Making the most of a sunny opportunity
By Debbie Arrington
The transformation of Christina Bickley’s Auburn frontyard started with a boom – literally.
“We ripped out our lawn after our oak tree fell on our house,” she says. “So much sunshine, so we decided to go native to reduce water use and support native pollinators.”
Bickley teaches 7th and 8th grade science and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics); she’s familiar with botany. She knew her oak tree was in decline, but it’s sudden collapse was a shock.
“It was a beautiful tree,” she recalls. “It was near the middle of the lawn. All that lawn – and all that watering – made it susceptible. It was a very vigorous lawn, and the tree got unhealthier and unhealthier.”
A wind storm in 2019 was enough to push it over.
“When it fell, it clipped the front part of the house; the garage and the cars took most of the impact,” Bickley says. “We discovered the oak was infested with ants that had hollowed it out. Without the tree, it made it quite sunny. It was a drastic change.”
And an opportunity; it was time for a makeover.
“That definitely got us started,” she says. “It was during the drought; we didn’t want to water anything that wasn’t food.”
Bickley also became interested in pollinator-friendly native plants and helping wildlife. “My long time goal is to support bees.”
After the demise of the tree, she suddenly had plenty of sun – a must for tomatoes and most native plants. “Losing the tree tipped the scale,” she says.
Bickley sheet mulched the lawn with cardboard and wood chips; a slow process that allows the turf to decompose in place. She installed drip irrigation and did lots of research on native plants.
“We did it all ourselves; it took a year,” she says. “The biggest investment was an earth mover and a big dumpster.”
As for going native, Bickley recommends Calscape.org (an online resource from the California Native Plant Society) and the “Garden Gone Native” garden tour, hosted by the Sacramento Valley chapter of CNPS. “That tour was a real eye opener; all the different colors and combinations.”
Her new favorites? “I’m just in love with Matilija poppies, the fried egg plant. I also love coyote mint, Elegant Clarkia, California buckwheat, woolly sunflowers, a ton of sage. The self-seeded poppies are fabulous. I plan to have something blooming year round.”
