r/Ceanothus

Was wondering if anyone knew a good reliable online distributor or in person retailer in northwestern la county to ventura county for California native grasses.
I keep finding seed wild flower seed mixes and looked for native grass mixes but i keep finding either drought tolerant turf grass or offers from sketch websites.

Hi all, I’m located in LA with a very sunny balcony that faces southwest. I’d love to add some native plants to my collection, especially a pollinator that hummingbirds might be into.

My question id are there native coastal scrub varieties that do well potted? I just don’t have a lot of room on a balcony.

Hypothetically speaking...

Let's say you wanted to do some guerilla gardening along a busy road in suburban southern California.

1. Which species would you choose? Pick your top 3.
   • A mix of annuals and perennial shrubs that mimics the native habitat once there (e.g., south-facing slope of coastal sage scrub)
   • Oak acorns and other tree species?
   • Showy flower superbloom for public awareness/outreach appeal?
   • Fast growing groundcovers for slope stabilization for the Super El Nino forecast?
2. How would you do it?
   • Sprinkle seeds by hand or spice shaker?
   • Thrown seed bombs (clay or paper pulp binder)?
   • Cuttings (e.g., cactus pads, mulefat stakes, etc.)?

Goal: surreptitiously convert a disturbed habitat into something a little better in terms of ecological benefit to native wildlife. Birds, bats, bees, butterflies, bunnies, probably not bears.

Where:

• South Coast ecoregion (Los Angeles River basin) https://calscape.org/garden-planner/ecoregion-map/
• A disturbed slope next to a busy roadway
• Full sun, loose sandy soil and rock
• Formerly invasive annual grass and mustard >>> partially burned and chopped by maintenance crews.
• No, this isn't adjacent to any wild native habitat.
• No, Caltrans or other agencies are not planning on re-vegetating this patch.

As inspired by the list created by u/Notenufcoffeeforthis, here's a list of some upcoming plant sales in Northern California.

Also worth mentioning is the Native Plant Extravaganzas 2026 in support of the Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour and Green Home Features Showcase.