Books versus Experimentation
Going by the book when growing natives or any plant can often yield unexpected results (sounds better than dismal failure). I want to relate two less than successful experiences that I had and what resulted in success.
Monkeyflowers (Mimulus aurantiaca) are very common and widespread plants found in many plant communities. They can be seen along the west-facing side of Highway 101 from the Thompson/Los Berros interchange through Pismo and Shell Beach usually growing from rocky outcrops. Spring is their best bloom period with delicate yellow/orange to white flowers. They are also common at the edges of Oak Woodlands and in the Coastal Sage Scrub plant community. One would think they are quite adaptable and easy to grow; my experiences have been otherwise. Over the years, I have sent many of them to the compost pile. After moving to the Nipomo area, I planned a native plant garden which included Monkeyflowers. Since they cannot tolerate wet roots, I thought the sandy soil would be ideal. It is but it is also nutrient deficient as can be. My first monkeyflowers (5) were planted in full sun on a slope so as to obtain the best drainage possible. There they languished for three years; growing ever so slowly and blooming very sparsely. Obviously that site was lacking in more than just nutrients, I fed them periodically but to no avail. I then transplanted them, in the fall, onto our back hill. They were planted with lots of compost (75%) incorporated into the soil and on the north side of some Fremontias that were at least 8 feet high. There they receive shade from 11am to about 3pm during the summer. They also receive a thorough watering twice a month during the dry season. Results have been excellent; they thrive and bloom from spring through fall. My only chore now is to add a 3 inch layer of compost around each plant after the first fall rain.
I have always enjoyed the Island Bush Poppy (Dendromecon rigida subspecies harfordii) but never had adequate room to grow one until moving to Nipomo. This is a very drought-tolerant plant that can reach 15 feet in height and 12 feet in width. It has lemon-yellow flowers and is in bloom all year. I found a 1 gallon plant in the fall and planted after the first fall rain giving it 3 gallons of water. As luck would have it, that was the only rain for the next 2 plus months. After the first month of no rain, I bravely gave the plant another 3 gallons of water. It died within a week! I knew it was drought-tolerant but not that much. The next year, in the fall, I purchased another 1 gallon plant, planted it, gave it 3 gallons of water, and haven’t watered it since (going on year 4). It is now 6 feet high; this plant is very drought-tolerant.
These two examples are successes that don’t follow the books on native plant gardening. Success came from desperation and experimentation. In your landscape planning, don’t let the written constraints on watering, sun/shade, and soil type keep you from doing a little experimenting. Native plants are very adaptable and can grow in total contradiction, to a degree, to literature guidelines.
Try doing background plantings with Fremontia, tall Manzanitas, Island Bush Poppy, Toyons, and other tall-growing plants interspersed with Monkeyflowers. Then use Nipomo Mesa Ceanothus, Lupines, and taller Buckwheats in the foreground. This can then be followed with other Buckwheats, Sages, Milkweed, Yarrows, Penstemons, and more Monkeyflowers. Last but certainly not least are the multitude of annual wildflowers.
