A California Native Garden

The California Native Garden, located on the east side of the Keck Science Building, stands in sharp contrast to most landscaping on campus. In place of massed shrub plantings and straight lines on precisely graded sites, we are presented with a collection of wild plants grouped together organically, as the landscape rises and falls around two arm-shaped mounds enfolding a central depression. The garden was designed and installed by American artist Meg Webster, under commission from the Cantor Arts Center, in November 2002. Now just over a year old, the garden teaches us important lessons in incorporating native plants into our own landscapes. We learn about native plant communities, ecological succession and the use of ephemeral plants.

The site presented to Meg Webster originally was a lawn surrounded by plantings of mature trees: redwoods and giant sequoias on one side, and coast live oaks on the other three. The land was slightly undulating, with poor drainage in two places. Webster applied some basic landscaping concepts and added artistic concepts of her own to create a collection of plants that will one day surround and engulf the viewer.

One of the most important rules of landscaping is to group plants with similar light and water needs together. The existing trees prescribed four zones: 1) sunny and moist 2) shady
and moist (both near existing redwoods), 3) sunny and dry and 4) shady and dry (under existing coast live oaks.) In consultation with Grounds Services horticulturalists, Webster matched these site conditions to the California flora and came up with several plant communities to use as models or starting points. The shady moist area has become a redwood forest community, while the sunny moist area is a seep or meadow community. The shady dry sites mimic the understory
or edge of an oak woodland, while the sunny dry sites suggest chaparral, coastal scrub or grassland communities.

All plants need regular water for the first two years, to establish a large-enough root system to carry those drought-tolerant plants through the long dry summers here. But not all California natives are drought-tolerant: those plants naturally occurring along creeks, seeps, moist meadows and in redwood forests need regular watering throughout the year. Other natives rot in heavy wet soils and are best planted on mounds, which Webster thoughtfully designed into the plan. Webster manipulated the soil environment by creating two fast draining mounds surrounding and adjacent to two damp low spots.

The younger the plant you plant in the ground, the better established that plant will be in the future. Small plants undergo less shock when planted and after one year's time, a one-gallon plant often surpasses a five-gallon plant installed at the same time. As homeowners, we often disregard this fact in our need for instant gratification. On campus we face the challenge of people not seeing tiny plants. When an area with tiny plants is subject to foot traffic, the small plants don't have a chance. Experience teaches us which plants grow quickly and which plants grow slowly, and we use this as a guide in deciding what size plants to buy. Webster used the technique of interplanting fast-growing plants with slower-growing ones, thus creating a successional landscape that changes over time.

In nature, ecological succession occurs when one plant community replaces another over time. For example, a cleared area may be colonized by grasses and similar plants. Pioneer shrubs may get a foothold as birds fly overhead and sow seeds. These shrubs act as nurse plants for trees and slower-growing plants to establish, providing protection from animals and harsh weather. You can see this idea as you enter the garden from the corner of Roth Way and Lomita Drive, where coyote brushes dot the grassland approaching the mounds. As the amount of shade increases, the less shade-tolerant plants will die out and be replaced by those that thrive in shade, creating a forest community where once there was grass. This succession of plant communities isn't fixed, since events such as fires can reset the cycle. While we think of plants as stationary objects, we can see how dynamic the communities they live in are, in this very special garden.

Anyone visiting the garden who attended the June 2003 dedication will remember how small most of the plants looked. The highlights of the collection then were native spring-flowering bulbs that didn't have to compete with much else for attention. Bulbs and many native subshrubs are ephemeral. They are present in the landscape at one time of year, then die back only to reappear the following year. This is an adaptation to our Mediterranean climate, with warm dry summers and mild wet winters.

One year later, how things have changed! Many of the grasses and perennials have now reached their full size. The earth berms are almost filled in, and the density of planting drops off towards the perimeter of the garden. Most of the shrubs and trees are still small, but they will make an impact in five or ten years, when the perennials are at the end of their lifespans.

The California Garden fills a niche on a campus already heavily planted with California native shrubs, trees and annuals. This garden adds an excellent collection of bulbs, grasses and perennials. Here are highlights of the plant collection, with recommendations on their use based on our experiences here.

Fast-growing plants (mature size within one year of fall planting):

Shrubs:

• Lupinus arboreus (Bush lupine) - 4 ft. mound, covered with yellow flowers in spring (sun, low water)
• Lupinus albifrons - 4 ft. mound, covered with blue flowers in spring, may be short-lived (sun, low water)
• Artemisia californica (California sagebrush) - 3 ft. aromatic gray-leaved shrub (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Salvia clevelandii (Cleveland sage) - 4 ft. aromatic mound, with lavender flowers in late spring (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Mimulus aurantiacus (Sticky monkeyflower) - 2-3 ft. upright shrub, orange flowers in spring dry to give plant brown appearance in summer (sun, drought-tolerant)

Perennials:

