About

This is a blog about Gardening with California native plants — in particular,  about my own personal efforts in that direction. My name is Cynthia DuBose, and I live in Yorba Linda, California, in Orange County. Yorba Linda is near Anaheim and Fullerton, and is pretty much at the juncture of Sunset zones 22 and 23.

How did I get started gardening? Good question. The fact is, I am pretty much a total neophyte in gardening. The manicured gardens and lawns in most suburban yards have never held any fascination for me, though I tried mightily to have a nice lawn with neat shrubbery. Alas, it devolved eventually into bermuda grass and crab grass, made presentable only by regular mowing.

I think my love affair with free, natural-looking landscapes probably began when I lived in San Pedro, at the southern tip of Los Angeles County,  in the mid-eighties. San Pedro is very near the Palos Verdes peninsula, a hilly area with many fine homes, but also a certain amount of undeveloped wilderness. But though it was a wealthy area, it did not have the same manicured sameness you find in most areas of Orange County. Instead, it seems the powers that be had purposely decided to let the sidewalks, trails, and medians become somewhat overgrown in the most fascinating way. I loved driving through Palos Verdes for that reason. Though the vegetation had a wild look, it was not overgrown with weeds or simply untended. Instead, the plants had been carefully selected and planted (most likely they were natives, but I didn’t know enough to be sure),  but then allowed to grow without much manicuring or shaping, giving them the look of belonging in the environment.

It’s when I started visiting the Big Sur area with some regularity that I truly became enamored of the beauty of native California flora as used in landscape designs. I was swept away by the ability of the talented designers that abound in that area to create courtyards, paths, cafe sitting areas, and the like, that looked as if they were extensions of the gorgeous natural beauty surrounding them. Paths were natural gravel or stone; the plants alongside were allowed to grow as they wished without obvious pruning or shaping, but at the same time were part of a well-designed composition.

I think I have finally shown myself to be my mother’s daughter, as my mother was a great gardener, president of her local garden club for several years. Though I loved nature and woodsy surroundings, I was unable to find any enthusiasm for my mother’s flower beds with their regularly spaced roses and other plants. With native gardening, I have found the perfect way to blend my love of nature with my love of art and design.