california wild gardens
Gardening Made Good
Diverse - Native - Habitat Repairing - Water-Saving - Unstoppable
Design unbridled
Why Wild Gardens?
Transform your yard into a sustainable oasis with native and low-water plants. Wild Gardens create butterfly habitat, repair soil health and help repair the environment. Even native lawns can reduce fossil fuel waste, conserve water, improve air quality & localize food production. All while saving you time & energy. Our mission is to spread wild gardens because:
the more Wild a garden is the less care and input it needs from you.
Experience the beauty of natural gardens when yours comes to life all on its own after the first 1-2 years of care. Thanks to plants and designs that carefully consider the health of you, your landscape and your community's environment. And installation and care guides that help you (or your garden team) see it through.
4-Part Philosophy
DIVERSITY
2-3x the Diversity. More species & varietals means more resilience & more year-round beauty.
REFLECT NATURE
25-95% California Native plants in every package. In densities that reflect the wild.
SUPPORT HABITAT
%50-80 more Pollinator Habitat. From birds to the soil food web & even your local foodshed.
SAVE WATER
50-90% savings over conventional lawn (after the first year). Plus Cool local microclimates by up to 50°F (source)
comments from a
Wild Gardener
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE, love, love our front yard. I would often just compeletely ignore it as I hated it so much...the dyed bark, the poor plant placement, the water guzzling plants. This is incredible and even though it's not a big yard, I love spending time in it looking at all the plants. [And] finally... the butterflies are back!
- Barbara C., Folsom CA
Our Company
Built to Bridge the Landscaping Industry
Woman-Owned & Operated
We want to give you a shortcut to great water-saving plant combo’s. Whether it's the latest native lawns or the best drought-tolerant companion plants, we're here to help you replace the depressing parts of your yard. With plants that will contribute to the improvement of our environment & climate.
We care about the speed of change (& diversity) because nature needs it now more than ever.
Our plants and lawns come directly from local growers to your driveway. From wholesale nurseries previously only contractors and architects had access to. Which means a bigger selection of specialty plants at competitive prices. Save water, save habitat, save a pile on custom design fees AND save yourself the headache of looking at a dull yard...
We believe plants can heal the planet. And that grassroots ecosystem rebuilding is the main thing that will! We are always asking how to make California more sustainable. And now, more than ever, that starts with your home's landscaping.
sustainable options
California Lawns
Non-invasive or Native grasses & groundcovers that offer a minimum %50 water reduction over conventional lawn.
meet the founder
Briana Lyon
Award-winning Designer & Ecology Researcher
"I love creating new styles of drought-tolerant landscaping and prioritizing plants that are adapted to a broad range of climate extremes."
Briana is an East L.A. native whose obsessed with timeless beauty (her first career was as an art detective). When she's not exploring and documenting the secret wildflower stashes of Northern & Southern California she's with her daughter Matilija trialing experimental food forests on rural land.
Watch the video below to learn more about what inspired her to create California Wild...
about our growers
Ethical Deliveries
More than a dozen California sod farmers and wholesale growers provide plant materials that are delivered directly to you from their grounds. With our team helping manage logistics along the way.
about our Plants
Environmentally Safe
Non-Invasive & Water-Saving Species
We sell species with BIG environmental benefits. Whether pollinator supporting, food producing or just darn good-looking and easy to care for. Shop with the confidence of knowing every plant you buy is a step in the right direction for our planet.
Learn More about...
Favorite Facts About Lawn Alternatives
Are you still a little shocked by the death of lawns in record numbers cross California? Water conservation has adopted some extreme tactics in the last few years. Because the really don't have a choice. If you're thinking about replacing the grass here's a few good things to know.
Groundcover Lawns like California native succulent Phylla nodiflora are common lawn replacements in other parts of the world like Japan but are just becoming fashionable here in California
Native Lawns are awesome. Just be aware they have seasonal dormancy cycles. Most get brown patches in the peak of summer while Buffalo Grass (Bouteloua gracilis) gets patchy in winter. California lawn grass breeders are working hard to create new fully green low-water options but it'll be a few years
Artifical Turf exacerbates climate heating and creates huge amounts of non-recyclable plastic - think 20 water bottles per sq.ft. - so don't use it on a large scale. And it's on it's way to being outlawed in many parts of the world due to the toxicity level of the microplastics it generates. Keep turf areas as small as physically possible when needed.