• Lotus scoparius (Deerweed) - 2 ft. airy mound, with yellow flowers in spring, then summer deciduous (sun, drought tolerant)
• Grindelia latifolia (Gumplant) - 1 ft. mound, with yellow flowers in summer (sun, low water)
• Oenothera hookeri (Beach primrose) - 4 ft. tall spike with yellow flowers in summer - weedy in moist soil (sun, low water)
• Zauschneria californica (California fuchsia) - rangy 3 ft. spreader with orange-red flowers in summer-fall (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Thalictrum fendleri polycarpum (Meadow rue) - 3 ft. perennial with tiers of delicate foliage in spring and summer, then dying back until the following year (shade, drought-tolerant)
• Aquilegia eximia (Seep columbine) - clump of delicate foliage, with nodding yellow & red flower, dies back in summer (sun, medium water)
• Mimulus cardinalis (Scarlet monkeyflower) - 2 ft. perennial with red flowers much of year, in moist soil (sun, high water)
• Solidago californica (California goldenrod) - yellow flowers on 3 ft. plant in summer-fall, dies back for rest of year (part-shade, drought-tolerant)
• Erigeron glaucus (Beach daisy) - 1 ft. clump with lavender daisy-like flowers much of year, heaviest in spring (sun, low water)
• Aster chilensis (Aster) - 2-3 ft. floppy stalks with lavender daisy-like flowers in summer - dies back for rest of year (sun, low water)
• Erysimum capitatum (Western wallflower) - 1 ft. stalk of yellow flowers in early spring - dies back for rest of year (sun, drought-tolerant)

Grasses/Grass-like plants:

• Muhlenbergia rigens (Deergrass) - 3 ft. clump with needle-like flower spikes in summer (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Juncus patens (Blue rush) - 2 ft. gray-green clump of upright round stems (sun, low water)
• Carex tumicola (Foothill sedge) - 2 ft. bright green creeping sedge groundcover (sun, medium water)
• Deschampsia caespitosa (Tufted hairgrass) - 1 ft. flattened clump of grass with short bushy flowers (sun, medium water)
• Danthonia californica (California oatgrass) - tight 1-2 ft. clump of foliage topped with 3 ft. airy flower stems (sun, medium water)
• Juncus balticus (Baltic rush) - loosely spreading bright green rush (sun, medium water)
• Juncus effussus (Common rush) - tidy bright green 2 ft. upright clump (sun, medium water)
• Juncus xiphioides (Iris-leaved rush) - spreading iris-like growth for wet spots (sun, high water)
• Koeleria macrantha (June grass) - 1 ft. clump of green grass with showy "bunnytail" flowers (sun, low water)
• Leymus condensatus 'Canyon Prince' (Ryegrass)- robust 3 ft. clump with wide slivery-grey grass blades (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Phalaris californica (Canary grass) - upright 2 ft. clump with bamboo-like appearance (sun, low water)
• Iris douglasiana (Douglas iris) - 2 ft. clump of wide grass-like leaves, with large flowers in spring - colors from cream to yellow to purple to blue (shade, low water)
• Sisyrinchium bellum (Blue-eyed grass) - 1 ft. grassy clump with small blue flowers in spring; dies back for rest of year (sun, drought-tolerant)
  

Bulbs:

• Allium peninsular (Peninsular onion) - hot pink flowers in loose clusters in spring, from oak woodlands (light shade, needs dry summer)
• Allium membranaceum (Membranous onion) - pale pink flowers in loose clusters in spring (sun to shade, needs dry summer)
• Allium sanbornii v sanbornii (Sanborn's onion) - pink flowers in summer (sun, well-drained soil, dry summer)
• Brodiaea elegans (Harvest or Elegant brodiaea) - purple flower in late spring, common throughout California (sun, heat, dry summer)
• Brodiaea purdeyi (Purdey's brodiaea) - dark purple flower in early summer (sun, heat, dry summer)
• Calochortus albus (White globe lily, fairy lantern) - white bell-shaped flower in spring, locally common (part shade, dry summer)
• Calochortus luteus (Gold nuggets) - large yellow bowl-shaped flower in late spring (full sun, heat, dry summer)
• Calochortus monophyllus (Cat's ear, yellow star) - delicate low-growing star-shaped yellow flowers in spring, from open pine/oak woodland (part shade, dry summer)
• Calochortus superbus (Superb mariposa lily) - large white bowl-shaped flowers in late spring, sunny meadows or rocky places, (sun, dry summer)
• Dichelostemma capitatum (Blue dicks) - tight clusters of purple flowers in early spring, locally common, (heat, sun, good drainage, dry summer)
• Dichelostemma volubile (Twining brodiaea, snake lily) - tight clusters of pink flowers on twining stems in late spring (sun to part shade, dry summer)
• Triteleia laxa (Ithuriel's spear, wally basket) - light purple flowers in loose clusters, adaptable easy even in heavy clay (sun, dry summer)
• Triteleia ixiodes spp scabra (Foothill pretty face, Golden brodiaea) - light yellow star-shaped flowers in late spring (sun to part shade, dry summer)
• Lilium pardalinum (Leopard lily) - large nodding orange flowers in summer, grows along streams (sun to shade, medium water)

Plants with moderate growth rate (~1- 2 ft. of growth per year):

Shrubs:

