Tag Archives: gardening

Buckwheat Giveaway in Dana Point

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The city of Dana Point is partnering with the Orange County chapter of the California Native Plant Society (OCCNPS) on an ambitious 200-plant Buckwheat in Every Garden giveaway this Friday, November 15 at the Dana Point Community Center.

Four-inch ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat plant is ready to be planted in a new Orange County home landscape.

OCCNPS and the city of Dana Point will give away 200 four-inch ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat plants from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the parking lot of the Dana Point Community Center at 34052 Del Obispo Street on Friday, November 15.

Buckwheat giveaway earlier this month. Photo by Thea Gavin.

Tree of Life Nursery selected the ‘Dana Point’ California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum) from a buckwheat plant growing at the Dana Point Headlands. The ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat is a long-flowering shrub that grows one-foot tall and three-feet wide, making it well-suited to smaller home landscapes and gardens.

‘Dana Point’ buckwheat. Photo by Kris Ethington.

One ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat plant per homeowner will be given in exchange for the homeowner’s street and city. OCCNPS is mapping the buckwheats as they are planted across Orange County home landscapes on the BIEG iNaturalist map. A recent version of the iNaturalist map is shown here with nearly 700 buckwheats planted across Orange County.

A Buckwheat in Every Garden iNaturalist map.

Please join us this Friday and help make Dana Point’s namesake buckwheat giveaway a success. The plants are ready to go into the ground. Get yours this Friday, November 15, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Dana Point Community Center at 34052 Del Obispo Street, Dana Point, California.

Newly installed ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat. Photo by Rob Skinner.

How the Buckwheat Campaign Began

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The idea for A Buckwheat in Every Garden was hatched in July 2019 when board members of the California Native Plant Society, Orange County chapter (OCCNPS) met for their annual strategy meeting. The goal of the campaign: To encourage Orange County homeowners to install California native plants in their home landscapes to support healthy urban environments.

OCCNPS committee members defined the goals of the campaign: Distribute 1,500 California buckwheat ‘Dana Point’ plants, one plant per Orange County homeowner, from October 2019 through February 29, 2020, or until all plants are distributed. Plants are given in exchange for the homeowner’s street and city address, so the plants can be mapped on A Buckwheat in Every Garden iNaturalist map.

The committee worked with Tree of Life Nursery to support the cultivation of 1,500 ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat plants in decorative four-inch containers. The committee also worked with Roger’s Gardens to help distribute and promote the buckwheat campaign.

California buckwheat ‘Dana Point’ variety. Photo by Laura Camp.

OCCNPS committee members created a blog and a web page and began an Instagram and Twitter account. A new iNaturalist mapping program was created specifically for the campaign and added to the OCCNPS web site.

A Buckwheat in Every Garden is funded by OCCNPS’ small treasury and is operated with all volunteer labor. OCCNPS is a 501(c)(3) California non-profit organization. Upcoming buckwheat give-away outreach events are listed below (while supplies last):

OCCNPS gives away California buckwheat ‘Dana Point’ at Acorn Day in O’Neill Regional Park. Photo by Ian Morrell.

  1. San Clemente Garden Club,  Wednesday, November 6 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., San Clemente.
  2. Laguna Beach Garden Club, Friday, November 8 from 9:30 a.m. to noon, Laguna Beach.
  3. Sherman Library and Gardens, Friday, November 8 from 10:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m., Corona del Mar.
  4. The city of Dana Point, Dana Point Community Center, 34052 Del Obispo, Dana Point, Friday, November 15 from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. This event is ambitious: We hope to distribute 200 buckwheats in four hours. Help us make that happen. We will see you there.

Fullerton Arboretum event on November 1st. Photo by Maryanne Mayeda.

If you haven’t had a chance to pick up your free buckwheat yet, join us at one of the four events listed above, and share your address with us so we can plot your new buckwheat on the iNaturalist map. The plants go quickly, so arrive early.

Fairy bee visits buckwheat. Photo by Kris Ethington.

 

Buckwheats Buzz

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Most people recognize the common honey bee as a social creature that lives in hives and makes honey. However many people don’t know that honey bees are non-native insects, introduced from Europe.

European honey bee visiting buckwheat. Photo by Kris Ethington.

