It's Planting Season!

It’s Planting Season!

November 2025 Plant Availability

View our ‘currant’ inventory on our website

View our ‘currant’ inventory in spreadsheet format

Greetings ,

Ah, the joys of fall! Shorter days, foggier mornings, fall colors, and of course, planting season! We are simply abuzz with activity around the nursery these days: the local wild turkeys are scratching through leaf litter to find through oak acorns and fallen berries, fall migration is in full swing for birds, butterflies, and even our propagation staff, who have been far and wide across the watersheds that feed into the Bay! That’s right, it’s fall seed collection season for TWNC. Pictured right and below–a spectacular Acer macrophyllum , or Bigleaf Maple, laden with their beautiful double-winged samaras and broad leaves starting to turn their vibrant golden fall colors.

Inventory Manager/Production Coordinator Stephanie out collecting on the Marin Coast – safety first!

Right, lower–frequently heard around the nursery, not so frequently spotted, the Pacific Chorus Frog

And as that acorn granary (above, right) suggests, our staff aren’t the only critters out collecting this time of year! The only woodpecker in North America to store acorns in these carefully drilled holes, the aptly named Acorn Woodpecker is a highly social bird, living in family groups of a dozen or more birds, cooperating in raising young, gathering, and storing food. Besides nuts and insects, Acorn Woodpeckers also eat fruit, sap, oak catkins, and flower nectar, along with occasional grass seeds, lizards, and even eggs of their own species. In the spring they gather in groups to suck sap from small, shallow holes in tree bark, often using the same sets of sap holes for several years. An abundance of dining options!

For this month’s newsletter, we’re leaning into the abundance of the harvest season, and featuring a few species that we’ve grown in abundance for this fall. Stay reading to the end to see new-to-TWNC species–and for folks with a pond, marsh, or bioswale, there’s one for you 🙂

Coming this month at the Nursery…the last of fall 2025’s Bringing Back the Natives Extravaganzas! Come out to support the great work of the BBTN Garden tour, and check out the wares of former TWNC staff member & herbalist, Jessica Karadi–handmade soaps, elderberry syrup, and more!

Gophers, Deer, and more:

Thank you to the folks that have taken the time to contribute to our survey–there’s still a few more weeks if you’d like to share your experience growing CA native plants alongside deer, gophers, or other critters–please contribute your experience & advice here. Responses will go towards a public resource sheet!

Big Squirreltail

Elymus multisetus

Available in stub containers for $2.60 apiece!

This perennial, cool season native bunch grass grows in clumps 1-3′ tall.
Big squirreltail prefers well drained soils, often found on rocky or brushy hillsides and open dry woods and plains. Similar to E. elymoides, but grows in slightly more mesic areas. Provides fair forage in the spring. Useful for quick stabilization.
It is a wild rye that gets its name from the array of awns in the inflorescence that look like bushy squirrels’ tails (but pink). A great native alternative to Gulf or Pink Muhly grass.
Big squirreltail blooms from May to July and has low water requirements.

California Fescue

Festuca californica

Available in stub containers for $2.60 apiece!

This perennial evergreen bunch grass that grows 2-4′ tall and 2-3′ wide. An easy to grow plant, it is an excellent choice as a groundcover for slopes among oaks, California bays, or pines. Space 2’0″ apart.
A truly beautiful, mid-sized bunch grass. The graceful, fountain-like, blue-green foliage grows 2’ tall. The showy flower stalks rise another 2’ above the foliage. Cut back annually to renovate and groom plants with a stiff rakes to remove old foliage and freshen appearance.
Drought tolerant, though it looks better with some Summer water.

Coyote Mint

Monardella villosa

Available in Earth Pot and D-16 containers for $3.50-7.70 apiece!

This is a perennial wildflower is found only in California, it grows as a small mat forming shrub about 2′ tall and 2′ wide.
The lavender flowers provide valuable nectar for butterflies and being in the mint family the leaves have a lovely minty scent that can be seeped to make tea.
Flowers June – August
Pinching will encourage a bushier form, and gentle pruning or deadheading after blooming will encourage new growth.

Palmer’s Abutilon

Abutilon palmeri

Available in D-16 containers for $8.95 apiece!

Palmer’s Abutilon is a dense semi evergreen shrub of the scorching areas of southern California. Palmer’s Abutilon likes to spread out, growing 3-5 ft tall and equally as wide.
It has warm, fuzzy, heart-shaped leaves and produces beautiful golden orange flowers in the summer months.
Pinching and pruning will help keep this plant looking good. Don’t water too much in the winter, or keep it too dry in the early summer, and beware of super cold temperatures because it will not survive frequent frosts.

Red flowering currant

Ribes sanguineum

Available in D-16 and D-40 containers for $8.95-11.45 apiece!

A deciduous shrub that grows to 6-8 feet tall and wide.
Lime colored roundish leaves and long showy pendulums of pink flower clusters that cover the plant during the winter.
East to grow in the Bay Area in many garden situations. Drought tolerant in coastal conditions and does well under oaks
Flowers February to April.

Thimbleberry

Rubus parviflorus

Available in D-40 containers for $11.45 apiece!

This deciduous shrub grows 4’ tall by 6’ wide, preferring moisture and well draining soils.
Thimbleberry can be used in the landscape as an accent, for the edible fruit, erosion control on damp slopes, and as a ground cover.
The notable white flowers (3/4 – 2”) emerge spring through summer, and the fruits are an important food source for many birds and mammals. Bark is an attractive reddish brown.

