California native plants can provide summer blooms

It’s June. It’s almost time for the official start of summer. Do you know where your flowers are?

If your garden is anything like mine, your poppies have petered out and your sages are subsiding. Ideally, other plants are starting to show off in their stead. If not, read on for some tips about how to prepare your garden for summer blooms in the years to come.

I took a little list of native summer bloomers to Tim Becker, Theodore Payne Foundation’s director of horticulture. He quickly rattled off a bunch more. Becker has long been passionate about this subject, sensitive to the common critique that California native plants look less than spectacular come summertime.

If a garden looks dead in the summer, he said, it’s because its planning did not incorporate enough evergreens and summer bloomers.

“It’s all about always having something going on,” Becker said.

In his home garden, six or seven native grasses help fulfill that desire. They add texture and color and break up so-called shrub monotony. But grasses don’t need to be the solution. The point is to find something that works in your setting.

“The summer garden, it’s such an important consideration,” Becker said. “That’s when I have time to be out. It’s when the kids are out of school, so we’re outside a lot. We’re always sitting on the porch in the afternoon. You want to have something to look at, something for the bees and the birds to come visit.”

For a little inspiration, here’s that by-no-means-exhaustive list of seven California native plants — summer all-stars if you will — that will provide summer blooms for years to come.

1. Saint Catherine’s lace (Eriogonum giganteum)

(Patrick Hruby / For The Times)

Saint Catherine’s lace is the biggest of more than 250 species of buckwheat native to California, and all of them are summer bloomers. If you had to stop reading right now and still want to improve your summer garden, you could do so with buckwheat.

“For anyone who’s like, ‘How do I get blooms year-round?’ I say, ‘Just plant a bunch of different buckwheats,’” Becker said.

Becker said red-flowered buckwheat (Eriogonum grande var. rubescens) and ashyleaf buckwheat (Eriogonum cinereum) are great choices too. To my eyes, Saint Catherine’s lace can be especially beautiful, with its sizable form and dense, pinkish white flowers. It’s endemic to the Channel Islands, and I’ve seen some in stunning spots near the northernmost tip of Catalina Island.

The specimens at the Theodore Payne Foundation’s Sun Valley nursery just began to bloom and should keep it up until August.

Saint Catherine’s lace also qualifies as rare and endangered, according to the California Native Plant Society. The UC Davis Arboretum named it one of its “All-Stars” for use in California landscapes, as the plant provides valuable summer sustenance to wildlife.

2. Desert willow (Chilopsis linearis)

Becker pointed out this multi-trunked tree as an ideal parkway plant. Indeed, on my Highland Park block, there are two adjacent desert willows planted in a parkway. They have been in bloom for weeks already. If memory serves from summers past, they should be able to sustain their appearance into August, maybe September.

The “Burgundy cultivar” (Chilopsis linearis “Burgundy”) has been popular of late, with some reporting longer bloom periods.

3. Humboldt’s lily (Lilium humboldtii)

If you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing one, the Humboldt’s lily provides easily the most dazzling bloom of any plant on this list. Most lists, really. Its flowers are huge and orange, marked or mottled with maroon splotches. It begins to bloom right around now, and, by midsummer, it often dies back to its bulb.

Becker said he had already seen one in bloom in May in the Santa Monica Mountains. Where there is a canyon and a stream, he said, there is a good chance of finding a Humboldt’s lily at this time of year. And if you factor in those conditions, you can bring the plant into your garden. It needs at least part shade and moist soil for much of the year, then a dry summer.

4. California goldenrod (Solidago velutina ssp. californica)

graphic illustration of California goldenrod

California goldenrod is known for its blooming yellow flowers in the late summer and fall when even most of the plants on this list are no longer blooming. That makes it valuable to us and to birds and pollinators.

Extended blooms do require supplemental irrigation.

“It’s gonna be hard to get a goldenrod to sustain,” Becker said, “without any extra water.”

5. Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia)

Toyon is at least the most prominent California native plant to retain its Indigenous name, and perhaps the only. It is the subject of apocryphal stories about being the source of the name Hollywood, given its resemblance to the common holly. And it is the official city plant of Los Angeles, its tannin-rich red berries a key winter food source, dating back centuries, for birds and Indigenous people.

