Editor’s note: Starting with this edition, the Plants newsletter will be published twice a month, once on the first and then on the 15th.
Welcome to July, readers! Ten days ago, I visited a favorite garden to check in on a nascent partnership. I thought you might enjoy reading about it.
Hidden above the 110 Freeway, 500 yards from the outer reaches of Dodger Stadium’s vast parking lots, stand rows of fruit trees growing guavas and avocados, peaches and pomegranates. On this year’s summer solstice, a group of volunteers gathered to tend to the obscured orchard atop one of the Figueroa Street Tunnels.
The event was a collaboration between Farm Party and the Solano Canyon Community Garden, which operates the 5-acre space nestled in Elysian Park. It was Farm Party’s seventh such event, and the third held there, at one of Los Angeles’ oldest community gardens.
Volunteers do Tai Chi at a Farm Party event at Solano Canyon Community Garden last month.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Carina Immer and Guido Lois, two regenerative agriculture professionals, co-founded Farm Party last year with the goal of connecting Angelenos to local gardens and farms.
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They had their first event on June 28, 2025, at the Solano Canyon garden. I was one of a couple dozen volunteers that afternoon who helped to build compost bays out of a mound of accumulated garden debris. A year later, the work we did is still visible.
“The very first time it was like a mountain,” said Jamie Parreno, the garden’s president. “And now it’s like, look at it.”
The Solano Canyon Community Garden is thriving. Last month, the garden celebrated its 30th anniversary and received a sizable grant from City Council member Eunisses Hernandez’s first-district office. Parreno said the grant will cover the costs of about a year’s worth of water for the garden’s 100-plus members, who also pay dues to access plots.
1. Some of the plants and greenery at Solano Canyon Community Garden. 2. Part of the fun of Farm Party is that volunteers share food after their chores. 3. Guido Lois, left, and Carina Immer are the co-founders of Farm Party. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
The garden hosts weekly volunteers for much of the year. But, Parreno said, Farm Party events have helped tackle larger tasks and grunt work that require more bodies.
“It’s almost like a barn raiser,” Immer said. “Many hands make light work.”
Immer and Lois work with land stewards to find projects that make sense for eager but often inexperienced volunteers. Think weeding or compost turning, not pruning or planting.
On the solstice, the first goal was to clear trash that had found its way onto the orchard, then form makeshift berms out of rocks dispersed around the space.
A volunteer cleans up trash at a Farm Party event.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
“We’re a vehicle for people who maybe have never volunteered before or never stepped foot on a farm or garden,” Immer said. “It’s a really ‘low stakes, everyone’s welcome’ vibe.”
What happens after the tasks are finished facilitates that vibe. As the work is winding down, Lois mans a makeshift grill or outdoor oven and prepares dinner, often incorporating produce procured on-site. Participants are encouraged, potluck-style, to bring a dish, ingredient or drink that others can enjoy.
1. Volunteer Joanna Glovinsky of the Fruitstitute, a fruit tree company, cuts fruit. 2. Oliver King cooks on the grill at a June Farm Party event. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
“When people have that endorphin rush of the physical three-hour volunteer push, having a big feast afterwards feels amazing,” Immer said. “But, also, we think that flavor and food and cooking is a gateway to appreciating the earth. Cooking and eating near the land that we’re working on, we hope it provides a little connection in the brain and the soul.”
In April, at the famed Zorthian Ranch in Altadena, Farm Party hosted its largest event yet. More than 100 volunteers gathered to help restore the longtime artist’s haven from damage sustained in the Eaton fire last year. The Farm Party founders hope to host six or eight entry-level events each year across L.A.
Both organizations expect to next host volunteers in August. Follow the Instagram accounts for Farm Party and Solano Canyon Community Garden to learn about the next opportunities. If you’re eager to take part in garden work sooner, the Los Angeles Community Garden Council keeps track of various volunteer opportunities at gardens across the city on its website.
