As fall comes to the Central Coast, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden encourages planting California-native plants so they can get established during the coming rainy season. Beginning on Saturday, November 5 and continuing throughout the month, the Garden Nursery offers a much larger assortment and wider variety of native plants, plus some unique plants not always available for sale. Weekly in-person Nursery Chats are also held throughout the month, along with new online instructional videos and more. (Details below.)
The Garden also debuts its new online shopping site (shop.SBBotanicGarden.org) on Saturday, November 5. The ecommerce site has been integrated into the Garden’s new website which went live in June 2022. It allows customers to shop for the plants available at the Nursery, and will expand to include a selection of gift and retail items from the Garden’s Shop in the coming months. Purchases made online are available for pick up at the Garden.
“Gardening with native plants not only helps you conserve water used on landscaping, it also provides critical habitat for pollinators and birds, and helps conserve plants that are unique to the Central Coast. Even adding a few native plants to your garden can have a big impact” said Keith Nevison, Director of Horticulture and Operations. “Now, with the option to purchase plants online, we’re making it even easier to cultivate biodiversity right in your own backyard.
Shop for Native Plants at the Garden – In Person and Online
Located just inside the Garden’s gate, the Nursery is open daily between 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. and offers a wide selection of easy-to-grow native plants year-round. Garden admission is not required to visit the Nursery.
During November, the Nursery not only increases the supplies of common varieties to meet seasonal demand, but also offers harder to find plants, with different varieties arriving weekly.
An exclusive preview for Garden members will be held Friday, November 4, and the public is invited to the first day of shopping on Saturday, November 5. (The Nursery is closed on Wednesday and Thursday, November 2 and 3, for stocking and preparation.)
A current inventory of native plants available at the Nursery is available on the Garden’s new ecommerce site at Shop.SBBotanicGarden.org. Photos and lists of suggested groundcovers, shrubs and trees, plants for slope and erosion control, lawn substitutes, and easy to grow varieties are also available at https://sbbotanicgarden.org/grow/gardening-resources.
Visitors interested in shopping do not require Garden reservations; they can park in a “member” parking spot and check-in at the front kiosk to receive a shopper pass. Garden members receive a 10% discount on every purchase.
More Gardening Events in November
For those unsure on how to get started, Nursery Manager Matt Straka offers tips and instruction at weekly in-person “Native Planting Techniques” sessions at the Nursery held every Sunday in November, beginning on November 6.
A new series of four “How to Garden with Native Plants” videos hosted by the Garden’s Director of Education Scot Pipkin are posted weekly on the Garden’s social media platforms, beginning Friday, November 4.
An in-person workshop on how to attract animals to home gardens is led by Garden Grounds Manager Stephanie Ranes on Friday, November 5.
For more information, visit: https://sbbotanicgarden.org/insight/fall-planting-season-is-here/.
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