{"id":356130,"date":"2026-06-11T11:49:26","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:49:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/356130\/"},"modified":"2026-06-11T11:49:26","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:49:26","slug":"she-tore-out-her-l-a-hillside-lawn-and-planted-drought-tolerant-plants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/356130\/","title":{"rendered":"She tore out her L.A. hillside lawn and planted drought-tolerant plants"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Water-hungry lawns are symbols of Los Angeles\u2019 past. In this series<\/a>, we spotlight yards with alternative, low-water landscaping built for the future.<\/p>\n

Julia Lee had no need for a new garden when she and her husband purchased their Cheviot Hills home eight years ago. The traditional 1950 home came with mature tropical plants in the back and a sprawling grass hillside lawn in front, and it suited them just fine. But as drought <\/a>and wildfires<\/a> dragged on in California in recent years, she started to question whether keeping the thirsty lawn made sense.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur water bill was insane,\u201d she says as she offers a tour of the former lawn, which is now filled with colorful native plants<\/a> and drought-tolerant plants. \u201cIt was a waste of space. Our kids were getting older and didn\u2019t play on the lawn. There was just no reason to keep a big green lawn.\u201d<\/p>\n

After reading a Times story about Georg Kochi, <\/a>a retiree who swapped his Koreatown lawn with plants suited for California, Lee was inspired by Kochi\u2019s wild, wabi-sabi-style garden, which embraces the art of imperfect beauty.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m into chaos,\u201d Lee says, bending down to smell the minty fragrance of a native Woolly bluecurls (Trichostema lanatum) shrub. \u201cIt\u2019s an accurate reflection of my personality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

Lee\u2019s lawn in Cheviot Hills before she sheet-mulched it with cardboard. <\/p>\n

(Julie Lee)<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

So in 2022, Lee decided to replace her lawn with a drought-tolerant landscape, using the LADWP Free Landscape Design Program, now called the Landscape Efficiency Assistance Program,<\/a> for help. She also applied for the Metropolitan Water District\u2019s turf replacement rebate, which was $3 per square foot at the time (now $5), and got $5,310 back when the garden was finished.<\/p>\n

She wanted to learn more about native plants, so she took a garden design class at the Theodore Payne Foundation for Native Plants <\/a>in Sun Valley. But the class felt overwhelming. \u201cI love Theodore Payne,\u201d she says, \u201cbut I hate measurements and trying to figure out hardscape. I\u2019m not a math person. The instructor wanted us to use a compass and draw a scale drawing of the whole lawn, and I thought, \u2018I can\u2019t do this.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Feeling paralyzed, she thought about hiring someone to help her, even though she didn\u2019t want to spend the money on a landscape designer. But when Lee shared her frustrations with her graduate school adviser, noted author and avid gardener Jamaica Kincaid<\/a>, she got the encouragement she needed. \u201cShe told me to do it myself,\u201d Lee says, \u201cas she designed her own gardens herself, and they are idiosyncratic just like she is.\u201d<\/p>\n

1 <\/p>\n

\"Pink <\/p>\n

2 <\/p>\n

\" <\/p>\n

3 <\/p>\n

\"Non-native <\/p>\n

1. Native Clarkia. 2. A ladybug sits on a dill plant. 3. Non-native Borage. <\/p>\n

With encouragement from Kincaid, Lee, 49, began by planting small sages that would grow quickly and help prevent erosion, since water, mulch and rain often ran down the hillside to the sidewalk. She also spread Theodore Payne\u2019s Rainbow Mix wildflower seeds throughout the landscape<\/a>, including California poppies, Arroyo lupine, Desert Bluebells and Clarkia. In the spring, the yard was full of colorful wildflowers, but for the rest of the year, it stayed dormant. \u201cPeople loved it because it was like a wildflower meadow in the middle of the city,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Walking through Lee\u2019s garden, as birds, bees and butterflies zoom around the yard\u2019s bright flowers, it\u2019s obvious she loves color. With help from her friend Ben Liou, who replaced his lawn with native plants, Lee filled the space with a lively mix of sages and flowering perennials, including yellow Bladderpod, pink Palmer\u2019s Penstemon, blue California lilac and poppies. Also, in the mix, there are California poppies, Channel Islands Tree poppies and tall Matilija poppies that look like fried eggs.<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

An endangered Western monarch caterpillar nibbles on some California native milkweed.<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

A \u201cThink Global, Plant Local\u201d sign rests next to a handwritten plant identification tag.<\/p>\n

(Kayla Bartkowski \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

She was surprised to find that working in her garden helped her connect with her neighbors in unexpected ways.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was worried the neighbors would complain,\u201d she says. \u201cBut I\u2019ve met so many people because I\u2019m out here every day. Other gardeners are curious and often ask me, \u2018What\u2019s that interesting yellow plant? Oh, Palmer\u2019s Indian Mallow?\u2019 I even know all the dogs\u2019 names now.\u201d<\/p>\n

