy to find at your local garden centers and native plant nurseries. These species were chosen as they provide the highest benefits to the local ecosystem and they have been successfully grown in my Danville urban garden. There are numerous other California native plants you may wish to try.
California Christmas-Berry - Heteromeles arbutifolia
Also known as Toyon or California Holly, this evergreen shrub grows in large bushes. It produces showy white flowers in the summer and large quantities of bright red berries in the winter. Birds feed on these berries. Native birds and bees find many uses for this plant. This plant is drought tolerant and can grow in full sun to part shade, and in poor, dry, well-drained soil
Birds: Mockingbirds & Thrashers, Waxwings, Nuthatches, Thrushes, Crows & Jays, Woodpeckers, Robins
Supports: Birds, butterflies and caterpillars
Resources: https://calscape.org/loc-California/Toyon%20(Heteromeles%20arbutifolia)?newsearch=1
Coyote Brush - Baccharis pilularis
This evergreen bush produces white to cream-colored flowers from September through January. It grows up to 10 feet high and 12 feet wide, and is drought tolerant, doing well in full or part sun, and in dry, sandy soils. This shrub is also deer resistant, and grows quickly, maturing in 1 to 2 years. It takes well to pruning, being shaped or even pruned to the ground to rejuvenate.
Birds: Wrentit, Bewick's Wren, American Goldfinch, California Quail, Nuttall's White-crowned Sparrow, California and Spotted Towhees, California Thrasher.
Supports: Butterflies, birds, bees and caterpillars
Resources: https://calscape.org/loc-California/Coyote%20Brush%20(Baccharis%20pilularis)?newsearch=1
Black Sage - Salvia mellifera
Black sage is the most common sage in California, and one of the keystone species of our local plant community’s. Black sages grows quickly up to 3 feet in height, but mature specimens can reach up to 6 feet in height and 10 feet in width. The plant has attractive dark green leaves and are highly aromatic. Flowers occur in wide clusters ranging from white, pale blue to lavender. The plant flowers are an important food source for butterflies and hummingbirds. The seeds are an important food for quail and other birds.
Black sage is able to grow on a variety of different soils. The plant prefers sun, but tolerates part shade.
Birds: Finches, Chickadees, Titmice, Sparrows, Woodpeckers Crows and Jays.
Supports: Butterflies, birds, hummingbirds, bees and caterpillars.
Resources: https://calscape.org/loc-California/Salvia%20mellifera%20(Black%20Sage)?newsearch=1
Buckwheat - Eriogonum fasciculatum
California Buckwheat is hardy and easy to grow, even in very dry conditions. It is the most common plant in California. It doesn’t need supplemental water after established, but will tolerate occasional summer water better than most extremely drought tolerant California natives. It produces a profusion of cream-colored flowers that dry to a pretty red rust color as the soil dries. California Buckwheat is a keystone species for sagebrush scrub ecosystems, and a great choice for wildlife and butterfly gardens.
Birds: Sparrows, Warblers, Mockingbirds, Thrashers, Waxwings and Vireos.
Supports: A huge number of Butterfly species, birds, bees and caterpillars
Resources: https://calscape.org/loc-California/Buckwheat,%20California%20(Eriogonum%20fasciculatum)?newsearch=1
Manzanita - Arctostaphylos manzanita
A tall, beautiful species of manzanita with an often dramatic and winding branch structure. It is common on chaparral slopes in our local ecosystem. It flowers in winter. In time, it grows into a twisted tree about 15 feet tall. One of the easier manzanitas to grow in urban landscapes as it is a bit more tolerant of summer water than most. Watering once per month during the summer is usually okay though it is happiest with no extra water. It likes sun or part shade, and does well in a variety of soils.
Birds: Mockingbirds, Robins, Cedar Waxwing, California Valley Quail, Humming Birds, Band-Tailed Pigeons and Wren-tits
Supports: Butterflies, birds, hummingbirds, bees and caterpillars
Resources: https://calscape.org/loc-California/Common%20Manzanita%20(Arctostaphylos%20manzanita)?newsearch=1
My preferred Native Plant Nurseries:
Native Here Nursery https://nativeherenursery.org
Watershed Nursery https://www.watershednursery.com
Others to try:
The Ruth Bancroft Gardens https://www.ruthbancroftgarden.org
UC Botanical Gardens https://www.ruthbancroftgarden.org
Local Garden Centers that as of April 2022 say they may have these 5 plants (I recommend calling first):
Alden Lane Nursery https://www.aldenlane.com
Orchard Nursery https://www.orchardnursery.com
Sloat Garden Center https://www.sloatgardens.com/locations/danville/
Lawns in our area account for 60% or more or our water consumption. https://ucanr.edu/sites/UrbanHort/Water_Use_of_Turfgrass_and_Landscape_Plant_Materials/Drought_and_Landscape_Water_Use_-_Some_Persspective/
