It’s Oct. 1. Here in Los Angeles, the last few months have been exceptionally hot. The next few months could be exceptionally wet. What’s a home gardener to do?
I asked a couple of local native-plant experts, Erik Blank of the Theodore Payne Foundation and Parker Davis of Hardy Californians, what they would recommend planting this month to take advantage of the rain our region is expected to get as a result of El Niño. In some ways, this could be a boon.
“All your cool-season, riparian plants,” Blank said, “are gonna be so happy.”
Of course, it’s not quite as simple as pivoting to plants that thrive in wet weather. This is still Los Angeles. It’s certain we will experience a dry period over the coming years, perhaps as soon as next year. If you choose to seize the expected rainwater and plant natives now, you will benefit from striking a balance between plants that can handle wetness and drought. Ideally, come the next El Niño, your plants will have rooted in enough to suppress erosion.
“It’s definitely a great year to look to plant your garden and get stuff established,” said Davis, co-founder of the Sierra Madre nursery and landscape design studio. “It’s always a great year, though. No better time like the present.”
Davis noted that it’s also an opportune time to think about how we can increase our water-capture capacity on individual and municipal levels. At home, it’s a great time to install rain barrels. I just put in two of my own. Later in the newsletter, we’ll have details on barrel giveaways.
(Patrick Hruby / Los Angeles Times)
First, here are five native plants the experts recommend you consider planting now. Of course, these are only a few of the possibilities. Hardy Californians is selling a seed mix designed to help control erosion, containing seeds from 10 plants that have long grown natively here, none of which are mentioned below.
1. Hooker’s evening primrose (Oenothera elata)
Blank, Theodore Payne’s horticultural educator, brought up this beauty, a plant known for being able to handle a deluge. In the wild, it’s most often found in wet areas, but it’s known to be able to tolerate drought in a garden. The only downside: It can self-seed at prodigious rates. Be prepared to remove the seedlings if you don’t want dozens.
I just picked up one of these last month at the L.A. River Farmers’ Market, held Thursdays at L.A. State Historic Park. The kind folks at ainiCalifornia Native Nursery were giving away dozens of native plants they grew in the San Gabriel Valley, part of their efforts to give out more than 1,400 native plants over the last year. I planted the primrose at the bottom of the hillside in my Highland Park backyard, hoping it can catch rainwater at the end of its journey down.
2. Turkey tangle frogfruit (Phyla nodiflora)
Davis prizes this plant, not only because of its name, but because it vigorously spreads and deeply roots itself into soil.
“It’s one of the best living mulches,” he said. “They also slow water down as it moves across the surface.”
A blander common name for this plant is Lippia. Kurapia is a sterilized, patented version often used as a drought-tolerant ground cover.
3. Mulefat (Baccharis salicifolia)
Both Davis and Blank cited mulefat as a likely fit for a variety of L.A. areas this winter. It’s one of the classic erosion control all-stars, known to help keep hillsides intact, and it’s a natural fit for areas in your garden where rain might linger.
And once established, it’s known to be deeply drought-tolerant. It’ll survive most conditions; it just might not look its best when dry.
(Patrick Hruby / Los Angeles Times)
4. Mugwort (Artemisia douglasiana)
Mugwort is another erosion control all-star and can tolerate moist and dry conditions. Similar to Hooker’s evening primrose, though, it can spread faster than you expect, in this case, via underground rhizomes. Calscape reports that the spread is more common when mugwort is moist, so you can expect it to slow down in summer.
5. Canyon Prince wild rye (Elymus condensatus ‘Canyon Prince’)
A cultivar of a cool-season grass, this rye produces flowers that are great for floral arrangements, and its blue-green foliage looks nice throughout the year.
“I love that plant in a wet space,” Blank said.
It can handle rain, summer water and drought, but Redditors report that it looks best when planted en masse.
Other garden bits
Rain barrel giveaways near the coast
The West Basin Municipal Water District is offering up to two free 50-gallon rain barrels per customer on six occasions over the coming months. The first of the scheduled giveaways will be from 8 to 11 a.m. Oct. 10 at West Los Angeles College in Culver City.
The following month, on Nov. 14, Malibu City Hall will host a giveaway from 9 to 11 a.m., and on Dec. 5, Hawthorne City Hall will host an event from 8 to 11 a.m. The district says three more such events are planned for 2027 in Palos Verdes Estates, Inglewood and El Segundo. The barrels are only available for customers who live within West Basin Municipal Water District’s service area. For more information, you can follow this link.