There are 1,600 species of native bees in California, ranging in size from one-inch long to less than one-quarter inch long. California native bees are often solitary, living in wood or underground tunnels, and most do not make honey. They are important to the existence of our wild lands, and serve as food that supports other species.

Fairy Bees visit buckwheat blossoms. Photo by Kris Ethington.

California native bees love buckwheat’s profusion of blossoms. If you look closely at your California buckwheat when it’s in full bloom in the summer, you will see hundreds of tiny bees and butterflies scattered throughout its blossoms.

Fiery Skipper butterfly visits buckwheat. Photo by Kris Ethington.

If you would like to learn more about California native bees, visit the website for UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden.

And if you would like to support our native pollinators, join us as we give away California buckwheat plants (while supplies last) at three upcoming events in November:

  1. The Fullerton Arboretum is hosting A Buckwheat in Every Garden give-away on Friday, November 1, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
  2. Roger’s Gardens is giving away four-inch California ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat plants from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Corona del Mar on Friday, November 1.
  3. The San Clemente Garden Club is hosting a buckwheat give-away on Wednesday, November 6 from 1 to 3 p.m. Brad Jenkins, President of the Orange County chapter of the California Native Plant Society, will be presenting that afternoon as well.

    An Urbane Digger Bee in flight. Photo by Kris Ethington.

    OCCNPS gave away more than 400 ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat plants in October. Visit our iNaturalist map to see the hundreds of buckwheat plants that have gone to their new Orange County home landscapes.

Buckwheat Builds Soil

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California buckwheat is an evergreen plant with small leaves that occasionally drop to the ground, forming a natural mulch. The fallen leaves enrich the soil around the plant and allow the plant to grow and spread in its own loamy mulch.

California buckwheat leaves and stem. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff.

If you are an Orange County homeowner who hasn’t picked up your free ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat yet, stop by Roger’s Gardens at 2301 San Joaquin Hills Rd., Corona del Mar on Tuesday, October 22 through Thursday, October 24, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. This is the only three-day giveaway we have planned, so take advantage of it if you can.

Rogers Gardens is participating in the A Buckwheat in Every Garden campaign.

 

Birds, Bees and Buckwheat

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The California Native Plant Society Orange County (OCCNPS) chapter created A Buckwheat in Every Garden to encourage homeowners to plant California native plants in their home landscape– which in turn supports and increases bird populations.

Hummingbird and native California fuchsia. Photo by Kris Ethington.

My neighbor recently sent this photo of a swallowtail butterfly laying eggs on the leaves of her kumquat tree. She had previously considered removing the kumquat trees from her garden, but decided against it and was thrilled to see the swallowtail butterfly laying eggs on the leaves.

Swallowtail butterfly laying eggs on the leaves of a kumquat tree. Photo by Amanda Morrell.

California buckwheat has a long, prolific flowering season that attracts tiny native California bees and butterflies. When I looked closely at my California buckwheat plants this summer, I was astonished to see thousands of tiny pollinators on my buckwheat flowers. These pollinators support my vegetable garden and fruit trees, and they support bird life as well.

Butterfly visits a California buckwheat. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff.

On Thursday, October 17 at 7:30 p.m., Mike Evans, owner of Tree of Life Nursery, gave a presentation at the OCCNPS chapter meeting called Horticultural Valor in the Native Garden–Be Bold! OCCNPS gave away 61 four-inch ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat plants during the chapter meeting.

Paper wasps visits a buckwheat flower. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff.

On Saturday, October 19, OCCNPS board member Thea Gavin gave a presentation at Orange Home Grown Farmers Market about how beneficial pollinators increase in numbers when native plants are installed near fruit and vegetable gardens. OCCNPS gave away 42 ‘Dana Point’ California buckwheat plants at the event.

California buckwheat

Butterfly visits buckwheat. Photo by Kris Ethington.

Would you like to help the buckwheat campaign? Join us as a Buckwheat Ambassador and help distribute baby buckwheat plants to your garden club or environmental group. Click here to learn how you can be a part of A Buckwheat in Every Garden.

