Lot size: 2 acres, 90% native
Garden Age: Garden was installed in stages, beginning in 1985
Years on the Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour: 4
This extensive garden, located up a lot of stairs on the north slope of Nicholl Knob, rewards the intrepid with a fabulous view of Point Richmond and the delightful sight of an expanse of remnant coastal prairie. The lovely bunchgrass Festuca californica and coastal prairie associates such as soap-root, toyon, and coyote bush, provide a magical glimpse into the past. Closer to the house a waterfall and pond, vine-covered arbors, and well-loved vegetable beds create a restful oasis.
Other Garden Attractions
- The garden contains more than 20 kinds of fruit.
- Broom, blackberry, and poison oak once covered much of this property, which was cleared of invasive exotics without the use of pesticides.
Gardening for Wildlife
Bush tits, finches, chicadees, hummingbirds and flocks of cedar waxwings find food and shelter in this garden. Naturally-occurring patches of Dutchman’s pipevine provide food for the larval form of the pipevine swallowtail butterfly. Pacific chorus frogs came into the garden on their own when the waterfall and pond were installed. Habitat is provided by thickets, local native plants, and a diversity of plant type and height. Parts of the garden are left unkempt in order to provide wildlife with shelter and nesting areas.
Garden Talks
11:00 and 2:00 “Honeybees in the garden: see how honey is extraction from the hives, and enjoy a sample!” by Tom and Shirley Butt
