Native Garden Tours - 2005

Photo by Melanie Cross, GNGT

by Christine Sculati

All over the Bay Area this spring, residential gardeners are throwing open their gates for free tours that showcase more than 100 environmentally friendly designs for home landscaping. Two tours aim to spread the word about California native flora. These easily maintained plants attract native birds, butterflies, bees, and other animals, says Arvind Kumar of the Santa Clara Valley Chapter of the California Native Plant Society, which is sponsoring its third annual Going Native Garden Tour on Sunday, April 17, across Santa Clara and San Mateo counties (www.goingnativegardentour.com).

In Alameda and Contra Costa counties on Sunday, May 1, the Bringing Back the Natives tour, a project of Kathy Kramer Consulting and Berkeley’s Urban Creeks Council, features 60 native plant gardens (www.BringingBackTheNatives.net).

Another East Bay tour, the Bay Friendly Garden Tour on May 15, promotes gardening with compost and mulch for waste reduction and water conservation. To reach a broader audience, the Alameda County Waste Management Authority advocates native and nonnative drought-tolerant plants. Visit www.bayfriendly.org for more information. Please note: All three garden tours are free but require preregistration.

Christine Sculati is a freelance writer. Find out more about her work at www.christinesculati.com.