Part Shade helps your lawn areas seriously reduce their water needs and enhance greenery. Plant open canopied shade trees at the edges of lawns or utilize existing shade in your yard wherever possible.
Our prelanned gardens are the building blocks of a gorgeous eco-friendly yard. Expertly pieced together through rigorous research and curated plant selections. We're different from other nurseries and online garden stores because you know the plants you order from us are guaranteed environmentally friendly (locally grown, water-saving, habitat repairing) AND are strategically planned to look and grow great in combination. Filling out your whole yard.
The Basics
- Designs are included with your plant package purchase and come standard. To upgrade your package to a custom plan, purchase a customization here.
- Fast Delivery get a whole garden in as little as 5 business days. You'll save on months of planning and the difficulties of sourcing dozens drought-tolerant and native plants.
- Install is on you. DIY or hire a local landscaper. We provide you with detailed install guides and extended customer support.
- Refunds are only available prior to delivery or while delivery truck is on site. Anything you don't like the look of just put back on the truck before the driver leaves! After the plants are in your hands you're responsible for their care and livelihood.
WHAT CUSTOMERS SAY
It was SO fun to get the plants delivered to my home and was so convenient considering the amount I needed to landscape my backyard! - Kaitlyn B., Santa Ana
It was super EASY and super structured for me to be able to get my plants and design in one place and then put everything together in my own backyard. - Dani Z., Anaheim
A Little About California Landscape History
Log it, drain it, graze it about sums up the 19th century's treatment of California's landscapes. After clearcutting the world's largest redwood forest - which once stretched from Crescent City nearly all the way to Los Angeles - the federal government paid sheep farmers to graze most of the state. Causing severe environmental destruction. The paving and redirection of many large native watersheds further desert-ified many areas of wild land. Today the landscapes we are most familiar with - large expanses of golden rolling hills with a few live oaks studding the sky - are still effected by cattle grazing, which decimates native grass and wildflower populations. And suppresses smaller and midsized understory shrubs.
What does this mean for our Home & Urban Landscapes?
While much of California's land & water continues to be used for producing more than half of the country's produce (and a whole lot of Canada's too) our home landscapes can offer a powerful antidote to the industrial usage of our wild ones. Up until recently more than 5% of California's ecosystem was comprised of lawn grass. With recent water shortages and new state mandates that is on the way to change. Whether your planting native grass or wildflowers, replacing old lawns and outdated ornamentals with habitat-repairing or water-saving plants means that the historic beauty of California gets to be built right at home.
Plants help create a sense of place. And a sense of sanctuary when we need it most: at the end of a hard day, at a moment when we crave quiet or in any time of overwhelm when the buzz of the human world has tired us out. California's huge trove of fascinating native plants is sought after by botanist's all over the world over. Some species are even easier to buy in UK nurseries than in our own local ones. Create an oasis for yourself in the landscape with plants that you can feel good about. And that need less care and water than what's come before.
Founder's Story
How the deep roots of California's home gardens & wild landscapes shaped her
"My mother is really my main garden expert. She and her best friend when I was growing up loved to collect and try out different plants. Thanks to the Mediterranean climate of California being so flexible, there was A LOT to explore. We had a huge jacaranda tree in the front yard that would rain purple all over the walkway. There was a beautiful saucer magnolia and a big black cherry plum that I would eat the sour fruits off of sometimes. And a majestic Albizia (floss silk tree) surrounded by mock oranges and calla lilies near the pool. That was one of the special flowering trees we’d planted to honor someone close to us passing away. When I got older we got a water lily pond that I loved spending time with. And the whole ½ acre garden was ringed by Australian and African trees.
On the weekends I’d go on little hikes with my dog and my dad in the big prickly pear and mustard stands on the hills. Or along the creek beds where my friend from down the street and I could catch tadpoles and crawdads. Once in awhile I’d go camping with girl scouts up at lake arrowhead or along the coast near Solvang. My dad was always a wealth of stories too, having grown up in Southern California when his sister still rode her horse to the Pharmacy and the beach boys played on the sand in San Clemente. He spent a lot of his own childhood hiking in Bishop, the Sierras and San Gregorio. His father (my grandfather) worked in suburban real estate advertising, so my dad’s first job was to put up signs on tight schedules at the edges of the old wild walnut, avocado or oak groves all around Southern California that were on their way to being turned into housing tracts.
I'm fascinated by the evolving landscapes and histories of California - what stood here before us and why - and, more importantly, what will come after."
- Briana Lyon