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Partner: Town of Windsor

Our home was purchased six years ago. The front and back yards were lawn. They were removed. Five mature red maples and two smaller crepe myrtles were removed from the back yard. The front was regraded and redesigned as a faux stream. It was planted with manzanitas and other native plants. The back yard was planted similarly in a natural setting with hills and pebbled trails. Four mature Japanese maples were kept for their beauty and shade value.

With few exceptions, all plants are native to California. All are very low water use or drought tolerant. Manzanitas were chosen for their all-around beauty, toughness, and ease of care. Drip irrigation was initially installed to insure that new plantings received enough water to give them a good start. After two years most plants needed no water or deep watering once a year. Many of the drip lines have been removed. Occasionally, old plants were removed, replaced, or simply moved to other locations. Over the years new plants were added; the result is a somewhat uneven mixture of immature and mature plantings.

Choosing a predominantly native landscape was easy; we enjoy and appreciate our nearby parks, Foothill and Shiloh, and wanted to create the same atmosphere of peace and serenity with nature in our yard. Lawns are biological deserts. A native landscape attracts everything from skinks and lizards to butterflies, birds, and bees. We have all of them! Our garden is alive; it’s exciting and connects us to the natural world.

As a bonus, our yard is stingy with water, a crucial quality in a state that suffers recurring droughts.

Because we are proud of what we’ve created, we want to share it with others. The Eco-Friendly Garden Tour is the perfect way to accomplish that.