Why Native Plantings Belong in a Central Coast Garden in Santa Cruz, CA

A native garden is not a compromise on beauty. It is a garden that finally fits the place it grows in. Native plants evolved in the conditions of the Central Coast, the dry summers, the wet winters, the local soils. This means once they are established they thrive on what the region naturally provides rather than fighting against it. Around Santa Cruz, where water is precious and the ecology is worth protecting, native plantings are one of the most rewarding things you can put in the ground, both for how they look and for what they give back.