Visit to Mendocino

My husband and I recently took a four-day, socially-distanced trip to Mendocino. We rented a cabin (where the state's COVID-19 guidelines are strictly enforced), ate only in outdoor restaurants that complied with state mandates, and spent most of our time in the great outdoors. We were armed with warm clothes, a collection of face masks and multiple bottles of hand sanitizer.

Highway 128

The Andiron near Mendocino

From the San Francisco Bay Area, we followed the winding path of Highway 128 through oak forest and then majestic redwoods to the coast. We shared the road with only a handful of cars (one of the perks of the pandemic), and then checked into the Andiron Seaside Inn and Cabins (located about four miles from Mendocino). Our cabin (named "Curious") was filled with science-based games and activities, two telescopes, and binoculars. We ate a delicious dinner at the Trillium Cafe (in the garden, under a tent decorated with white lights, warmed by propane heaters, and socially distanced from other diners).

Contactless check in at The Andiron

Trillium Cafe for dinner in the garden

Mendocino is a charming Victorian era town of about 1,000 people (in its logging heydey, it boasted 20,000 inhabitants). The architecture is lovely, as is its situation on the Mendocino headlands, overlooking the ocean. A short walk across the headlands to the cliff-edge yields beautiful views of the rugged coastline. We found excellent menus at Flow Restaurant and Good Life Cafe & Bakery, and enjoyed watching wildlife in the evening, followed by fires in the wood stove, and episodes of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.

Mendocino on the headlands

Mendocino coast line

View of the ocean

Curious (the cabin)

Russian Gulch State Park is just up the road, north of Mendocino. We snapped pictures of the Russian Gulch bridge glowing in late afternoon sun from the lower parking lot, then again from the Headlands Trail. The winter light intensifies the yellow sediment of the cliffs and illuminates the dense vegetation that covers the headlands. The crashing of the waves and turning of the tide is so therapeutic.

Russian Gulch Bridge

The caves at Russian Gulch State Park

Dramatic skies at Russian Gulch

One day we ate a late lunch in Fort Bragg (a bustling city of about 7,000 people) at Silver's at the Wharf with the sun on our backs, and then headed for the Point Cabrillo Light Station. We saw the charming lighthouse and more of the coastline, with everything bathed in that golden, late afternoon light. The tide surged into the fjords that cut into the coast, and birds and sea lions foraged for food. 

Lunch in Fort Bragg

Fjord at Point Cabrillo

Light station at Point Cabrillo

Rugged coastline (definite need for a lighthouse)

Golden sunset

We spent our last afternoon exploring Mendocino, and visiting the shops (I felt a serious obligation to stimulate the local economy)! Shopping has changed - hand sanitizer at the door, 20-minute stays in the store, limited number of shoppers at any one time. The Mendocino Presbyterian church on Main street was constructed of redwood and dedicated in 1868, and now operates a food pantry and conducts online services. Multiple water towers are scattered throughout the town. Shops are tucked into Victorian buildings that are well maintained and all painted up. We enjoyed a hot toddy and corn dog at Patterson's Pub.

Mendocino Presbyterian Church

One of the water towers in Mendocino

Bead shop along the wooden boardwalk

View from Flow Restaurant waiting for to-go order

Back at the Andiron, watching the deer graze at dusk

We returned home via Highway 128 feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. Even with all the restrictions and precautions, we had a great time exploring the beautiful Northern California coast!

Nature therapy

Native Plant Finder

In his Bring Back the Natives keynote, Dr. Douglas Tallamy spoke on what we can do to attract and sustain nature in our yards. Dr. Tallamy mentioned two tools for figuring out what to plant – Calscape and Native Plant Finder. Last month we took a look at the Calscape tool. This month we'll take a look at Native Plant Finder tool.

The Native Plant Finder website (in Beta) is designed to help you find the best plant species to attract butterflies, birds, and wildlife in your area. The data is sourced from the U. S. Forest Service, The National Wildlife Federation, and the University of Delaware, where Dr. Tallamy is a professor of entomology and wildlife ecology. Enter your zip code, and search for plants or butterflies that are native to your area.   

Native Plant Finder in a browser – enter a zip code to get started

Native plants filtered by category for the zip code entered

For example, I can check the Trees and Shrubs section for hawthorns, to learn more about the hedge of hawthorn bushes in our yard. I find out that the native species in our area is Cratageus suksdorfii, and that 78 species of butterflies and moths use this bush as a caterpillar host plant. That probably explains the early morning chorus of birds in the lower yard!