Often lost in all its lore is that toyon produces beautiful white flowers in the summer too in an impressive contrast with the plant’s darker green leaves. And unlike the goldenrods and other plants on this list, Toyons do not require summer irrigation to look their best. The one catch: It will take them a couple years to bloom at first.

6. Deerweed (Acmispon glaber)

Deerweed isn’t a pure summer bloomer, as it will go dormant toward summer’s end. But its long-lasting yellow flowers, which gain an orange tinge as they age, can help sustain a garden’s appearance during the shoulder seasons.

“It’s definitely a good one to fill the gaps at weird times,” Becker said.

I’ve noticed some carrying the torch at Marie Massa’s Lincoln Heights Native Plant Corridor, before the unfortunate recent plant vandalism there. Last spring, she had so many volunteer deerweed plants that she gave a bunch away through Instagram. The plant is considered to be a valuable nitrogen fixer.

7. California fuchsia (Epilobium canum)

graphic illustration of California fuchsia

Fuchsia is a classic summer choice, the first one I turned to in my home garden, the plant Becker put into his brother’s yard that became the family’s favorite. It’s a known self-seeder, often popping up elsewhere in your garden. It also made the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources department’s list of fire-resistant groundcovers.

Calscape, run by the California Native Plant Society, reports that California fuchsia is “frequently the only native California plant in an area flowering at the height of summer.”

Despite the plant’s common name, the flower color is more of a scarlet. It’s named because the flower shape resembles a fuchsia.

A new short film featuring Jeanette Marantos debuts

The Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has released a new short film on YouTube about its efforts to enrich historic Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden with native plants. A conversation with Times plants reporter Jeanette Marantos, who died in February, is featured in the 10-minute piece, and the entire film is dedicated to her.

Theodore Payne seeking 2027 garden tour applicants

Applications opened last month for inclusion on the Theodore Payne Foundation’s next native garden tour, scheduled for April 3 and 4, 2027. To be considered, gardens must be at least two years old, located in Los Angeles County with some street parking nearby, and planted with at least 50% plants native to California. The link to apply is here. The final deadline is June 30.

Mature trees going into the ground

San Gabriel Valley Habitat for Humanity and Green Fenix, a new nonprofit, are collaborating on installing two mature trees per home that they rebuild in Altadena. The first such tree was planted May 14, and Habitat for Humanity SGV plans to rebuild more than 200 homes in the area. The Green Fenix project was founded by a Pasadena entrepreneur. It emphasizes planting fully grown, fire-resistant trees instead of saplings, hoping to more quickly bring back a sense of home to Altadena neighborhoods.

Upcoming events

June 4

Amazing Oaks — A Look at Our National Tree, 4 to 5:15 p.m. remotely. The Huntington and Smithsonian will partner to host an event honoring American oak trees, including an oak that resides at the Huntington in San Marino. Scholar Andrew Hipp, director of the Herbarium and lead scientist in Plant Systematics at the Morton Arboretum, will speak at the free online event. huntington.org

June 5

Rose Garden Tour, 9 to 10 a.m. in La Cañada Flintridge. Descanso Gardens horticulturists will guide a walking tour of the gardens’ rose section. They say it’s expected to be peak bloom season. Access is included with membership or admission. descansogardens.org

June 5

Comprehensive Irrigation for Native Plants, 9 a.m. to noon in Sun Valley. The Theodore Payne Foundation’s director of horticulture, Tim Becker, will teach a three-hour course on how to water native plants with a range of systems and techniques. Tickets are $53 for nonmembers, $39.75 for members. theodorepayne.org

June 6

Nature Waves: Sound Bathing at South Coast Botanic Garden, 10 to 11:30 a.m. in Palos Verdes Estates. Certified sound healer Andrea Morales will lead an immersive sound healing experience set in the botanic garden. The garden says guests will leave feeling grounded, refreshed and restored. Tickets are $40 for members and $43 for nonmembers. southcoastbotanicgarden.org

June 7

First Sunday Family Friendly Bird Walks hosted by the Pomona Valley Bird Alliance, 8 to 10 a.m. in Claremont. The Pomona Valley Bird Alliance will lead a free guided tour of the California Botanic Garden with an eye on birds. Beginner birders and experienced birders are all welcome. calbg.org

