Watch our turf replacement project transform our drab grass yard into a vibrant native plant habitat. A garden becomes part of the California native ecosystem. Project includes greywater, drip irrigation, mulch, bioswales, rain barrels, native plants, and urban wildlife restoration. Plant list at end of video.
Want to remove your lawn (or even just a part of it?). There may be a lawn removal rebate program in your area! Go to your water provider website (such as LADWP, or Chino Basin Water Conservation District). Be sure to complete your application BEFORE beginning any work. Photos of your intact grass lawn are required.
We sourced plants from the following nurseries:
Hahamonga Native Plant Nursery – www.arroyoseco.org
Theodore Payne Native Nursery – www.theodorepayne.org
Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Garden Grow Native Nursery – calbg.org
California Native Plant Society – www.cnps.org
Music:
“Feeling Fine” by Uncleboris, find at: https://icons8.com/music/author/uncleboris
“Dandy” by Mosbrass, find at: https://icons8.com/music/author/mosbrass
This video includes images of the following websites/apps:
www.calscape.org
www.bewaterwise.com
Sun Seeker
37 Comments
This is so great! Thank you for the video- I am so inspired. Imagine if everyone did this how much better it would be!? I really love those Wooly Bluecurls.
Could you kindly post your yearly maintenance schedule and how you maintain the plants? I’m inspired. Thank you!
Would love to see an update
Beautiful! Everything is beautiful! Thank you!
I want to do this for our home in the mid west
Very nice video! Probably the best-looking home native garden I've seen. If you don't mind me asking where in LA do you live?
You were able to qualify for a turf replacement rebate despite fact you had previously let your lawn die out? I live just inside San Bernardino County, did that years ago (back yard) under water reduction mandate and thought I disqualified self because there was now no turf to replace. I don't know if I can do it without rebate.
I’m pleasantly surprised that cardboard and mulch was enough to take care of your Bermuda grass. I’m planning to hire someone to dig them up, then I will try to get the remaining subsurface roots myself before sheet mulching.
Great video, thanks for sharing. This was really informative 👍🏻
I like the engelmann oak. If you have space try a nevins barberry. they are a rare species and a avian magnet.
EXCELLENT video!!! I was very surprised that when to let the weeds grow at the beginning, many of them were NOT native.
Lovely video, it's an inspiration! I have a very specific question: I also divert greywater to the yard, but I've come to realize it can be really harmful and inappropriate for most of the natives I tried it with. Would you offer some details about your greywater outflow, the riparian area that it irrigates, and what materials you use for the area, like mulch or gravel?
Wonderful
thank you so much so much helpful info. wow thank you a million times!
I've planning to commit to replacing our lawns with this particular landscape and have seen a lot of these diy videos.
I must admit that this video is the best because not only the before, during, after, and "year-after" (which is very important) montage but the plant name overlays within each shot.
I have a lot better idea of what a particular plant species will look like as it matures and how it incorporates within the overall design.
this video was so informative!!! thank you 😊
super epic
Nice , much info in short video ! Good to let people know to observe sun, where rain sits in their yards… THought couldnt divert grey water , unless raised house to access drain pipes, as though all runs in or under cement foundation. Will try to access more info on that. Also wondering if my Salvias and Snowberries need pruning/trimming to stay healthy. TY excellent. Oh, do you have another updated vid on how plants changed and what awesome creatures visit. Wonderful scents, native bees, birds….
I absolutely loved your video! thank you
Oh wow 😃 very informative , thank you !
We live in Long Beach not far from Los Angeles and plan on doing this to our front yard. I too hadn’t thought about where the water goes in our yard before drawing up my landscaping plans. So I’ll go back to it with that in mind. It’s a daunting task to take everything out currently. Do you think it was easier to take out your old vegetation because it had died? We have been maintaining our yard even though we want it gone.
will you be doing an update video soon?
very inspiring! if only a small percent of houses did this, think of how lovely all the bird and butterflies around that we all could enjoy!
beautiful! I bought a 100 year old bungalow in Houston at the start of the pandemic, and i want to do something like this. 🙂
Our garden will be on the 2022 Theodore Payne Garden Tour in April. You can get more information through Theodore Payne's website.
Wow. It's insane you got this much growth in a single year! Well done.
Its been two years! Please give us soooommmmmmething 😮💨
Very informative. Thanks! I like the plant list at the end.
VERY helpful video!! I'm getting tired of my lawn and I'm ready to bring some California plants to my home. Thanks for helping me out with the pre-planning work!
I wonder if TX has a program like this lololololololololololololololololololololooo loo llllllloooollloll🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Such an inspiration. Great job! Can you imagine if the entire Los Angeles region converted their yards to native plants?
This was awesome to watch. I have an acre of ice plant and I'm currently designing new native landscaping. I hope iceplant will count at "turf" 🤣🤣 Thank you for naming all of the plants. Calscape is great but also overwhelming so this was really helpful! Beautiful yard!
🍃Beautiful garden and film making. I noticed that you didn’t use black fabric for weeds and wonder if you have been happy with that decision.
Awesome video! Can't understand why CAL-TRANS doesn't adopt this system to landscape the edges of the urban freeways. In Los Angeles County, they are pathetic, cover with graffiti, debris and dead plants.
I enjoy how your native garden considers varieties and actual nativity of plants.
Too many gardeners out there think "native gardening" involves letting native and non-native weeds grow. Mostly because I believe they assume that 1.) Native gardens are less maintenance if not completely hands-off, and 2.) All flowers benefit all native pollinators. I have 3 of these types in my neighborhood alone, and their yards are a hot mess under the guise of "for the environment" and "natives not lawns."
very good advice . never heard of sun seeker
I love this! I always talk about how important it is to plant native plants especially since california is constantly in a drought and these native plants can handle it.