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Irises available this month
The San Fernando Valley Iris Society is hosting two upcoming iris sales. On Sunday, at the Chatsworth Historical Society’s 34th annual Pioneer Day, plants will be available for purchase and experts will be available for questions. A single plant will sell for $7, and three plants will go for $20. The Pioneer Day event lasts from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Homestead Acre in Chatsworth.
The Iris Society will also sell plants from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Oct. 25 at the Encino Farmers Market. For more information, visit the society’s website, where it’s recommended that we plant irises this time of year because of our weather.
Upcoming events (Oct. 1-15)
Oct. 1
Nature Journaling at Arlington Garden in Pasadena, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m in Pasadena. The Shadow Hills Nature Journal Club hosts a free group journaling session at the Arlington Garden. The goal is for participants to share some of their pages at the session’s end. Bring your own supplies. The Arlington Garden meetups are on the first Thursday of every month through May. forms.gle
Oct. 3
Nature Lab: Monarchs, Milkweed and Migration at Descanso Gardens, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in La Cañada Flintridge. Using community science, participants will find out ways to contribute to monarch conservation, learning about their ecology, life cycle, migration, habitat and more. Access is included with garden admission, which costs $20 for adults, $14 for seniors and students, and $8 for children age 3-12. descansogardens.org
Understanding SoCal Weather: From El Niño to Santa Ana Winds at the Theodore Payne Foundation, 1 to 4 p.m. in Sun Valley. Longtime professor and naturalist William Selby will draw on decades of research to explain the effects of ocean temperatures and our changing weather patterns on our region and its plants. Tickets are $40.77. theodorepayne.org
Exceptional Plants Auction at Ganna Walska Lotusland, 1 to 4 p.m. in Montecito. An annual auction will be held at the famed botanic garden outside Santa Barbara. This year, organizers say there will be more than 200 lots available for auction, including at least one plant, Mexipedium xerophyticum ‘Oaxaca’, donated by the Huntington, that is considered extinct in the wild. Tickets are $125 for members and $175 for nonmembers. lotusland.org
Oct. 4
Queer Ecology Walk at L.A. State Historic Park, 10 a.m. to noon in Chinatown. Nina Raj of the Altadena Seed Library will lead a walk and talk through the park alongside horticulturist Brynne McKee discussing urban ecology and the queer world of plants. Tickets are on a sliding scale from $15 to $30. luma.com
Oct. 7
Where Sea Meets Sky: Coastal Birdlife Walk at White Point Nature Education Center and Preserve, 9 a.m. in San Pedro. Gather at the White Point Nature Education Center for a free bird walk guided by a naturalist and hosted by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy. Binoculars will be provided. pvplc.org
Fall and Winter Planting in Southern California at the Sepulveda Garden Center, 10 a.m. in Encino. The Cherry Blossom Garden Club will host horticulturist Yvonne Savio for a talk on growing edible and ornamental plants during our cooler months. Attendance is free. facebook.com
Oct. 7
From Ashes to Action: Reimagining Eaton Canyon’s Landscape Design at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden, 5 to 7 p.m. in Arcadia. Join planners, designers and parks staffers as they discuss the history and future of the Eaton Canyon Nature Center post-fire. The event is free, but registration is required. arboretum.org
Oct. 9, 10 and 11
10th Annual International Orchid Show and Sale at the Huntington, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in San Marino. Dozens of vendors and exhibitors from three continents will be at the Huntington’s Brody Botanical Center all weekend displaying and selling hundreds of exotic orchids. Access is included with garden admission, which costs $34 for adults, $28 for seniors, military members and students, and $15 for children age 4-11. huntington.org
What we’re reading
Writer Jessie Schiewe wrote about 75-year-old Jim Crane and his efforts to plant 10,000 oaks, including many in Altadena. Crane has a great system in place, helped by several volunteers.
Times water and climate change writer Ian James reports on a new study connecting the snow that falls on Californian mountains and the groundwater beneath Central Valley farmlands.
Mosquitos have been thriving in Los Angeles County this year, as I’m sure you know if you’ve spent time in any gardens around dusk — or many other times of day. Times staff writer Karen Garcia reports on the increase in West Nile virus cases wrought by mosquitoes.
