![\"Manzanita](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-NATIVEGARDENHOWTO-10_247435050.jpg\")
Manzanita blooms hang in graceful, lantern-shape clusters in Ashbaugh’s garden. (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n
With water becoming ever more expensive and San Diego seemingly chronically in drought, it can feel harder to justify planting a garden filled with thirsty species. The great news is that there are plenty of resources for both homeowners and renters who want to migrate to growing native plants, and it doesn\u2019t have to be an either\/or decision. If you understand your plants\u2019 needs, you can grow natives and have a vegetable garden, citrus trees or ornamentals that you love.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s say you\u2019re a big hummingbird fan, with several feeders hanging around your garden or from your balcony. Here\u2019s the thing, as Ashbaugh explained: \u201cThe hummingbirds don\u2019t need just nectar. They actually need a source of protein. They pick out the little bugs and gnats and whatever is stuck on the spider webs on plants. And then they take the spider webs for their nest.\u201d<\/p>\n
Basically, hummingbirds need a holistic environment in which to thrive, and native plants have a role to play there. Yes, they feed on flowers like Fuchsia. But they also like chaparral mallow, an evergreen shrub with pale pink flowers, and Galvezia, or island snapdragon, a vinelike perennial with trumpet-shape red flowers. These are just two species of native plants, and the island snapdragon even grows in pots.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a lot to learn about diving into establishing a native garden. A little research can go a long way.<\/p>\n
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![\"Bladderpod](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-NATIVEGARDENHOWTO-12_247435080.jpg\"\/)
\nBladderpod seeds yield what Calscape calls \u201cone of the easiest California natives to grow.\u201d (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)\n<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
![\"Ants](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-NATIVEGARDENHOWTO-3_247435076.jpg?w=620\")
\nAnts crawl across a bladderpod flower. (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)\n<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
![\"Buckwheat](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-NATIVEGARDENHOWTO-11_247435048.jpg?w=620\")
\nBuckwheat blooms in Sherry Ashbaugh\u2019s El Cajon yard. (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)\n<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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1 of 3<\/p>\n
Bladderpod seeds yield what Calscape calls \u201cone of the easiest California natives to grow.\u201d (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)\n<\/p>\n
Expand<\/a><\/p>\n
Lucy Warren is a master gardener and the co-author with Greg Rubin of \u201cThe Drought-Defying California Garden: 230 Native Plants for Lush, Low-Water Landscape\u201d<\/a> and \u201cThe California Native Landscape: The Homeowner\u2019s Design Guide to Restoring Its Beauty and Balance.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n
As you first begin considering your approach, Warren has some suggestions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat you need to do to have a sustainable garden is to create a palette of plants that are evergreen, perennial plants,\u201d she explained. \u201cYou probably want 75% of your garden to include those types of plants. Many of them also bloom. If you have seasonal plants, you have seasonal color. But if you select your plants correctly, you have different leaf shapes, you have different tones of green. Some of them have really lovely colors of green themselves.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen when you have that palette done, you supplement the remaining 25% with the ones that have those pops of color seasonally, and you select plants that have their color in different times of the year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Warren also pointed out that not all native plants are drought tolerant. That makes sense when you consider that some are riparian plants, meaning they live and thrive by streambeds, while others have developed to live in harsher, drier conditions. So, consider where you live within San Diego County. Coastal? Inland? In the mountains? Do you get a lot of intense midday sun and heat or some shade? Do you have any water elements on your property? Do you have a slope?<\/p>\n
And, of course, if you choose to grow thirstier plants \u2014 citrus or fruit trees or vegetables \u2014 there\u2019s nothing saying you can\u2019t do that within a native garden. Just grow them far enough apart from drought-tolerant natives so that both types of plants will thrive with their distinct water needs.<\/p>\n
![\"California](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-NATIVEGARDENHOWTO-7_247435052.jpg\")
California native plants including buckwheat, manzanita and sagebrush grow in Ashbaugh\u2019s backyard. (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\nChristine Hoey is the chair of the CNPS San Diego chapter\u2019s Native Gardening Committee and a board member. She regularly holds workshops to teach people how to care for their native gardens, including how native gardens can increase food harvests.<\/p>\n