The native hawthorn is a great caterpillar host plant

Save the plant and any of it attracted species to the list, for later research. 

My native plant and butterfly list

Select Suppliers > Native Plant Directory, to access a list of native plant suppliers by state. For California, I see several favorite nurseries here in the San Francisco Bay Area, including Bay Natives, Berkeley Horticultural Nursery, and The Watershed Nursery. If you use the mobile app, you have easy access to your lists and sources while out shopping for plants.

I highly recommend Native Plant Finder as a resource for anyone who gardens here in California, or in North America. You can use the tool without an account for general research or add a free account to use features like lists. I especially like the emphasis on hosts plants, no doubt thanks to Dr. Tallamy's entomological background. Not only can you learn which native plants would thrive in your garden, but which are the best host plants for attracting the birds, amphibians, and wildlife you'd like to see in your yard!

Calscape

In his Bring Back the Natives keynote, Dr. Douglas Tallamy spoke on what we can do to attract and sustain nature in our yards. He invited us to think of our yards as being part of the food web, and collectively as part of a wildlife corridor for migrating or nesting birds. By planting hosts for the kind of food that birds, insects, amphibians, and animals need, we help ensure their survival. For example, here in the Bay Area, the oak tree is a key host in the food web. Dr. Tallamy mentioned two tools for figuring out what to plant – Calscape and Native Plant Finder (in Beta).

Calscape is especially good for those of us in California, and the San Francisco Bay Area where we have so many microclimates. The data is sourced from familiar plant databases, such as Jepson, CalFlora, California Native Plant Society, Wikipedia, and many more. You can enter your zip code or address to filter data specifically for where you live, for example 94611.

Calscape in a browser – enter a zip code or address to get started

Native plants filtered by category for the zip code entered

We have a live oak in our yard (Quercus agrifolia), and I'd like to learn more about what it contributes to the food web. Select Trees > Coast Live Oak to dive in.

Native trees for the zip code

From there, I can learn all about the oak tree in my yard. Including all the butterflies and moths it hosts, which provide a generous food source for birds and other creatures.

Butterflies and moths hosted by the oak tree

Another great feature is that you can create plant lists as you research. I started an inventory of native plants that I find in my yard. I still have work to do.

Plant Inventory of our yard in Detail view

I also started a list of native plants to introduce into the garden, and downloaded it in spreadsheet format. I can also access the information through Calscape running in a browser on my mobile phone. Calscape also links to native plant nurseries in the area, making it easy to find out what plants are available and where.

Plant Wish List in Grid view

Spreadsheet version for easy access 

I highly recommend Calscape as a resource for those of us who garden here in the Bay Area, or anywhere in California. You can use it without an account for general research, but can add a free account to use some of the features like creating lists.

Poison Gardens – Purple Nightshade

A couple of years have passed since we last visited the poison garden (California Buckeye, Poison Oak, and Stinging Nettle). Halloween seems the perfect time for another foray! Many plants in the San Francisco Bay Area have some level of toxicity, enabling them to fend off predators.

Purple nightshade (Solanum xanti) is a perennial, flowering, evergreen shrub that is native to the Western United States, including California. It grows to 35 inches high, with a hairy stem; leaves that are lance shaped to oval, somewhat lobed, and 2 - 3 inches long; a distinctive umbel-shaped inflorescence with purple-blue flowers up to an inch and half wide; and a green berry fruit that is ½ - ¾ inches wide. Nightshade can thrive in a variety of environments, including chaparral, conifer forests, and oak woodlands.

Purple Nightshade (Solanum xanti) - photo by Dawn Endico,
taken on Mitchell Canyon trail, Mt. Diablo, Northern California. (Jepson)

 

Nightshade is toxic, as are other members in the Solanaceace family. All parts of the plant are poisonous, especially the unripe fruit. Toxicity is from Solanine and glycol-alkaloids, chaconine, and solasodine. There is no antidote for Solanum poisoning. Symptoms include:

• Cardiovascular system (tachycardia, arrhythmia, and hypotension)
• Central nervous system (delirium, psychomotor, agitation, paralysis, coma, and convulsion)
• Gastrointestinal track (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea)

The plant is desirable in the landscape, as it is drought-tolerant, tolerates clay soil, grows under native oak, is deer resistant, and commonly blooms from January to May. Since the plant is poisonous, it may not be an appropriate choice for small children or pets.