Blog

The first Clarkias are coming into bloom around LA and—as their common name ”Farewell to Spring” implies—this represents the beginning of the end of an incredible spring for California native plants. I say that with one major caveat: Spring hasn’t even started in the...

Spring of Life We are just a few days away from our twentieth annual Native Plant Garden Tour! When we came up with the title of this year’s tour, Spring of Life, it was the middle of a severe drought. Outdoor water restrictions were the new law of the land, and...

As we gazed upon thousands of poached plants that had recently been repatriated into a remote botanical garden just south of the Namibian border in South Africa, the complexity of our current environmental moment really struck me. In one of the most undeveloped and...

A few weeks ago, I shared some info and opinion on the drought in Southern California (available to watch on our YouTube channel if you missed it.) In preparation for that talk, I was more attuned than normal to the state of our landscape here in Los Angeles. As I...

As we head into the hottest and driest part of the year, drought is at the forefront of many conversations at TPF. In my last blog post, I described the very existential reality of our current water situation, and how this could play out in terms of Southern...

This winter started with a deluge in much of Southern California. Over nine inches of rain fell in downtown Los Angeles in December 2021, more than three times the monthly average. We were ecstatic here at Theodore Payne Foundation, looking forward to super blooms at...

2022 is underway, and we’re gearing up for a fantastic year of native plants, Indigenous ecology, and community building here at Theodore Payne Foundation. We’re seeing some glimmers of hope that the need to stay distanced may subside this year and allow us to get...

It’s the first week of November, and we’ve already had our first big rain. Nights are cold and days are warm. As I write this morning I can see the dew dripping from the buckwheat outside my office. By midafternoon it will have long since have evaporated in the warm...

Being a professional horticulturist is fun. I can say that from experience, having held quite a number of different plant related jobs over the years. Visiting a new garden or new habitat, stumbling upon a rare and unexpected bloom, or the satisfaction that comes with...

My past few blog articles have focused on big picture ideas that I hope will lead us to a sustainable future. Today I want to hone in on a specific project that I believe is an important step in guiding us towards those changes, our California Native Plant Landscaper...