sacred datura artwork by Lesley Goren
Sacred Datura (Datura wrightii) | © Lesley Goren

The Online Native Plant Garden Tour Social, Saturday and Sunday, 10 am-5pm

We have created the Online Native Plant Garden Tour Social, which is a LIVE event people can join for free, via the platform Zoom, from 10am-6pm on Saturday and Sunday. See below for detailed instructions for how to use Zoom at the bottom of this page. We have made this program free and open to anyone, but for those in the position to make a donation and support the Tour by buying a Ticket, the Theodore Payne Foundation could truly use your support right now.

We'll also be livestreaming the broadcast via the Theodore Payne Foundation Youtube Channel.

From 10 am-6 pm on Saturday and Sunday, different garden owners and designers will come onto the social and show us what is happening in the garden now, and talk about key aspects of their garden-making process. There will also be time for some Q&A.

[Live Schedule] ⬇

Saturday, March 28 10am-6pm PST

Replay Saturday on Youtube

  1. 10-10:30 am Kickoff with Tour Coordinators Margaret Oakley and Philip Otto. Announcements of what exciting things are in store for this event. Quick hello to painter Katherine Aungier who is painting live on Instagram from Garden 19 in Long Beach.
  2. 10:30-10:50am The Gottlieb Native Garden, Garden 1 in Beverly Hills with Susan Gottlieb
  3. 10:50-11:10am Shawn Maestretti of Studio Petrichor at Garden 2 in West Hollywood
  4. 11:10 -11:30am Homeowner of Garden 3 in Hancock Park
  5. 11:30-Noon CASA APOCALYPTICA, Garden 4 in Oxford Square
  6. Noon-12:30pm: Lunchtime conversation: Theodore Payne Executive Director Evan Meyer in with Nick Jensen of CNPS, discussing what “native” means in the context of landscapes
  7. 12:30-12:50pmGarden 7 in Leimert Park
  8. 12:50-1:10pmGarden 8 in Inglewood
  9. 1:10 -1:40pm FormLA Landscaping Design discusses Garden 9 in Century City and Garden 10 in Santa Monica
  10. 1:40-2pm Garden 11 in Santa Monica
  12. 2-2:20pm Walgrove Wildlands, Garden 12 in Mar Vista with Ryan Drnek of Sodder Studio
  13. 2:20-2:40pm Garden 13 in Del Rey
  14. 2:40-3:00pm Garden 15 in El Segundo
  15. 3:00-3:20pm Garden 16 in Manhattan Beach
  16. 3:20-3:40pm Theodore Payne’s Andrew Chaves talks Garden 17 in Torrance
  17. 3:40-4:10pm Garden 19 in Long Beach with painting by @KatherineAungier via Instagram Live
  18. 4:10-4:30pm Garden 20 in Lakewood
  19. 4:30-4:50pm Garden 21 in Long Beach
  20. 4:50-5:10pm Garden 22 in Long Beach
  21. 5:10-6pm Socially Distant Afterparty kicked off by Sage Against the Machine (featuring Evan Meyer, Executive Director of Theodore Payne). Bring out your late afternoon libation. Attendees who wish to socialize can come on screen with video and audio to say hello to each other!

Sunday, March 29 10am-6pm PST

Replay Sunday on Youtube

  1. 10-10:20am Morning kickoff with Tour Coordinators Margaret Oakley and Philip Otto.
  2. 10:20-10:40am Garden 23 in Altadena with Scrub Jay Studios
  3. 10:40-11:00am Garden 24 in Pasadena, designed by Wynne Wilson of Terra Design
  4. 11:00-11:20am Garden 25 in Pasadena
  5. 11:20-11:40am Garden 26 in Temple City
  6. 11:40am-noon Garden 27 in Alhambra with Alhambra City Councilman Jeff Maloney
  7. 12:00-12:30pm Lunchtime conversation: luminary Native Plant Specialist Carol Bornstein discusses key themes of the 2020 gardens with Garden Tour Coordinator Margaret Oakley
  8. 12:30-12:50pm Weedingwildsuburbia at Garden 28 in South Pasadena
  9. 12:50-1:10pm Maureen Taylor of Deerbrush Design at Garden 29 in South Pasadena
  10. 1:10-1:30pm Down by the LA River at Garden 31 in Elysian Valley
  11. 1:30-1:50pm Garden 32 in Glendale
  12. 1:50-2:10pm Homeowners of Garden 33 in Eagle Rock with Joshua Link of Ecotone Studios
  13. 2:10-2:30pm Homeowner with Maureen Taylor of Deerbrush Design at Garden 34 in Glendale
  14. 2:30-2:50pm Homeowner of Garden 35 in Sherman Oaks with designer Jacky Surber of Urbafloria
  15. 2:50-3:10pm Homeowner and Theodore Payne Board Member Jeff Jamison at Garden 36 in Valley Glen
  16. 3:10-3:30pm Homeowner of Garden 37 in Valley Glen
  17. 3:30-3:50pm Garden 38 in Van Nuys, with Sage Greenscaping
  18. 3:50-4:10pm Homeowner with designer Jacky Surber of Urbafloria at Garden 40 in Lake Balboa
  19. 4:10-4:30pm Homeowner of Garden 41 in Woodland Hills
  20. 4:30-4:50pm Homeowners of Garden 42 in Woodland Hills
  21. 4:50-5:50pm Wrap up, Q&A with Maintenance Panel with Tim Becker, Director of Horticulture at Theodore Payne, Nicole Calhoun of Artemisia Nursery, Max Kanter of Saturate, and Ben Oswald of Plant Native Plants

