Volunteer Work Day

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First saturday work days are open to all volunteers . We plant, prune, mulch, weed and clear on our 22 acres of land in La Tuna Canyon. The work days happen from October to June (we break in the summer) October 1, November 5, December 3, January 7, February 4, March 4, April 8, May 6 & June 3 9:00am-Noon. Meet on the porch at Theodore Payne Foundation's HQ/Bookstore.

If you prefer to use your own, bring gloves and kneepads. Please park on Ledge Avenue or Wheatland Avenue, and wear pants and close toe shoes.

Learn the basics in native plant horticulture with hands on work. Native plants:

beautify the landscape native plants are rich in color, form, texture, and aroma - with careful design, your garden can have flowers year round nurture pollinators and other wildlife native plants provide food and shelter for birds, hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators save water once established, California native gardens use, on average, 80% less water than conventional gardens thrive in our local climate native plants are adapted to our natural cycles, responding to cool, wet winters with lush growth and slowing down during the hot, dry summers prefer our soils native plants do well in our native soils and do not require soil amendments or fertilizers cut pesticide use native plants typically have fewer pest problems than non-natives because they have co-evolved with native insects minimize your carbon footprint most California native plants are grown in state and travel short distances to your nursery reduce maintenance a well-designed native garden, planted for the mature size of the plants, can require very little maintenance once established can be installed at low cost native gardens can easily be started with one-gallon size plants, saving on installation costs cool the environment even through native plants are water thrifty, they play an active role in the water cycle, adding cooling moisture to the atmosphere harmonize with diverse garden styles from cottage to formal to contemporary, there are native plants for every design create a sense of place the diversity of our flora means gardeners have many options for creating place-specific, local gardens that connect us with California’s past and its future