• Holodiscus discolor (Creambush, oceanspray) - for dry shade, 5 ft. airy plant with creamy sprays of flowers in summer (shade, drought-tolerant)
• Baccharis pilularis (Coyote brush) - often colonizes bare site (may be weedy); 6 ft. green mound with fragrant creamy flowers on separate male and female plants in fall-winter (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Heteromeles arbutifolia (Toyon) - 6-15 ft. large coarse shrub with clusters of white flowers in late spring and red berries in fall-winter; a good wildlife food source (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Vaccinium ovatum (Huckleberry) - 2-6 ft. fine-textured shrub with edible huckleberries in fall (shade, medium water)
• Corylus cornuta (Western hazelnut) - 5 ft. airy plant with soft. large leaves, tassle-like flowers and small crop of hazelnuts in fall (shade, medium water)
• Physocarpus capitata (Western Ninebark) - 4 ft. deciduous twiggy shrub with creamy clusters of flowers in spring (sun, medium water)
• Symphoricarpus albus (Snowberry) - 4 ft. upright deciduous shrub with pink-white berries in winter, after leaves have dropped (shade, low water)
• Rosa californica (California rose) - thorny thicket-forming 6 ft. deciduous shrub with fragrant pink flowers in summer followed by beautiful red hips in fall-winter (sun, low water)
• Carpenteria californica (Bush anemone) - upright 5 ft. leggy shrub with pretty white flowers in spring (part sun, drought-tolerant)
• Eriogonum species - E. fasciculatum, E. arborescens, etc. (Buckwheats) - heat- and drought-tolerant 3-5 ft. shrubs with flat-topped flower clusters in summer, flowers aging to rust color in fall (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Lonicera involucrata (Twinberry) - deciduous shrub with yellow flowers and red fruits in pairs ("twinberries"), for moist cooler exposures (part sun, medium water)
• Lonicera interrupta (Chaparral honeysuckle) - airy deciduous shrub with arching branches, for hot dry exposures (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Trichostema lanatum (Woolly blue curls) - 3 ft. clump with branches ending in plumes of woolly purple flowers (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Keckiella antirrhinoides (Yellow bush snapdragon) - arching airy 3 ft. shrub with yellow to red flowers in summer (part sun, low water)
• Calycanthus occidentalis (Spicebush) - deciduous large mound (to 10 ft.) with fragrant burgundy flowers in spring, aromatic foliage (like an old wine barrel) turns yellow in fall (sun, medium water)
• Sambucus mexicana (Blue elderberry) - upright multitrunked small tree with creamy flowers in spring followed by blue berries in summer. Loses leaves in late summer. Tendency to sucker but responds well to pruning. (sun, drought-tolerant)
  

Perennials:

• Satureja douglasii (Yerba Buena) - 6 inch tall delicate groundcover with mint-scented leaves (shade, low water)

Grasses:

• Nassella lepida (Foothill needlegrass) - 1 ft. clump with delicate 2 ft. flower stalks (sun, low water)
• Nassella cernua (Nodding needlegrass) - 1 ft. clump with delicate 2 ft. flower stalks (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Achnatherum coronatum (Giant stipa) - thin tall clump with wide blades (sun, low water)
• Calamagrostis nutkaensis (Pacific reed grass) - robust upright 2 ft. clump (sun, medium water)
• Festuca rubra 'Molate' (creeping red fescue) - delicately textured spreading green grass, often used for naturalistic meadows (part sun, low water)
• Festuca californica (California fescue) - 2 ft. clump with tall airy flower stalks, for dry shade (such as under existing oaks) (shade, drought-tolerant)

Slow-growing plants (many years to reach full size):

Trees:

• Aesculus californica (California buckeye) - medium-sized round tree (30 ft. tall, wide) with plumes of fragrant cream-colored flowers in spring followed by ornamental "buckeye" fruits in fall, summer deciduous (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Arbutus menziesii (Pacific madrone) - striking evergreen tree with peeling red bark, sculptural form. Does not transplant well (best started from small 1 gallon size) (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Cercis occidentalis (Western redbud) - small deciduous tree with magenta flowers in spring, heart-shaped leaves turn yellow-orange in fall (sun, drought-tolerant)
  

Shrubs:

• Arctostaphylos glauca (Common manzanita) - evergreen large shrub with gray-green leaves, white flowers in winter, beautiful form and peeling red bark (sun, drought-tolerant)
• Garrya elliptica (Coast silktassel) - compact evergreen shrub with greenish yellow tassels of flowers in winter (shade, drought-tolerant)
• Rhamnus crocea (Redberry buckthorn) - 2-4 ft. shrub with small leaves, heavy crop of red berries in late summer. Extremely slow-growing (sun, drought-tolerant)

The plants for the garden were purchased from several sources:

• Rana Creek Habitat Restoration
• North Coast Native Nursery
• Las Pilitas Nursery - excellent online source for information on gardening with natives
• Cal Flora Nursery
• Far West Bulb Farm

For more information about California native plants and waterwise plants, see

Some California Native Plants on the Stanford University Campus

Visit a Waterwise Demonstration Garden