Buckwheat Brings a Party

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One hundred and fifty ‘Dana Point’ California buckwheats found new homes in Orange County. The first outreach event at Acorn Day at O’Neill Regional Park and the second outreach at Smartscape were very popular, attracting many gardeners eager to install a native California buckwheat in their home landscapes.

California buckwheats are in high demand at Acorn Day in O’Neill Park. Photo by Laura Camp.

The Orange County chapter of the California Native Plant Society (OCCNPS) has created an interactive iNaturalist map that shows the distribution of the 1,500 buckwheat plants as they are given away and planted throughout the OC. You can follow along as the new buckwheat plants are being installed in Orange County by clicking on the link here.

Four-inch California buckwheats ready for distribution. Photo by Ian Morrell.

If you didn’t have a chance to pick up your free California buckwheat plant last weekend, OCCNPS will be hosting more events throughout October and November.

One of many clusters of blossoms on California Buckwheat. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff

Go to www.OCCNPS.org for more information about upcoming buckwheat distribution events, buckwheat care, planting information, and more. We look forward to seeing you soon.

California buckwheat

California buckwheat in full bloom.

 

 

Buckwheat in Bloom

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According to the California Native Plant Society’s Calscape.org, there are 251 varieties of buckwheat (Eriogonum) native to California! You can go to Calscape.org and see for yourself all of the beautiful buckwheat varieties that grow in the state.

Buckwheat “Dana Point.’ Photo by Kris Ethington.

Three different varieties of buckwheat are growing in my home garden currently, and I am looking forward to adding the ‘Dana Point’ selection being offered to homeowners through A Buckwheat in Every Garden this October.

After I pick up my free ‘Dana Point’ buckwheat in October, I will install it in my garden near the sidewalk leading to the front door.

Dana Point buckwheat provides seeds for the birds, habitat for lizards, and nectar for many varieties of tiny California native bees and butterflies.

Buckwheats are hardy and easy to establish. Plant them in a sunny place in the garden without amendments or fertilizers and they will thrive. California buckwheats rarely need pruning–once a year in December at most. After the plant is established, rainfall is all of the water a buckwheat will need, but watering the plant once a month will keep it green longer.

Ashyleaf Buckwheat newly installed in landscape.

At right is a photo of Ashyleaf Buckwheat (Eriogonum cinereum) that I planted in my garden three weeks ago. This wild buckwheat grows on beaches and bluffs in California. Ashyleaf buckwheat is the food plant for the Euphilotes bernardino, the Bernardino dotted blue butterfly.

Acmon Blue butterfly visits a California buckwheat.

The next post will talk about the Orange County chapter of the California Native Plant Society’s buckwheat giveaway in more detail, providing specific dates and places where you can get your free, four-inch ‘Dana Point’ California buckwheat plant in October and November while supplies last.

Butterfly Weekend

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This weekend was California Biodiversity Day 2019 sponsored by the California Natural Resources Agency.  Scientists sought observations by fellow scientists, gardeners and ordinary citizens in mapping plants and animals living in California.

Male and female monarchs get together on the leaves of an alder tree to perpetuate the species. Photo by Jeff Wallace.

In honor of Biodiversity Day, I took a break from my chores and spent some time outside in my backyard with my husband to observe the local wildlife. We saw eight different species of butterflies, cactus wrens eating California coffee berries, hummingbirds sipping nectar from California fuchsia, a lizard doing push-ups on our garden wall, and a leaf-cutter bee laying eggs.

A pair of woodland skippers resting on a ceanothus.

After taking these photos, we uploaded them to iNaturalist, a citizen science project and online social network of naturalists, citizen scientists, and biologists built on the concept of mapping and sharing observations of biodiversity across the globe.

Metalmark butterfly at rest.

It’s fun discovering tiny butterflies and native bees that live in the garden.  I spend a lot of time watching the butterflies, wishing they would rest so I can capture their image with my iPhone.

My friend in Costa Mesa noticed Monarch caterpillars had eaten all of the leaves of her two narrow-leaf milkweed bushes this week.  She was alarmed and worried the caterpillars would need more food.  She drove to Armstrong Nursery on Thursday and purchased a large narrow-leaf milkweed and her Monarch caterpillars are happily munching away once again.  They are hungry!

Monarch caterpillar feasting on a narrow-leaf milkweed. Photo by Cynthia Grilli.

