Getting Started

Right Plant, Right Place

Farewell to spring (Clarkia amoena var. huntiana); Image: Suzi Katz

Why choose locally native plants? The benefits are multifold. California’s native plants have evolved over hundreds of years to succeed in the state’s summer dry climate, with adaptations for their particular regions. They have ancient relationships with insects and wildlife: both helping them and benefitting from them. Many California native plants are water wise–able to succeed with little or no watering once established. They nourish the soil and different plants thrive in different types of soil, whether it be serpentine, clay, or sand, for example. Selecting the right native plants for your location is the first step to creating a successful native plant garden.

How Do I Know Which Plants to Choose?

Put Calscape.org to work for you. This powerful tool will show you which native plants are best suited for your region and help you with garden inspiration and nursery locations.

Understanding Your Site

Understanding Your Site

Martha Walker Garden maintained by the CNPS Napa Valley Chapter; Image: Elizabeth Kubey
Selecting Plants

Selecting Plants

Image: Tony Tubbs
Native Grass Alternatives to Lawns

Native Grass Alternatives to Lawns

Meadow grass (Carex praegracilis)
Native Planting Guides

Native Planting Guides

Dudleya; Image: Vince Scheidt
Native Gardening 101

Native Gardening 101

Redflower buckwheat (Eriogonum grande) and Seaside daisy (Erigeron glaucus); SF Botanical Garden; Image: Maya Argaman
Meet the <i>Bloom!</i> Plants

Meet the Bloom! Plants

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