When she and her gardener sheet-mulched the front yard <\/a>with cardboard Amazon boxes she had collected from her neighbors in October, one neighbor joked that it looked ready for Halloween. \u201cShe told me it looks like a graveyard,\u201d Lee says, laughing.<\/p>\n

\"An \"An <\/p>\n

An aerial view of Lee\u2019s garden.<\/p>\n

Not all the plants survived, partly because half the garden is shaded by a large magnolia tree on the parking strip. Lee estimates she lost about 70% of her plants in the first year because she didn\u2019t water enough. \u201cThe very first year you\u2019re supposed to water regularly, and I did not hand-water enough, so everything basically died. The water bill went down dramatically, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three years later, after losing so many plants, she decided to add an irrigation system. Liou and her gardener helped Lee install it and build a bioswale to catch rainwater, using stones from Valley Builders Supply and some larger rocks from Bourget Bros. \u201cWe installed it in one day,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was my birthday present to myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Julia <\/p>\n

Lee installed the bioswale in just one day with help from a friend and her gardener.<\/p>\n

At first, she was nervous about adding something so different from the other traditional lawns on her street. \u201cThere weren\u2019t any other houses that had anything like that,\u201d she says. \u201cBut now I like it because it breaks up the front lawn into separate planting sections.\u201d She can also walk down the bioswale to work in the garden. \u201cI find garden maintenance so relaxing,\u201d she adds. \u201cIt\u2019s meditative.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lee says plants help her connect with people. One neighbor who knew the home\u2019s previous owner gave her succulents. Another brought her some aromatic California sagebrush, also called Cowboy Cologne. \u201cI really like the fact that I can point to certain things and remember who gave them to me,\u201d she says. \u201cThat\u2019s really nice.\u201d <\/p>\n

She hopes the golden yarrow will spread, and she\u2019s especially proud of the large white sage she grew from seeds that a friend gave her. \u201cIt\u2019s so happy over there,\u201d she says, clearly excited by its growth. \u201cLook at how big it is. I am so proud of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A Venice beekeeper Ian Kimbrey from Cheep Cheep Homes<\/a> put up a bluebird box made from recycled materials on Lee\u2019s magnolia tree. There haven\u2019t been any bluebirds yet, but Lee is excited to see hatchlings in the future. <\/p>\n

Not all the plants in the unamended soil are California natives or even drought-tolerant. Lee kept some plants that have been growing in the yard for decades, like the jasmine climbing around the front of the house as well as the white roses. \u201cI really don\u2019t like lantana,\u201d she says, \u201cbut I hate killing things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Someday she hopes to set up a free seed library, and she\u2019s excited to see bluebird hatchlings in the bluebird house that Venice beekeeper Ian Kimbrey<\/a> installed in her tree. \u201cI just need to be patient,\u201d Lee says about the bluebird box, which is still empty. \u201cI\u2019ve entered that phase of my life where I just love to see so many birds and bees and other animals in my garden. It\u2019s good for my mental health.\u201d She also wants to add a water feature <\/a>where birds and butterflies can bathe and sip, and she plans to plant more berries to attract more pollinators.<\/p>\n

Lee, who grew up in L.A. and teaches English at Loyola Marymount University, says her unkempt garden reminds her of Los Angeles in some ways. \u201cEverybody just wants to look young and perfect all the time, and that\u2019s not healthy,\u201d she says. \u201cMy garden is beautiful in the spring; then it goes dormant in the summer. And that\u2019s OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

1 <\/p>\n

\"Blue <\/p>\n

2 <\/p>\n

\"Pink <\/p>\n

3 <\/p>\n

\" <\/p>\n

4 <\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

5 <\/p>\n

\"Pink <\/p>\n

1. Blue non-native Cornflowers. 2. Pink Cosmos, also a non-native. 3. Lee reaches to sniff some hardy Cleveland sage 4. A native Clarkia flower. 5. Pink and white native Clarkia flowers. <\/p>\n

She hopes her story will encourage others who who can\u2019t afford a landscape designer or simply feel overwhelmed by the idea of replacing their lawn. \u201cI think sometimes it\u2019s helpful just having somebody who\u2019s there to hold your hand,\u201d she says of her friend Liou. \u201cFor me, that was critical. I don\u2019t think I would have ever made any progress without him.\u201d<\/p>\n

The project was ultimately about more than just saving water. It gave Lee a chance to connect with her community while experimenting in what she calls a \u201ctest garden.\u201d She calls her garden a work in progress, and although she has suffered failures along the way, she values the friendships she has made outside her front door. \u201cMy garden doesn\u2019t look designed because it isn\u2019t. I\u2019ve learned it\u2019s OK if things aren\u2019t perfect.\u201d <\/p>\n

