Lot size: 1 acre, 50% native
Garden Age: Garden was installed in stages, beginning in 1998
Years on the Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour: New this year!
Showcase Feature
This garden has something for everyone; interesting history, a restored creek, a mixture of native and Mediterranean plants, and whimsical sculptures. This beautiful oak woodland, once part of the 160 acre Papinta Stock Farm, was purchased in 1897 by the fascinating and famous Carrie Holpin, known internationally as “Papinta the Fire Dancer.” At that time a newspaper reported, “Live oaks dot the estate and wild flowers, ferns, and sylvan attractions abound.” Happily, after years of neglect, sylvan attractions are abounding again. Most of the natives on this large property are clustered on the banks of ephemeral Pine Creek, where a sea of invasive Arundo donax (giant reed) was removed and replaced with arroyo willows, bays, and substantial stands of elderberry, snowberry, and mugwort. The garden near the hundred year old barn where Stephen and Joyce live, is “a backbone of Mediterranean plants, punctuated by natives.” The varied collection of sculptures, placed attractively throughout the garden, is sure to delight. Plan on spending some time here; you’ll want to linger in this tranquil haven.
Other Garden Attractions
- Weeds are “ruthlessly” hand-pulled (if this one acre lot can be hand-weeded and managed without the use of herbicides, yours can, too!).
Gardening for Wildlife
Native fox, coyote, and bobcats have been seen in the garden, in addition to eighty five species of birds, and a dozen different types of butterflies. Owls and kites nest on the property.
Garden Talks
11:00 “Living with nature” by Stephen Barbata