Our Plants (List)

PIne Hill fremontia is named for the region in Placer County where its main population is found. The Pine Hill Preserve is home to other rare plants, several of which are endemic to the area. These include the Pine Hill ceanothus, Ceanothus roderickii, and El Dorado mule ears, Wyethia reticulata….

The checker lily is quite common in the coastal mountains north of Santa Barbara. It sends up one or more leaves in the late winter. These are followed in some years by an inflorescence (flower stock) of two or more striking pendant flowers. Checker lilies must mature for several seasons…

The spotted fritillary is found in a variety of habitats throughout western North America. In California it thrives in shady spots in the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Range. Like most bulbs it emerges from summer dormancy with a few lance shaped leaves in the late winter or early spring. That…

The Baja bush snapdragon is found in many regions of Baja California. This selection is from the Gran Canon of Cedros Island which lies off the western coast roughly mid-way down the peninsula. Cedros Island is one of the nine Mexican Pacific Islands. The moist, cool air from the Pacific…

The island snapdragon is endemic to Catalina and San Clemente Islands. Like many plants of the Channel Islands, it does well in regions of the state which enjoy a Mediterranean climate without extended winter frosts. The ‘firecracker’ selection of the island snapdragon (thanks to Tree of Life Nursery) grows in…

The ‘Evie’ selection of the silk tassel bush is another true San Francisco Bay Area native; selected in Sonoma County by Wayne Roderick, ‘Evie’ was introduced by the Saratoga Horticultural Foundation in 1975. It grows in a rounded, fairly open form with large, leathery deep green leaves. The leaf spacing…

The coast silk tassel is a fairly common shrub in the coast ranges from southern Oregon to Santa Barbara County. It is more common on the Pacific slopes but also thrives on east facing slopes with significant marine influence. One such location is the Santa Cruz Mountains, where the coast…