News from the Garden

Issue 30 I May 2025

Making milestones.

May was full of milestones. We welcomed the first of our Summer Emerging Horticulture Leaders to the garden — more about that next month. We hosted two school groups: high schoolers from Casa Grande in Petaluma and K-2nd graders from Spring Hill Elementary (who are working on a leaf rubbing activity in the photo below). And we decided to pilot two weeks of kid’s summer camp at the end of July in partnership with Clayfolk in Occidental!

The Earth Work team spent a Saturday with their current cohort for a day of contemplation and reflection about climate change in the garden. The Bay School Art Team is coming to do their year end review and planning for fall in early June. Our WHG volunteer program has nearly doubled in size with lots of new energy and seasoned wisdom. And Mother’s Day weekend was our busiest in the garden yet.

We watch the way people react when they visit. Their bodies relax, their faces are bright with smiles, and some even exclaim when they see the dense naturalistic setting. It is so fun to share this place and to observe it’s impact on others.

If you are interested in organizing a field experience for students at your school, bringing your work team together for an immersive retreat, or offering a bespoke program for your network, please get in touch via the button below.

We hope you have a chance to spend time here soon.

Upcoming programs.

Justin’s Hort Report.

Before working at Western Hills, I never really took to rock roses (Cistus sp.). Sprawling, bushy creatures with sticky leaves and simple flowers, often overgrown, leggy, full of dead leaves and spiders. So imagine my surprise this spring when the rock roses of Western Hills began to call out to me. Quietly, softly, they leafed out in brighter greens than I remembered. Then their flowers appeared, in varying sizes and colors, all with that bright yellow center that seemed to mimic the brightness of the sun this month. It was like they all got together and decided to put on a show for me. 

This collective message from the plants reminded me that Western Hills founder Lester Hawkins wrote lovingly about rock roses in the Fall 1978 issue of Pacific Horticulture. (His opening line is "For the fastidious, rock roses can be maddening." – my thoughts exactly!) His tome, coupled with what the plants themselves were telling me, convinced me that I misunderstood Cistus. They're next on the list of unique genera I'm excited to learn from and make look their best here are Western Hills.

Welcome new members.

Our spring membership drive ends 6/1. Thank you to everyone who has joined or renewed! We are thrilled to welcome so many new friends to our community. We’re hosting a members-only Plant Sale this Saturday and Sunday during open hours with 20% off nursery stock. Today, Friday 5/30, from 5-7pm we’re hosting a reception for members to browse, buy, sip, nosh, and wander the garden during golden hour. Come on by if you are a member or would like to become one!

Yellow.

Bright. Golden. Striking. The primary color that brings a smile. The one that inspires song, hope, and possibility.

The evening light in late spring at Western Hills Garden shines yellow. We think it suggests both joy and optimism, shocking the senses while signaling the need for vigilance and caution. Showing the way. What does it say to you?

Shout outs.

Landscape Shapes Mindscape – Art Gallery.

Led by Cristina Valverde, Cory Brown, and a growing team of volunteers, Landscape Shapes Mindscape is the story of a large-scale sculpture being built in the woods out of materials gathered from forest tending and local mill waste streams. It is part of a three act experiment exploring ways to interweave stewardship and art to cultivate deeper meaning and connection with local community, ecology, & the story of place.

This summer, July 2025, the sculpture will become a temporary local art gallery. A call for submissions is open through July 1st for 6x6 pieces to hang inside the head. An opening reception will be held on Saturday, July 19th and the pieces will be displayed for one month.

In early fall, Cristina and Cory will organize a skills share workshop to offer insights and best practices on land stewardship. And the final act will play out on the winter solstice with a gathering of music, storytelling, and a great ritual fire which will burn the Mindscape sculpture to the earth.