Welcome to trojan monarch native garden
I’m a lifelong fan of California native plants, but until recently I haven’t had anywhere to plant my own. Now that I have a yard, I’m transforming it into a native plant garden to support regeneration and local biodiversity and sharing my journey here.
I spend my days working on a computer to support regenerative solutions to climate change. Trojan Monarch Native Garden is a chance for me to get my hands in the dirt, test the knowledge I’ve been gathering for years, and share what I learn as I turn book knowledge (actually mostly YouTube and webinar knowledge) into lived experience. If you’re interested in Southern California native plants, regenerative gardening, supporting local biodiversity, or community science, I hope you’ll join me in the comments.
Disclaimer: This isn’t meant as a DIY tutorial, but rather as documentation of a transformation and a way to share resources in a quest to make my yard into an ecosystem that contributes to regeneration. I will be digging in the dirt. But I am not doing all of this myself. I have a chronic illness that prevents me from spending long period of time in sunlight. It makes my body do fun things like attack itself. Frankly, it’s a pain (sometimes literally). But it means that I’ve learned to ask for and accept help and, when I need to and can, hire knowledgable people to help me. I’ll share my resources and be transparent about when and how I’m getting help - for instance ripping out large amounts of clay soil and putting in irrigation. Is this still valuable? I think it certainly is for anyone else with limitations.
the vision
Creating a better world starts with an idea of what you hope that world will look like. We are at a turning point on many levels right now. I want a world in which all live can not just co-exist, but thrive. Where cities teem with life - human and not - and are part of the solution.
Why “Trojan Monarch?” I live in an area where people love their yards. But lawns require a lot of water, often a lot of pesticides, and give very little back to the world around them. The people here also love butterflies. And most pretty things. I’m on a mission to get more people to plant native species. Want more pretty butterflies? (And seriously, they’re beautiful.) Plant native plant species. They will come. And they’ll bring a host of other organisms beneficial to local ecosystems sneaking in along with them.
garden
I’m documenting the process of converting my lawn to a native plant garden with a bioswale and support for local pollinators.
propagation
As I go, I’m also learning about native plant propagation. Right now, native plants can be difficult to find and even more difficult to get to. If more of us are going to grow native yards, and I hope we will, we need to make it easier to get native plants. I’m planning to propagate and share what I have. I’m going to make a lot of mistakes. I’d love your advice!