Scientists were concerned because the annual Western Monarch butterfly count was historically low this year (fewer than 30,000 butterflies were counted–down 99 percent from the 1980’s).  They fear the Western Monarch may be nearing extinction.

It feels hopeful to see these chubby caterpillars, and the two adults mating in my garden this week.  If you would like to learn more about how you can help Monarchs, go to The Xerces Society.

 

 

Local Plants Support Bird Life

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Did you know that 96 percent of songbirds rear their young on insects?  That one nest of chickadees requires 4,000 caterpillars and insects to fledge their young?

carolina-chickadee_douglas-tallamy-1

Carolina chickadee prepares to feed young. Photo by Douglas Tallamy.

Our national parks and nature preserves are not adequate to support bird and butterfly populations according to Doug Tallamy, author of Bringing Nature Home.  Tallamy estimates that only 3 percent of land in the lower 48 is set aside as parkland and nature preserves. The remaining 97 percent of land is being used for agriculture, residential and commercial development.

Tallamy argues that part of the reason bird and butterfly populations have been declining is because we have been planting ornamental plants in our commercial and residential landscapes instead of native plants.

Fountain Grass

Ornamental and invasive fountain grass planted on a residential hillside.

Tallamy’s simple solution to reverse the decline of bird populations, is to encourage homeowners and business owners to plant locally native vegetation instead of ornamental plants.  Even planting a small corner of your garden with locally native plants will help support bird life and butterflies.

Buckwheat and Purple Three Awn

St. Catherine’s Lace (Eriogonum giganteum) and Purple Three Awn decorate a patio.

Locally native plants support butterfly life because the butterflies evolved to feed from the native vegetation.  More butterflies mean more birds.

Try planting native.  You will love the results.

More Butterflies in Your Garden

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Southern California is home to people and plants from around the world.  Plants from far away lands have been introduced in California and have become so common that many people believe that most ornamental plants are native.

Examples of introduced species include Eucalyptus trees from Australia, ice plant from Africa, and bougainvillea from Brazil. These plants (and many others) are seen commonly in home and commercial landscapes in Southern California.

Ice Plant

Invasive ice plant surrounds a native Coast Live Oak, robbing it of rainfall.

What is a California native plant and why should we care?

Scientists tell us that plants that are native to our community provide a richer abundance of life than plants introduced from other countries. Local pollinators like bumblebees and monarch butterflies rely on specific local plants to survive.

Narrow Leaf Milkweed

Western Monarch caterpillars feeding on native narrow-leaf milkweed. Photo by Cynthia Grilli.

Pictured above is a narrow-leaf milkweed (Asclepias fascicularis) loaded with Western Monarch caterpillars. The narrow-leaf milkweed grows in the wild lands of Southern California.

The California Native Plant Society Orange County (OCCNPS) wants to help Californians plant more native plants in their yards and gardens. Even a small corner of your lawn devoted to native plants will help bird and butterfly populations recover and become more abundant.

Bees Bliss Sage and Vanessa butterfly

Vanessa butterfly nectars on a Bees Bliss sage.

Beginning October 5 of this year, OCCNPS will give away one free California Buckwheat plant (while supplies last) to residents living in Orange County. The California buckwheat that OCCNPS is giving away grows wild in Dana Point, California.  The Dana Point buckwheat blooms 10 months of the year with creamy white blossoms that turn a russet red in the late fall.

Buckwheat blossoms. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff
Close-up of a Dana Point Buckwheat. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff
One of many clusters of blossoms on California Buckwheat. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff

“If you’ve only space for one native habitat plant, let it be a buckwheat,” said Dr. Constance M. Vadheim of Mother Nature’s Backyard where she included tips on how to grow buckwheat in a home garden, as well as a list of traditional native uses of the plant.

California buckwheat

Field of buckwheat in the wild. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff.

Natural open space and parks are not enough to support bird and wildlife populations. Each of us can make a difference by installing California native plants in our yards. OCCNPS will begin distribution of free California buckwheat plants at Acorn Day in O’Neill Park on October 5 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. We will map the plants as they head to their new homes. More information to come!

Buckwheat lines roadside

Buckwheat lines the road like summer snowdrifts. Photo by Ron Vanderhoff