Menlo home showcased on Going Native Plant Tour

Only hours after this contributor posted an inquiry about a poppy explosion in Menlo Park, she walked by this home on Brandon Way that’s part of the Going Native Plant Tour taking place today. The annual event features gardens in San Mateo and Santa Clara County that are water-wise, low maintenance, low on chemical use, bird and butterfly friendly – and attractive.

According to tour volunteers on site, this front yard went native in 1992 when the owners planted California poppies. They added Coastal poppies (more yellow, less golden in color) 10 years later and the two varieties have since crossed to produce a  hybrid. Other natives featured in the yard include Coyote brush, a Louis Edmonds and a Howard McMinn manzanita, ground cover ceonothus and hummingbird sage.