Spooky Species

Dutchman’s Pipevine

Aristolochia californica

Available in D-16 pots for $7.70 each!

Beckoning in carrion-feeding insects (fungal gnats, flies) and Halloween-themed swallowtail caterpillars, Dutchman’s Pipevine flowers trap their pollinators until their pollinating work is complete, and then release them, disoriented, back into the world.

• This slow growing vine is rhizomatous, knitting your garden’s shrubs and trees together into loose thickets, or they can attractively cover a trellis or fence with rope-like stems to 12 ft. in length.
• It’s most noteworthy feature is its odd, bulbous, 1-1/2 inch flowers that appear in winter and spring, dangling from naked stems, and resembling a fanciful Dutchman’s pipe.
• Can be nice as a small-scale groundcover under oaks or with coffeeberry, spicebush, and pink-flowering currant.
• It is the only larval food source of the pipevine swallowtail butterfly!

Sacred Datura

Datura wrightii

Available in D-40 containers for $10.20 apiece!

This night blooming perennial, when consumed, is a powerful narcotic in small doses, and deadly at higher levels.

• Its psychoactive and hallucinogenic properties have been used in religious ceremonies by various CA indigenous peoples, including Chumash and Gabrielino-Tongva.
• Sacred Datura is a vigorous herbaceous perennial that grows 1′ tall and 6′ wide.
• The flowers are the most striking feature, being sweetly fragrant white trumpets up to 8″ long, margins often tinted purple. Blooms a while!–from April to October.
• Hawk and Sphinx moths use the plant as one of their main food sources in both adult and larval stages. Combine with other sun-and-dry lovers such as Sagebrush and Sages.

San Joaquin Milkvetch

Atragalus asymmetricus

Available in D-40 pots for $10.20 each!

Ghostly pods shiver in the wind atop outstretched stems, beckoning passersby closer to San Joaquin Milkvetch.

• It’s a sturdy perennial herb growing a thick, erect stem to heights between 2-4 feet.
• Its leaves are soft and delicate in appearance, forming lovely arches as they unfurl. This milkvetch is endemic to (only found in) California. Often found in grassy, disturbed areas of the Central Valley, Central Coast Ranges, and the Bay Area. 
• A great butterfly plant–host to 24 different species–its cream colored blooms attract the Painted Lady, several blues and the Orange Sulfur.

Mugwort

Artemisia douglasiana

Available soon in containers for $2.70 apiece!

This spreading herbaceous perennial haunts dreams, heals wounds, and scares off gardeners who fear its rhizomatous nature!

• This herbaceous perennial grows 1-3 ft tall, and is a choice foliage plant.
• Its aromatic leaves are dark green on top and silvery beneath, which provides nice contrast. In the garden, use Mugwort in a lush, riparian setting. Plant tolerates more shade and heavier soils than other sagebrushes.
• Historical uses include its use as a tea to soothe poison oak rashes and induce vivid dreams.

Poison Oak

Toxicodendron diversilobum

Available in D-40 pots for $2.86 each!

Perhaps the most disparaged shrub of our region, Poison oak strikes fear in the hearts & blisters the skin of (nearly) all who meet it!

• Poison oak is a beautiful winter deciduous woody vine/shrub that can grow 2 – 13 ft. tall and wide.
• The oils from the leaves and stems can cause severe skin irritation and an itchy rash, so do not touch without gloves (or a Tyvek suit)
• This species grows in a wide variety of habitats from riparian zones to oak woodlands and dry chaparral, and provides shelter & food for birds, deer, squirrels, and other native fauna.
• Useful for protecting restoration sites, or as a living fence!
• It is extremely variable in growth habit and leaf appearance, and spreads via rhizomes and seeds.

Stinging Nettle

Urtica dioica

On sale in D-40 pots for $2.55 each!

This eerie perennial spreads voraciously, stinging all who come

too close!

• Stinging nettle thrives in full sun conditions but may tolerate shade. If not in a moist area, it may need supplemental water through its first summer of establishment.
• Stinging Nettle gets its name from the stinging sensation caused by the release of histamine & other chemicals via the hollow stinging hairs found on its leaves and stems.
• This plant has a long history of use by indigenous peoples as a source of medicine, food, and fiber.
• A super nutritious & delicious green once cooked or dried, use as a spinach alternative in a soup or top your pizza with a few leaves!
• A wonderful addition to CA native butterfly gardens as it supports the Red Admiral, West Coast Lady, and Milbert’s Tortoiseshell.

Blue Witch Nightshade

Solanum umbelliferum

Available 2-gallons for $27.95 apiece!

Poisonous berries, stems, leaves, and blooms aplenty, but a bee’s delight!

• Bluewitch Nightshade is an herbaceous perennial sub-shrub that grows up to 3 feet tall.
• The 1-inch, bright blue-purple flowers bloom most of the year (from February to October) and are followed by black berries (do NOT eat them! – all parts of this plant are toxic to humans and some animals).
• Bluewitch Nightshade is tough, and can grow in both rocky and clay soils.
• A great choice for bee gardens as the bright yellow centers of the flowers provide a plethora of pollen!

Soap Plant

Chlorogalum pomeridianum

Available in D-16s for $8.95 apiece, and 1-gallons for $16.50 apiece!

As the sun sets, these spider-like blooms open up, feeding creatures of the night!

• Soap plant is a bulb that grows 2′ tall by 2′ wide. It is a superb plant for evening flowers since the flowers only open late in the day or when it is very overcast. Larval host plant to the Brown Elfin!
• For a dramatic effect, plant in a meadow garden where it will go dormant during summer and fall. This easy to grow bulb has 2′ tall spikes of small white flowers that bloom from May-August. Bulbs are an important food source for Native Americans and can be eaten once roasted.

California Buckeye

Aesculus californica

Available TB4 and TP4 for $16.50 apiece!

Wizened, twisting stems cast a spectral silhouette against a moonlit sky–a Buckeye without its leaves was made for ghost stories!



• This drought tolerant deciduous tree grows 15-40′ tall with a spread of 30-60′. A moderately paced grower, it will reach about 20′ in 8 years, growing at a rate of about 3′ per year. Space 30’0″ apart.
• California buckeye provides year-round beauty to the garden. During the dormant season, the handsome, thick-stemmed silhouette and silvery smooth bark is revealed. Apple green foliage bursts forth in early spring.
• Beautifully abundant candelabra-like flowers bloom from April -June and visited by nectar seeking hummingbirds. If that isn’t enough, large chestnut-brown seeds then appear in the fall.

Water Parsley

Oenanthe sarmentosa

Available in D-16 for $1.93 apiece!

It rises from murky waters, a threat of toxicity to those foolish enough to consume its foliage!



• Many consider this plant to be toxic, though the Anise Swallowtail butterfly and several moths subsist on its greenery.
• This herbaceous perennial grows to 5 feet tall with large, white to red, flat-topped umbel flower clusters that appear from June to August.
• Water parsley can be used in and alongside ponds, streams, marshes, and even in containers as long as it gets regular water.
• Its flowers are especially attractive to the Anise Swallowtail butterfly and a variety of moth species. Its hollow stems are perfect for stem-nesting bees, too.