Help us build the Ocean Friendly Gardens program in Santa Cruz County!
Want to participate in creating ocean friendly gardens?
Contact us to get started and make an impact in our community!
Love our ocean, gardening and a healthy local ecosystem? Save some green (money wise and garden wise) and keep your landscape every shade of the rainbow with healthy, interesting, native and diverse plants for your garden.
Follow the three principles of ocean friendly gardening to save water and other resources and help prevent dry and wet-weather runoff from your property that would end up in the ocean:
Reduce water use, fertilizer, herbicide and pesticide use, energy use, and air pollution.
How?
By mulching, composting and by choosing the appropriate plants and watering schedules.
Visit Santa Cruz County’s Water Smart website to learn more about the local rebate programs, how to be water smart, gardening tips, and more!
Find the right plant for you and your ecoscape: Plants and Plant Search
Get great ideas for planting with the Garden Gallery and Garden Tours
Find links to other water wise garden resources in the Garden Resources
Reduce runoff by increasing the permeability of our hardscapes.
Allow percolation with good choices for materials for walkways, driveways and patios. Increase the space between pavers and plant instead of mortaring.
Let water seep back into our gardens, communities and aquifers.
Build retention ponds, bioswales, dry creek beds and dry wells. Use rain barrels and graywater. Look for rebates from your water district for some of these water saving ideas.