GARDENS WILL NOT BE OPEN TO IN-PERSON VISITS.
Out of respect for the community and garden hosts, please do not visit the gardens in person. Please visit Theodore Payne Foundation social media to experience the tour.

How to Join via Zoom
 We are using the platform Zoom, specifically the webinar function, to host this event. You will need to download Zoom software to your device to be able to join the meeting. For a more seamless experience, we recommend that you download in advance, and practice joining and creating meetings with friends and family before this weekend’s programming.

If you are joining our Online Garden Tour Social this weekend, you do not have to allow camera or audio access to be shared. You can join and listen in, and type questions through a Q&A box, if you prefer. There will also be opportunities for people who want to join with audio/video questions.

Zoom is free to access as an individual. The company has amazing support to help you learn how to use it, quite quickly.

Here is a great page to start, where you can choose getting started either from a desktop (e.g. home computer), or mobile device, and follow the instructions for downloading the software and sign-up.

Here is another very helpful section of the website to troubleshoot and learn more about Zoom:

[Online. Instead of In-Person]

Let’s stay connected and engage with something positive for the community during these difficult times. The Online Native Plant Garden Tour takes place on Saturday and Sunday, March 28 and 29, 10 am — 5 pm. During those hours, join us in an interactive online Garden Tour Social, to meet the passionate homeowners, inspiring designers, and dedicated Theodore Payne staff behind Theodore Payne’s largest annual outreach event. Schedule and details are on the homepage.

Leading up to the tour, check our Instagram accounts, @nativeplantgardentour and @theodorepayne as well as Youtube and Facebook to see homeowner and designer videos about what is happening in their gardens right now.

Please consider making a donation to support this program, which we have made free and available to all. This is a critical time to support the Theodore Payne Foundation, a treasure of Los Angeles since 1960. Please help us to ensure TPF’s exceptional native plant nursery, and impactful educational and community programming live through and beyond this time of crisis.

sacred datura artwork by Lesley Goren
Sacred Datura (Datura wrightii) | © Lesley Goren

Welcome to the 2020 Theodore Payne Native Plant Garden Tour!

Since 2003, Theodore Payne Foundation (TPF), together with passionate native plant gardeners throughout LA County, has set the standard for Southern California’s sustainable landscaping. The Garden Tour has proven time and again that native gardens are beautiful, can be designed on any budget, and that each of us plays a critical role in supporting biodiversity. These exemplary landscapes show us a vision for the future of Southern California: a future teeming with life.

Over the years, more than 20,000 people have taken the Garden Tour, and more than 600 gardens have participated (including perennial favorites!). This year’s event showcases 42 gardens, with 21 new to the Tour. We are thrilled to see outstanding new native gardens being created each year and are honored to work with generous homeowners and designers who want to share these landscapes with the public.

About the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers & Native Plants

Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers & Native Plants, a non-profit organization established in 1960, re-wilds Southern California by bringing native plants back into our cities, creating habitat that supports local ecosystems, and helping people embrace our shared natural heritage. TPF’s 22-acre Sun Valley site is home to an education center, retail nursery, demonstration gardens, hiking trail, art gallery, and bookstore. Admission is free, and the grounds are open to the public year round. Learn more at theodorepayne.org.

About the Garden Tour

The gardens on this tour contain at least 50% native plants. Each garden is a personal expression of place, created in harmony with Southern California’s climate, soil, natural vegetation, and native wildlife.

We are grateful for the community of people that make this event possible. A very special thank you to the garden hosts and designers for opening their wonderful landscapes to the public, and to our volunteer docents for sharing their knowledge and enthusiasm with visitors. We are deeply grateful for the support of our sponsors—including local businesses, agencies, and organizations represented on the pages of this guide.

Key to Garden Features.

Sponsor the Garden Tour

Sponsorships from local agencies, businesses, and organizations make this annual outreach event possible. If you are interested in tour sponsorship, contact Tour Coordinator, Margaret Oakley , [email protected] | (310) 717-7380

Design Your Own Landscape With California Native Plants

Inspired by the tour? Attend Theodore Payne Foundation’s Three-Part Native Garden Design Course, taught by professional landscape designers, many of whom are featured on the tour. Classes are offered year round. Learn more and sign up here.

Garden 13 in Del Rey