Actually, she says, an imperfect,-always-evolving garden is \u201ca good lesson for life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lee <\/p>\n

Lee looks for bees inside the Matilija poppies in her garden.<\/p>\n

(Kayla Bartkowski \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Plants used in this garden<\/p>\n

California native shrubs\/flowers<\/p>\n

Coulter\u2019s Matilija poppy (Romneya coulteri)
Pigeon Point Coyote Brush (Baccharis pilularis \u201cPigeon Point\u201d)
Twin Peaks No. 2 Dwarf Coyote Bush (Baccharis pilularis \u201cTwin Peaks No. 2\u201d)
Lilac Verbena \u201cDe La Mina\u201d (Verbena lilacina \u201cDe La Mina\u201d)
Armstrong California Fuchsia (Epilobium canum \u201cArmstrong\u201d)
Marin Pink California Fuchsia (Epilobium canum \u201cMarin Pink\u201d)
\u201cBert\u2019s Bluff\u2019 California Fuchsia (Epilobium canum)
Catalina California Fuchsia (Epilobium \u201cCatalina\u201d)
Hummingbird sage (Salvia spathacea)
California Sagebrush (Artemesia Californica)
California Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum)
Red Buckwheat (Eriogonum grande var. rubescens)
\u201cWarriner Lytle\u201d Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum \u201cWarriner Lytle\u201d)
Ashyleaf Buckwheat (Eriogonum cinereum)<\/p>\n

\" <\/p>\n

Lee grew the white sage from seed. <\/p>\n

Sea Cliff Buckwheat (Eriogonum parvifolium)
Ceanothus \u201cJulia Phelps\u201d
Yankee Point Carmel Ceanothus (Ceanothus thyrsiflorus var. griseus \u201cYankee Point\u201d)
Coyote Mint (Monardella villosa)
Woolly Blue Curls (Trichostema lanatum)
Golden Currant (Ribes aureum var. gracillimum)
Bush Monkeyflower (Diplacus longiflorus)
Jelly Bean Red (and Pink, and Orange, and Fiesta Marigold) Monkeyflower (Diplacus \u201cJelly Bean Red,\u201d etc.)
Canyon Prince Giant Rye (Elymus condensatus \u201cCanyon Prince\u201d)
Island Alumroot (Heuchera maxima)
Santa Ana Cardinal Alumroot (Heuchera \u201cSanta Ana Cardinal\u201d)
California bee plant (Scrophularia californica)
California Huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum)
Common Snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus var. laevigatus)
Fragrant Pitcher Sage (Lepechinia fragrans)
\u201cWhirly Blue\u201d Cleveland sage (salvia clevelandii \u201cWhirly Blue\u201d)
\u201cCelestial Blue\u201d Cleveland sage (salvia clevelandii \u201cCelestial Blue\u201d)
Winnifred Gilman Cleveland sage (salvia clevelandii \u201cWinnifred Gilman\u201d)
Allen Chickering Cleveland sage (salvia clevelandii \u201cAllen Chickering\u201d)
\u201cBee\u2019s Bliss\u201d sage (Salvia \u201cBee\u2019s Bliss\u201d)
\u201cMrs. Beard\u201d creeping sage (Salvia sonomensis \u201cMrs. Beard\u201d)
Russian sage (Salvia yangii)
Santa Barbara Mexican Bush sage (Salvia leucantha \u201cSanta Barbara\u201d)
Deer grass (Muhlenbergia rigens)
California bush sunflower (Encelia californica)
Margarita BOP penstemon (Penstemon heterophyllus \u201cMargarita BOP\u201d)
Palmer\u2019s Indian Mallow (Abutilon palmeri)
Island Mallow (Malva assurgentiflora)
White sage (salvia apiana)
Black sage (saliva mellifera)
Butterfly bush (Buddleja)
California Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Oregano (Origanum vulgare)
French lavender (Lavandula dentata)
Bush Anemone (Carpenteria californica)
Channel Islands tree poppy (Dendromecon hartfordii)
Manzanita
Blue Grama (Bouteloua gracilis)
Showy Island snapdragon (Gambelia speciosa)
Bladderpod (Cleomella arborea)<\/p>\n

Wildflowers (Native and non-native)<\/p>\n

California poppies (Eschscholzia californica)
Blue Globe gilia (gilia capitata)
Elegant Clarkia (Clarkia unguiculata)
\u201cFarewell to Spring\u201d Clarkia (Clarkia amoena)
Cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus)
Theodore Payne\u2019s Rainbow Mix wildflower seeds
\u201cIndian Summer\u201d Black Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta, \u201cIndian Summer\u201d)
Cosmos (cosmos bipinnatus)
Various breadseed poppies (papiva somniferum) <\/p>\n