What if commercial buildings, offices, shopping plazas, medical facilities, and suburban yards planted native plants, that are food and shelter for beneficial insects, hummingbirds, bees, butterflies, and birds instead of lawns or cement?  Native plants can tolerate drought, poor soil, and floods! Pollinators increase our food supply!

Organic Garden Club members spoke to the community about growing native plants and the joy of the Garden Life! Native plants, like wildflowers, milkweed, rosemary, blue spire salvia, rudbeckias, berry bushes, and lavender, have the power to clean the air, water, and soil as well as shelter local birds and wildlife.

We explored dozens of eco-themed exhibitors, including native plant vendors, bee experts, and wildlife rehabilitation specialists, including Nel Nolan from Paloma Native Plants, and the Ojai Raptor Center (famous for their care of Jackie the Big Bear Bald Eagle). We visited with the Thousand Oaks High Environmental Club students, where we have volunteered in their on campus garden, inspiring students to learn how to restore habitats. We are all apart of Nature’s Family, reflected in the diversity of life, each tree, each animal, each river and you!

In Thousand Oaks, we are lucky to have the Conejo Open Space Foundation where they envisioned the concept of the Ring of Green Open areas around our community to remain undeveloped! They maintain many wonderful hiking trails, protect our natural resources and wildlife, and sponsored this event. Anne Russell, COSF Outreach Director, visited our booth and our past speaker, John Noble, introduced his snake friend to us!

Thanks to our wonderful Organic Garden Club volunteers, our neighbors were introduced to growing an organic food garden where they live! We offered starter plants of juicy fruits, luscious veggies, and fragrant herbs, as well as native plants! Exploring the natural qualities of plants, insects, and wildlife in your organic veggie garden, brings you a first hand view of the cycle of life!