Other garden bits
California Native Plant Landscaper Certification cohorts
The Theodore Payne Foundation is offering a number of upcoming courses for students to obtain California Native Plant Landscaper Certification. It is a 20-hour vocational training program over four weeks. Most of the program is online, culminating in one four-hour in-person practicum. There are cohorts beginning July 7, July 13 and Aug. 4 in various locations around Southern California. One course will also be offered in Spanish, beginning Aug. 12 in Santa Barbara. That course is free. The other courses range from $350 to $375. For more information, read about the program on the foundation’s website.
Hummingbird exhibit in Ventura
Through Aug. 31, the Ventura Botanical Gardens is hosting a hummingbird exhibit in partnership with the International Hummingbird Society and more than 20 local artists. Organizers expect visitors will see both Anna’s and Allen’s hummingbirds on-site. Installations include hummingbird-head viewing scopes with internal video displays, suspended hummingbird sculptures, a fiber-and-glass oversize nest, and hummingbird-inspired paintings. Access is included with admission to the gardens, which costs $15 for adults and is free for those age 18 and under.
Upcoming events (July 1-15)
July 1
1st Wednesday Bird Walk at the White Point Nature Education Center, 9 a.m. in San Pedro. Expert Bob Shanman, an experienced naturalist, will lead a free bird walk for the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy. Binoculars will be provided. pvplc.org
July 2
Rice Planting at the Japanese Heritage Shoya House, noon to 2 p.m. in San Marino. The Huntington hosts a rice-planting day, offering hands-on learning about Japanese culture and farming techniques with their horticulture curator of Asian gardens. Access is included with a ticket to the Huntington. huntington.org
July 9
Cinema Botanica: “Little Shop of Horrors,” 7 to 10 p.m. in Claremont. The California Botanic Garden will host the next in its series of nature-themed films in its Forest Pavilion. Pre-movie activities include plant puppet-making and carnivorous plant trivia. Tickets are $21 general admission, $16 for seniors and students, and $7 for children ages 3 to 12. All paid tickets include free popcorn with optional native plant-infused topping. calbg.org
July 10
Little Explorers: Eco-Painting with Nopal & Natural Pigments, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. in La Cañada Flintridge. Families with young children can create art using natural paints made from plants grown at Descanso Gardens, including nopal cactus. Access is included with garden admission. descansogardens.org
July 11
Farm Tour at Apricot Lane Farms, 9 to 11 a.m. in Moorpark. Tour a 234-acre regenerative farm near Los Angeles. It’s reported that guests will see a variety of animals, a farm fertility center, a biodiverse orchard and wildlife ponds, with a focus on education. Tickets are $60 plus fees. Kids ages 5 and under are free. apricotlanefarms.com
Crop Swap at Jeff Seymour Family Center, 9 to 11 a.m. in El Monte. ActiveSGV hosts a monthly crop swap, inviting neighbors together to share produce. Bringing in homegrown crops is encouraged but not required to attend the event, and organizers say all attendees will receive free produce. activesgv.org
July 12
Forest Bathing at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in Arcadia. Inspired by the Japanese tradition of shinrin yoku, or forest bathing, you’ll engage all your senses as the sun sets. Tickets are $25 for members and $35 for nonmembers and include garden admission. arboretum.org
July 14
Monarchs and Milkweeds — An Interactive Discussion at Sherman Library and Gardens, 7 to 8 p.m. in Corona Del Mar. Ron Vanderhoff, president of Calflora, will speak about the Western monarch and the role Southern California gardeners can play in its survival. Tickets are $10 for members and $20 for nonmembers. thesherman.org
What we’re reading
Times staff writer Grace Toohey’s look at what the recent fire wrought on Santa Rosa Island. There is reason to be hopeful about a quick recovery.
Times staff writer Lila Seidman wrote a personal account of that Santa Rosa fire, looking back at her experiences backpacking the island in 2021.
Times staff writer Lisa Boone profiled a Cheviot Hills homeowner who turned her turf yard into a “wabi-sabi wonderland.” In a charming twist, the homeowner was inspired by a 2022 Times story about a Koreatown yard’s transformation.
