MANHATTAN BEACH BOTANICAL GARDEN BRINGS
EARTH-FRIENDLY EDUCATION
TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
By Stacey Kumagai
Becoming one with the Earth is as simple as getting your hands dirty. You can experience getting back to nature, the way nature intended by learning about native Southern California plants and organic gardening, even if you personally don’t have a yard or garden. Manhattan Beach Botanical Garden (MBBG) has found a way of bringing the local community together for a bit of gardening ZEN. This five-themed area garden was put together with love, helpful hands and lots of hard work from volunteers. It is open to the public for enjoyment and learning about drought-tolerant plants, native to the area and how to do pesticide-free gardening.
“Well one of the things about our garden is that although we're called the Manhattan Beach Botanical Garden - strictly speaking we're not a botanical garden. We're actually a demonstration garden and we're demonstrating environmentally-friendly gardening practices, states Gretchen Renshaw, one of MBBG’s Founders and Corporate Secretary.
Renshaw also happens to be one of the four Friday Maintenance Directors, as MBBG has regular gardening days held every Friday morning 9:30-12:00 noon. Other gardening days are planned by appointment. This is when the garden is weeded, mulched and planted. In 2007, Garden planners were awarded grants from the Metropolitan Water District and West Basin Municipal Water District to create seven interpretive signs. The state park quality signs provide an educational self-guided tour covering these topics: California Friendly Plants, Mulch/Compost, Water-Where it comes from & Ways to Conserve, Our Mediterranean Climate, Creatures of the Garden, How to Create a Wildlife Habitat and History of the Garden, and the garden is always open to the public for learning as they explore.
“Many people stumble on the Garden while visiting Polliwog Park, and become quite intrigued. Most folks want to do their part for global warming, especially since there has been so much press about it lately, and discovering this nice little demonstration garden gives them the means to get started,” adds Julie Gonella, President of MBBG. “Before a visit, many folks assume MBBG is a typical garden filled with roses and other pretty, yet common varieties. As soon as they enter they realize how different it looks, and the educational interpretive signs explain why. The plants showcased are rarely seen varieties with unusually shaped and colored leaves as well as unique flowers. Leaves are not raked up but are instead, left in the beds as mulch, and some plant species bloom at odd times of the year (like winter and late summer). What really surprises folks is how our native plants seem so exotic,” explains Gonella.
MBBG has something for everyone. The Matilija Poppy Hillside was actually born from three small cuttings and blossomed, taking on a life and a hillside all its own. The Wildflower meadow features more California Poppies and native state wildflowers bringing some colorful additions to MBBG. The Meditation Garden is minimalist Zen – a quiet place to just enjoy big trees and wildlife. Children’s Garden of Discovery provides a dazzling garden for the senses – where kids can touch a soft lamb’s ear plant or take in the scent of aromatic herbs and flowers. Enter The Butterfly and Bird Habitat (one of the very first themed areas to be planted back in 1995) and you may find yourself coming face to face with a hummingbird, or a bright and colorful Monarch butterfly. According to Gonella, it’s these two areas that are the most educational for visitors.
“For adults, the Bird and Butterfly Habitat demonstrates the most dramatically how alive and gorgeous a garden can be using only drought-tolerant, (especially CA native) plants. That designated area is especially bountiful because of its many trees and the fact that it is off the path. The dry creek bed attracts and protects many beneficial critters like lizards and spiders as well. In reality, the entire garden is a bird and butterfly habitat and one can always see creatures flying through. The thick carpet of mulch spread everywhere is one of the main secrets of its success. For kids, the Children’s Garden of Discovery is a top educational spot. They love to smell and touch the plants in this area, and often get their first interest in plants there. They love the fun names of these plants as well, and return remembering their favorites,” Gonella explains.
Three hundred years ago, native plants and vegetation grew in this space; later farming and greenhouse acreage took over this area in the early 20th Century and soon became a public garden by the Neptunian Women's Club in the 1960's. With the help of volunteers returning the space to be drought-tolerant, requiring little irrigation, peppered with plants which reside in fertilizer-free natural soil, the ecology of the garden improved. Nature’s own critters (birds & wildlife) returned to a new place to call home again and MBBG earned a "Certified Wildlife Habitat" by the National Wildlife Federation.
MBBG also has a 30-seat Amphitheatre and has accommodated school groups and local organizations.
“People visit from all over Southern California with pad and paper in hand, taking notes of the plants they like. We receive a steady stream of inquiries from local clubs and school groups wanting to volunteer in the Garden to learn earth friendly gardening practices. For years the city of Manhattan Beach has offered composting classes in the Garden three times annually, and instead of the usual 10-15 people, the last year has seen large groups of 30-40 attending,” explains Gonella.
MBBG keeps progressing. Call it “the little garden that could” – this 2/3 acre garden just recently built a structure to start their own plant storing and plant propagation on the premises. They continue to inspire and educate future generations about what a typical Southern California garden should look like, being water-wise and earth-friendly. From California Poppies, California Buttercups, Alder trees and California Bay trees – it’s all about keeping native plants thriving in the conditions they are used to, while helping the planet return to its natural state. They also keep learning themselves. Even though they are armed with some horticulturists and landscape designers on their board, they are often surprised to find plants thriving without logical explanation – as certain plants tend to reseed, with the garden taking on a life of its own.
“There is constant wildlife movement, and benches are spread around so folks can sit and enjoy it. There is always a great sense of peace and accomplishment after volunteering here as well. The camaraderie with other volunteers, the smells of CA native plants, the atmosphere of being outdoors with plants and wildlife in our lovely town…it is all very stress-releasing. My greatest hope is that visitors are inspired to go back to their homes and plant drought-tolerant plants, especially our lovely CA natives. I hope they leave with a sense of peace and enjoyment, and some knowledge of how to create such an atmosphere in their own home space,” declares Gonella.
A little dirt. A lot of sweat. Giving back to the earth. And a continuous ZEN. MBBG is the place to reclaim both nature and your spirit, inside the peaceful setting of a garden right in the middle of Southern California.
Manhattan Beach Botanical Garden is located off the 405 freeway - West of Aviation Boulevard, in Polliwog Park on Peck Avenue just north of Manhattan Beach Boulevard.
You can volunteer by calling, 310.379.4447.
For more information or directions: go to www.manhattanbeachbotanicalgarden.org