California Huckleberry

Vaccinium ovatum

Available in TB2 containers for $8.95 apiece!

An evergreen shrub that grows to 2-3’ in the sun and up to 12’ tall and 10’ wide in the shade. Prefers well-drained, humus-rich soils.
This remarkable evergreen native shrub is valuable in the landscape. The small, ovate, evergreen foliage looks good year round, has little pinkish urn-shaped flowers March – May, followed by edible glossy, blackish-purple berries.
In a partial shade garden, the shrubs are a beautiful backdrop for mixed borders. In a full shade garden, grow it as a tall evergreen hedge. In a full sun garden, it will produce more berries but it will not grow as tall as it will in the shade garden.

Western Azalea

Rhododendron occidentale

Available in D-40 containers for $11.45 apiece!

Western azalea is a deciduous shrub that usually reaches 2 ft – 5 ft tall in the garden.
The sight and smell of the Western azalea is a delight to behold. The delicate white bloom is tinged with pink and orange, and can be detected by the the sweet smell, even before you see them. This beautiful, deciduous shrub with elliptical leaves is more garden friendly than other rhododendrons.
Sometimes a bit fussy, and slow growing, Western azalea is definitely worth the extra attention. Prefers acidic soil, so add organic matter such as compost. Its a wonderful specimen plant and also does well in containers.

Silver bush lupine

Lupinus albifrons

Available in D-40 containers for $12.30 apiece!

This easy to grow perennial shrub grows 3-5’ tall and is very drought tolerant.
Terrific choice for a rock garden, dry border, or plant in a large container. Plant in full sun and lean, well-drained soil. Excellent for a low maintenance rock garden or parking strip. Attracts bees, butterflies and birds. Host to the endangered Mission Blue Butterfly.
Outstanding shimmering silvery foliage forming an attractive, dense, compact mound.
Long Bloom period (Spring to Summer) with large rich purple flowers. Fragrant and showy!

Matilija Poppy

Romneya coulteri

Available in D-40 containers for $11.45 apiece!

This popular evergreen shrub can grow from 8-10 ft tall and may grow extensively in width. It’s expansive growth make it perfect for erosion control.
Hailed as the prize of California’s wildflowers, the Matilija poppy is definitely striking. The flowers are the largest of any species native to California, reaching 6-8 in wide.
The colossal papier-mâché flowers are white with a yellow center, blooming from July until mid-Fall, with a slight citrus scent in full bloom. Can be temperamental at the start, but once established the plant’s flowers and foliage are truly beautiful.

Bigleaf Maple

Acer macrophyllum

Available in D-40 and TP4 containers for $11.45-16.50 apiece!

This deciduous tree grows 40-100’ making it a suitable choice for large gardens and parks. Space >40′ apart.
Squirrels & chipmunks relish seeds, and it provides valuable shelter for wildlife.
If properly watered, young trees will establish fast (>3 feet per year). Once established, they are fairly drought tolerant (growth slows to ~1 foot per year).
On dry slopes, this tree will go dormant earlier in the year.
Make pruning cuts to remove dead or crossing branches when the tree is dormant.

Northern California Black Walnut

Juglans hindsii

Available in D-40 and TP4 containers for $11.45-16.50 apiece!

A deciduous tree medium sized tree that grows to 30-60 ft., grows along stream beds. Space 30-60 ft apart.
This black walnut is endemic to Northern California and possibly has only a few native stands remaining. It is threatened by hybridization with orchard trees, urbanization, and habitat conversion to agriculture. It has been commercially important as a rootstock for orchard stock of Juglans regia (English walnut) trees all over the world.
Provides food and nesting sites for many birds and mammals. Nuts have a smooth, brown, thick shell, that contains a small edible nutmeat.

New to TWN this year:

Nuttall’s Snapdragon

Antirrhinum nuttalianum

Available in D-16 containers for $7.70 apiece!

Nuttall’s Snapdragon is a delightful petite vining annual to perennial herb, reaching 1-3 tall and wide.
Its vinelike stems sometimes cling to other plants for support, but do not vine as tightly as other snapdragons. Great for container planting!
Native to the immediate coast and inland coastal ranges of southern CA as far north as San Luis Obispo.
Purple and white blooms appear in spring above adorable bowtie-like foliage, forming arching stems.
Best used in a sunny area of the garden, and pairs well with Columbine, Milkweed, Clarkias., Western Wallflower, Blue Field Gilia, and with succulents such as Dudleya.

Dotted Smartweed

Persicaria punctata

Available in D-16 containers for $7.70 apiece!

Dotted smartweed is a widespread winter-deciduous perennial herb, reaching 0.5-3 feet tall.
Native across California, and North America, Dotted Smartweed is found in various moist habitats including seeps, floodplains, ponds, brackish or fresh marshes, and wetlands.
Dotted Smartweed is a lush groundcover, and sports pale white to greenish blooms in summer.
Host to the Purplish Copper, and provides nectar to Halictid bees, wasps, flies, and occasionally beetles.
Perfect for a pondside or birdbath adjacent planting. Pair with Seep Monkeyflower, native sedges and rushes.

Happy fall, y’all from The Watershed Nursery Coop!

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