\u201cDepending on what you\u2019re planting, you can increase your food harvest up to 75%, so native gardens are really advantageous to natural pollinators. And native pollinators are much more effective at pollinating than, for instance, honeybees,\u201d Hoey pointed out. \u201cPeople don\u2019t realize that. They think it\u2019s all about the honeybees, but bumblebees are actually more efficient. You\u2019ve got your hummingbirds, and your moths and bats are even pollinators. We have dozens of native bees that are great pollinators, butterflies, wasps, beetles, flies \u2014 so lots of wildlife out there that can increase pollination for food gardens.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another key to growing a sustainable native garden is to take the time to research the plants you\u2019re interested in, Warren said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to pay attention to the size of the plants, the type of the plants and the placement of the plants,\u201d she emphasized. \u201cOne of the mistakes that people make is they see this pretty little plant in a pot, and they just put it wherever they put it, and don\u2019t pay attention to the fact that this little plant in this 1 gallon pot is going to be grow six to eight feet. So you want to plant your plants to their mature size. You want to know how big it\u2019s going to be once it grows up.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\""Butterflies,](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-NATIVEGARDENHOWTO-1_247435078-e1765629769584.jpg\")
\u201cButterflies, hummingbirds, they\u2019ll find that one single plant on your balcony. So every little bit helps,\u201d Sherry Ashbaugh said. (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\nAre native plants easier to maintain than plants we bring in from other areas in the country or the world?<\/p>\n
They should be, said Warren. \u201cIf the garden is properly designed, there\u2019s very little maintenance. There\u2019ll be maintenance the first year, because you\u2019ll probably still have a seed bank in your soil the first year or so.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meaning that if you\u2019ve pulled out a lawn or other plants, you\u2019ll still have seeds from those plants \u2014 unless you strip the soil. Warren said you could have thousands of seeds in the soil, including weeds, of course.<\/p>\n
\u201cWeeding is one of the main tasks that you\u2019ll have in transition,\u201d she pointed out. \u201cOnce the plants grow, they\u2019ll outcompete the weeds. But weeds are very competitive, and the first few years, you\u2019re going to be probably inundated.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s where good mulch comes in. About 4 inches\u2019 depth in mulch will go a long way in contributing to the health of your plants and the soil.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll the money you save on buying smaller plants, use to invest in really good quality mulch,\u201d Warren said. \u201cOne of the best mulches for California native plants is shredded redwood bark, because it comes from a native plant, and it breaks down very slowly. Even though it\u2019s five to 10 times more expensive, it will last for a good five to eight years.\u201d<\/p>\n
The other key part of any garden is irrigation. Some people rely on rain alone to irrigate their plants, but especially for young plants and those that are not totally drought tolerant, you need to have water available. But it shouldn\u2019t be delivered the way you think. Drip irrigation lines are great for vegetable gardens, but native plants still establishing their root systems need a method that mimics rain. It could be hand watering with a hose or watering can or lines with micro spray heads.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suggest that people do have an irrigation system,\u201d said Warren. \u201cAnd my recommendation is the Hunter MP Rotator. It delivers a micro spray, and it washes the leaves of the plants. It\u2019s the equivalent of a Pacific mist, actually. It wets the mulch, and the mulch then delivers the moisture to the plants in the soil.\u201d<\/p>\n
Warren explained that the goal is to establish mycorrhizae, which are a fungi with a symbiotic relationship with a plant\u2019s roots. The fungus helps with the growth of the root system by breaking down the soil particles so it can access nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen. The plant, in turn, provides the fungus with sugars from photosynthesis.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe whole key to doing a native landscape is that it\u2019s not just planting plants,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s an ecosystem. And the ecosystem includes the plants and the microbes that are in the soil and the mycorrhizae that connect the roots of the soil. The mycorrhizae essentially extends the root system of the plants probably 10 times what the roots do. Watering the first couple of years establishes that ecosystem.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you apply fertilizer, you\u2019re applying too many nutrients and too much water, said Warren. Not only will they drop the mycorrhizae, but all the defenses they provide are dropped, too, and they\u2019re subject to all sorts of viruses and bacteria.<\/p>\n
