How's this for a lovely hike? Sign up for the Eighth Annual Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour, which will be held Sunday, May 6, 2012, and walk between the gardens you want to visit. Registration is now open for the free event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Click here to register.
Participants will have the opportunity to choose from 50 native plant gardens in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. They will have the opportunity to learn how select and care for California native plants, lower their water bills, design a low-maintenance garden, attract butterflies, birds, and bees, and garden without using pesticides. And, as the gardens on the Tour will demonstrate, California native plants are beautiful to behold, and they display a sense of place that is uniquely Californian.
The gardens range from large ones in the hills to small front plantings in the flats, and from professionally designed to do-it-yourself projects. The gardens selected for this award-winning tour are pesticide-free and contain 60% or more native plants.
At the Bringing Back the Natives website, you will find the "View the 2012 Gardens" section, which has photographs of each garden, and extensive garden descriptions and plant lists, as well as a list of nurseries that sell native plants. Landscape designers familiar with designing with natives can also be located on the website; many of these designers offer discount consultations to tour participants.
In addition to the Natives Garden Tour, the Native Plant Sale Extravaganza will take place on Saturday and Sunday, May 5 and 6. This exclusive sale features a number of native plant nurseries which carry large quantities of hard-to-find California natives. This two-day shopping opportunity offers native plant fans a good selection of native plants and provides a relaxed shopping experience.
Registration for the Bringing Back the Native Garden Tour will close on April 25 or when the tour is full, whichever comes first. More than 7,000 people are expected to register. Volunteers are needed. Click here to register or volunteer.
More details:
- Garden guidebooks, with 20 tickets, will be mailed to all registrants in mid-April
- Although the tour is free, donations are needed to keep the event running (and are warmly accepted).
- Children must be closely supervised. Strollers are not permitted, nor are pets.
- No restrooms, please plan accordingly.
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