Jan Enderle’s Garden
Pleasant Hill
Gardening experience: 30 years
Years gardened at this location: Garden installed 4 years ago
Garden size: 4,000 square feet
Showcase feature: A former “soggy lawn, ivy-covered rental landscape that was not a place you wanted to sit in” has been transformed into a peaceful wildlife sanctuary. The small side garden, planted under the shade of a large valley oak, is now a charming native plant garden containing Douglas iris, coral bells, mule’s ears, California grape, Dutchman’s pipevine, and fragrant coyote mint, among other natives. Every inch of the postage-stamp-sized back garden is used. The hedgerow along the rear fence is a haven for birds. A graceful pond and waterfall attract wildlife and enchant visitors. The flagstone path, Cold Water Canyon stone retaining wall, waterfall, and pond were designed and installed by Ron DeGeorge of Vortex Water; the rest of the garden was designed and installed by the gardener.
Other garden attractions:
- Leaf litter is left as mulch in order to feed the soil, which, as this gardener says, is as alive as the rest of the garden.
- Wide garden beds wrap around the reduced lawn.
- Edibles are scattered throughout the garden.
- Several native aquatic plants such as giant horsetail, monkeyflower, and marsh marigold are found in the pond.
Gardening for Wildlife: All creatures are welcome in this habitat garden. In order to invite wildlife into the garden, seeds are left to ripen on plants, and in winter the gardener puts out hummingbird and seed feeders. The pond and waterfall attract a variety of wildlife; a shelf with shallow water is particularly inviting to the birds as they can bathe and drink while being provided with protection from predators. Hummingbirds, ruby-throated kinglets, hermit thrushes, woodpeckers, four kinds of sparrow, doves, toads, lizards, monarch butterflies and skippers, dragonflies and frequently seen. The occasional mole, raccoon, opposum or skunk also visits the garden. Jan is particularly fond of the paper wasps that nest in the eaves as wasps are a great bug patrol, hunting for aphids in the garden. A lot of bees frequent this garden; in addition to honeybees, a couple of different kinds of bumblebees and a lot of the smaller native bees buzz about, busily pollinating plants.
Kurt and Jan’s Garden
Kurt had a yard of rental taste,
A boggy, lawny, ivy waste.
He likes to dig — so dig he did,
And of the ivy finally rid,
We planted rose and feather grass.
A great beginning, but alas!
Want more! A path, a waterfall!
Oh my, methinks we need to call
DeGeorge, whose art and sweat and blood
Did mix with mortar, sand, and mud
And left us with a place so share
With beasts, bugs, birds, and friends who care.