Also important is defeating a major enemy of native plants: Argentine ants. The ants damage the roots and bring in other pathogens that sicken and kill the plants. Ashbaugh has a simple solution. She saves little plastic condiment containers and their lids, fills them with a cotton ball moistened with borax, sugar and distilled water, pokes a hole in the lid and places them near but not on their trail for the ants to discover, climb in and bring back the borax to the nest.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe goal is they feed the queen and once you kill the queen, then the colony will die.\u201d<\/p>\n
But perhaps you don\u2019t have actual land to grow natives. How well do they do in pots?<\/p>\n
Obviously, it depends on the plants you select, but Hoey is a big advocate of container planting for natives.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-NATIVEGARDENHOWTO-5_247435066.jpg\")
A bee takes pollen from a bladderpod flower in Ashbaugh\u2019s native garden. (Ana Ramirez \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n\u201cIn San Diego County, 50% of our residents rent rather than own, and so we have 50% of the population who doesn\u2019t have a piece of land to do a native garden, or even fruit gardens. And so my big thing is trying to tell the other 50% of the population who rent, \u2018Hey, you can have a native garden on your balcony or your front porch or right out your back door using containers.\u2019 And I\u2019ve got a whole class that I\u2019ve dedicated to teaching people how to do this, because it\u2019s not hard to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe thing is, if you plant, a thing will come, and container gardens are no different. And you look for plants in which something is blooming year-round, and you will have a constant flow of pollinators visiting your native container garden.\u201d<\/p>\n
Huey has a handout for mini habitat gardening with native plants that explains the right location to choose, the type and size of containers, drainage, soil, watering and feeding, top-dress and maintenance \u2014 and a list of native plants that thrive in containers. These include bush monkey flower, desert mallow, California Fuchsias and red buckwheat for full sun; and Douglas\u2019 iris, island snapdragon, hummingbird sage and woodland strawberries for part shade.<\/p>\n
As for the needed mycorrhizae, it turns out, said Hoey, that the fungi you need are sold at a lot of nurseries or online.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can buy a package of a variety of these fungi, and you just sprinkle a little bit and mix it into your soil,\u201d she said. \u201cOr if you\u2019ve got any native soil available nearby, just take a shovelful and add it to your soil, and then you\u2019ve got mycorrhizae from nearby that will populate your soil.\u201d<\/p>\n
All this will not only give you a beautiful garden but will also attract pollinators. Hoey suggested adding a water source, like bubbler fountains, a solar-generated mini fountains or a simple bird bath to attract birds.<\/p>\n
Looking for help? Start here<\/p>\n
It\u2019s clear that the CNPS is a good resource for information \u2014 and plant and seed exchanges, too. Here are a few other resources, and demonstration gardens that you can visit.<\/p>\n
ADVICE<\/strong>California Native Plant Society \u2013 San Diego chapter:<\/strong> cnpssd.org<\/a>Calscape:<\/strong> Search criteria such as plant type, sun exposure, soil drainage and ease of care; calscape.org<\/a><\/p>\n
PLANTS AND SEEDS<\/strong>The Little Barn at Native West Nursery:<\/strong> nativewest.com\/retail<\/a>Blue Moon Native Garden:<\/strong> bluemoonnative.com<\/a>Moosa Creek Nursery:<\/strong> moosacreeknursery.com<\/a><\/p>\n
GARDEN INSPIRATION<\/strong>The Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College:<\/strong> thegarden.org<\/a>Bird Park Learning Garden:<\/strong> cnpssd.org\/learning-garden<\/a>Paradise Hills Native Garden:<\/strong> paradisegardeners.org\/native-garden<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For The Union-Tribune About a year or so after Sherry Ashbaugh and her husband moved into their home…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":444659,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5134],"tags":[5229,1582,276,20240,1370,3549,7264,1072,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-444658","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-california","11":"tag-home-and-garden","12":"tag-latest-headlines","13":"tag-san-diego","14":"tag-sandiego","15":"tag-things-to-do","16":"tag-united-states","17":"tag-united-states-of-america","18":"tag-unitedstates","19":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","20":"tag-us","21":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115712878781268251","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/444658","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=444658"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/444658\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/444659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=444658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=444658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=444658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}