Theodore Payne Nursery

My fabulous sister-in-law gifted me the best planter for my birthday. It's an enormous rugged barrel, that she picked up in wine country. The inside is stained a gorgeous dark purple, and when it arrived it still smelled of cabernet - needless to say, I love it!

But the first step to loving it more was to fill it with dirt. So sad to cover up that beautiful stain, but it was necessary.

I want to fill my garden with native sustainable plants, so I went to the once native sustainable nursery I know of... Theodore Payne. While there, a wonderful woman helped me and my mother make sense of all the plants. Because they're natives, they weren't all in bloom, so it took a little imagination to put together an arrangement (unlike commercial nurseries where plants are purchased in bloom.)

I decided on four plants:

• Salvia "Allen Chickering" Sage - a tall, purple, fragrant bloom
• Firecracker - a mid-height red flower
• San Bruno Mountain Golden Aster - a low, yellow daisy-like bud
• and Manzanita

After planting them in a mixture of cactus soil and gardening soil, I gave them a good soak.

And then sat back and enjoyed how pretty it looks! I can't wait to see all the colors in bloom!