Late June brings an official shift of season, as the sun is at its highest point of the year on the Summer Solstice.  Many of your meadows may still be dotted with a few bright orange poppies, blazing pink farewell-to-spring, or powder-purple globe gilias; others may have completely browned up and gone to seed by now. 

As we launch into summer, and signs are deinstalled, the question for many is: “What’s next?”  This hiatus in the growing cycle is the perfect opportunity to prepare for fall planting and sowing.  The preparation has two parts: Study and Action.

Part I, Study: How about relaxing in a favorite chair on a shady porch with a book on native plants?  (California Native Plants for the Garden by Carol Bornstein, David Fross, and Bart O’Brien is a comprehensive, full-color, and easy-to-navigate option). Consider the plants that appeal to you, and which will do well with your climate, sun exposure, and soil type.  Want birds and butterflies?  Color and fragrance?   Summer shade?  Drought tolerance?   A truly amazing palette of native plants and wildflowers awaits your discovery.  Theodore Payne Foundation’s Native Plant Library, an online wiki database,  also has particulars on more than 1,000 CA native plants.  Or, get an early start on the heat of the morning on Saturday, July 19 to attend the California Native Plant Horticulture Class, taught by Lili Singer at the Theodore Payne Foundation Education Center, which will offer the basics on gardening with California flora: why natives are valuable, about plant communities, plus planting techniques, establishment, irrigation, pruning and ongoing maintenance.  This class is recommended for beginners.

Part II, Action: Over the course of the past eight months, many sites dealt with the emergence of weeds on their sites.  The hottest months of the year can be utilized to address that issue by preparing the ground for fall planting and sowing.  One way to diminish next year’s weed crop is to solarize areas in full sun.  This is a method wherein plastic sheeting is applied in order to heat-kill weed seeds in the soil bank.  We at Theodore Payne Foundation are going to conduct this technique on our Site 21 Wildflowering L.A. meadow toward the end of July (stay tuned for a post with photos from the day and more details on the process of solarization – and feel free to stop by to watch!).  To learn more about this and other methods for preparing your soil and planning your garden, consider signing up for Lili Singer’s Look Ma, No Lawn! class on the afternoon of Saturday, July 5. 

As we adjust to the heat and enjoy the fun activities of a Southern California summer, we also look ahead to fall in anticipation of the future plans of so many Wildflowering L.A. sites!

Posted by Genny Arnold, Theodore Payne Foundation 

On Sunday, June 15th from 2-4pm Los Angeles Nomadic Division (LAND) hosts the final spring event of Fritz Haeg‘s Wildflowering L.A., a countywide native seed sowing initiative taking place from October 2013-Summer 2014! 

As the growing season has now concluded, we invite you to witness the tail end of the bloom at one of the Wildflowering L.A. sites – Site #32 at UCLA on Sage Hill. It is Father’s Day, so bring your garden-loving dads! 

A screening of MOCAtv’s Wildflowering L.A. short video – part of their Artist’s Studio series – will take place in the UCLA Department of Geography. Please join us to explore the site, collect seeds to take a bit of the project home, and learn about the habitat of SAGE HILL UCLA, a last bit of native land that is extant on the UCLA campus and in the urban Westwood area. Project posters and official project seed mixes will be available. 

RSVP on Facebook.

MOCAtv is an online video channel dedicated to contemporary art, with programming and content developed by MOCA, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. 

This program is made possible in part by a grant from the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs. 

What do Wildflowering L.A. sites look like as they go to seed, as all sites are right now? Join us to collect some seeds and take a bit of the project home at the final event in the Wildflowering L.A. project cycle at Site #32, on the UCLA Campus at Sage Hill on Sunday, June 15th from 2-4pm.

Yes, that’s Father’s Day – so bring your gardening-loving dad to collect seeds and participate in the screening of the MOCA TV short documentary on about Wildflowering L.A., tracing the project from its planting through to its seasonal conclusion.  

A sampling with images is below to help you distinguish and collect onsite, contributed by Theodore Payne Foundation’s Genny Arnold.  For even more information, check out this handout with tips on seed collecting.

Gilia capitata (Globe Gilia) – This member of the Polemoniaceae, or phlox family, forms capsules as it goes to seed.  Each section of the inflorescence contains up to three seeds. 

Lupinus truncatus (Collared Annual Lupine) – This member of the Fabaceae, or legume family, produces a pod-style fruit.  Upon ripening, the pods open to release the seed.  A helpful hint for harvesting seed of lupines– a short stocking may be carefully tied over the ripening fruits so that when the pod opens the seed is captured (the aerated material of a stocking is appropriate because it will not cause anaerobic situation wherein mold might form). 

Clarkia unguiculata (Elegant Clarkia)  – This member of the Onagraceae, or evening primrose family, forms capsules up and down the length of its stem where the flowers once were.  Upon ripening, the capsules will be tan and dry and will open slightly at the top, as pictured in the horizontal branch.  If the capsules are green, as pictured in the vertical branch, they are not ready for harvest. 

Eschscholzia californica (California Poppy)  – Members of the Papaveraceae, or poppy family, form seed capsules. In this photo, the elongated capsules are still very green and therefore not ripe.  When ripe, they will turn tan and become crisp; upon maturity, the pop open and release the seeds.

Phacelia tanacetifolia (Lacy Phacelia) – This member of the Boraginaceae, or waterleaf family, turns completely brown when its seed capsules are ripe.  If you harvest this one, please wear gloves; it has micro-hairs that can cause mild contact dermatitis.