June 10

Chinese Medicinal Garden Open House at the Huntington, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in San Marino. As happens monthly at the Huntington, experts will give informal tours of the various plant beds contained in the garden’s Chinese medicinal garden section, answering guest questions. The garden reports that all plants in its three main beds appear in the oldest text on Chinese pharmaceuticals. Admission to the garden covers access. huntington.org

June 11

Botanical Art Class with Konstanze Rausch, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in Westwood. Visit UCLA’s Mathias Botanical Garden for a free workshop led by artist and instructor Konstanze Rausch. Various mediums and techniques will be explored. botgard.ucla.edu

June 13

Channel Islands Carvers, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Ventura. Visit the Ventura Botanical Gardens and catch Channel Islands Carvers doing live carving demonstrations on simple blocks of wood. Admission to the Ventura Botanical Gardens has increased from $7 to $15 as of June 1. venturabotanicalgardens.org

June 13

Outdoor Volunteer Day, 9 a.m. to noon in San Pedro. Join fellow volunteers to help nurture native plants at the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy’s San Pedro nursery. Sign up ahead of time on the conservancy’s website. pvplc.org

June 13 and 14

Annual Fern and Exotic Plant Show & Sale, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Arcadia. The two-day show, put on by the Los Angeles International Fern Society at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden, features more than 60 fern varieties and dozens of other plants. Free workshops and lectures will be held both days. Arboretum admission covers access to the show. arboretum.org

June 14

Propagation and Cultivation of South African Bulbs, 1 p.m. in Rancho Palos Verdes. The South Coast Cactus and Succulent Society welcomes UC Davis Botanical Conservatory director Ernesto Sandoval for a presentation about propagating and cultivating the winter-blooming bulbs. Entry is free. southcoastcss.org

June 20 and 21

Carnivorous Plant Show and Sale, 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Corona del Mar. The Southern California Carnivorous Plant Enthusiasts organization will present a judged show of unique carnivorous plants from around the world at the Sherman Library and Gardens. Plants and supplies will be for sale. Access is included with garden admission. thesherman.org

Garden Show and Plant Sale, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday in Culver City. The 73rd annual show happens both days of Father’s Day weekend at Veterans Auditorium, featuring plant exhibits, contests and a sale. UC Master Gardeners, Xerces Society, Rare Fruit Growers and Gesneriad Society will all be popping up at the event, organizers say. show.culvercitygardenclub.org

June 23

Rancho Los Alamitos Summer Concert Series, 5 to 7 p.m. in Long Beach. The historic home and gardens, sharing California history, will host a family-friendly concert. Tickets are $5 per person. visitlongbeach.com

June 26

Golden Hour: Music in the Garden, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. in Pasadena. The Norton Simon Museum hosts the Verbena Quartet for a performance in its Sculpture Garden. Admission is included with a ticket to the garden, which is $20 for adults, $15 for seniors and free for students and children. nortonsimon.org

June 27

Old Time String Jam Band, noon to 3 p.m. in Montecito Heights. Enjoy live string music under the pepper trees at the Audubon Center at Debs Park. Admission is free, and RSVPs are not required. audubon.org

June 28

Ecotone Landscapes: A Resilient Garden Tour, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre. Join new nonprofit organization Poly/Ana, an offshoot of landscape architecture firm Studio Petrichor, on a curated tour of native gardens in homes around the Pasadena area. Tickets are $20. chapters.cnps.org

June 28 and 29

Forest Bathing: Full Moon at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden, 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. in Arcadia. Inspired by the Japanese tradition of shinrin yoku, or forest bathing, you’ll engage all your senses from dusk through darkness below a full moon. Tickets are $25 for members and $35 for nonmembers and include garden admission. Advance registration is required. arboretum.org

What we’re reading

Times staff writer Rong-Gong Lin II’s update on how the El Niño situation is looking over the coming months. There is now a 37% chance that it will be “very strong” by the end of this year and a 30% chance it will be “strong.” This might be a good time to install a rain catchment system in your garden, if you haven’t yet.
The fire that burned much of Santa Rosa Island endangered a number of endemic and rare plants, including the Torrey pine, Times staff writer Clara Harter wrote.
Want a little break from the intense news? Meaghan Clark Tiernan’s list of 10 things to do in Goleta, the next town over from famed Santa Barbara, begins with a ranch that was once a farm growing walnuts, almonds, lemons and lima beans.