Winter in California

Focusing on native plants

It may be wintertime , but in Donna Bodine ’s California garden , there is a lot going on !

These are photograph of what is happening now in my San Francisco Bay Area garden ( geographical zone 10 ) . I grow Californianative plantsand also have an urban farm where I growfruit trees , Berry , and scads of vegetables inraised beds . My native garden is really starting to come alive . Plants in bloom now serve as food for thought sources for earlypollinators , such as hummingbirds and our native humblebee .

I ’ve been gardening with a focus on growing California native plants and food organically in the Bay Area for more than 20 years . The big challenges for me are understanding how to adapt my gardening praxis in reply to our ongoing drought , as well as climate alteration .

I start my own garden plan house ( BeeLand Farms ) this twelvemonth to help mass better link up with plants to accomplish multiple benefits for their wellness and the environment . I utilise my own garden as a presentation garden for my landscape practice .

Manzanitas are my favorite winter - blooming shrub . ‘ Ian Bush’(Arctostaphylosdensifloracultivar , Zones 7–10 ) has the graceful twist wont and maroon - color peeling barque of some of the expectant manzanitas , but on a smaller scale . So it ’s a capital selection for a smaller garden . The pinkish - and - livid heart - shape flush are gorgeous too .

Farewell to spring(Clarkia amoena)is a lovely , hardy , one-year aboriginal wild flower . I need a 2nd wave of wildflowers in the garden after the large outflow bloom , so I start seeds in May 2020 and planted them out in July . The works have been blooming since September 2020 , with still more to fare ! Coyote mint(Monardella villosa , zona 6–10 ) is mixed in with the clarkia .

This pinkish flowering current(Ribes sanguineum v. glutinosum , Zones 5–10 ) grow in partial sun , next to California anemone(Carpenteria californica , Zones 8–10 ) , checkerbloom(Sidalcea malviflora , Zones 5–10 ) , and California bee plant(Scrophularia californica).I planted this shrub three years ago , and this is its first bloom .

Hummingbird sage(Salviaspathacea , Zones 8–10 ) is a versatile plant life that can raise in sun or specter , and it establishes itself well in ourclay soil . hummingbird adore it , of course !

Basil‘Wild Magic’(Ocinum herbalea)is a recurrent herbaceous plant ( produce it as an yearly in colder zones ) here in the Bay Area that taste like Thai St. Basil . permit this basil flower does not make the leaf savour bitter , so it ’s a fiesta for bees and people too !

To see more from Donna , check out her instagram:@beelandfarms

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