Here at Theodore Payne, we offer ample educational opportunities. Meet like-minded folks in the process! Depending on your interests, choose from volunteering in the sales yard, seed room, office or propagation areas.

Contact us at: 818-768-1802 or just come in and request a volunteer application to get started.

Another option is to participate in one of our First Saturday projects. No registration is required and the next one is on November 4, from 9 am - 12 pm. This is a chance to discover how to properly care for a native garden by helping us in ours! We will select an area on our 22-acre property to beautify and then we’ll set to work cleaning, clearing, planting, pruning, mulching and anything else that needs to be done. Tools are provided. Please bring gloves, knee pads, sunscreen, a hat and any tools for your personal use. We will have coffee, juice, bagels and doughnuts for all hard-working souls!

We are also looking for docents to assist attendees of our 4th Annual Native Garden Tour on April 28 & 29 of 2007. Please contact Carmen at: 818-768- 1802 to sign up!

Whichever you choose, you're in for a fantastic, enriching experience. We look forward to seeing you!

Curious about ethnobotany? Come to this unique class to learn about different environments and communities and how people relate to them. Discover how the native people use nature for food, shelter, music and spiritual beliefs. Students will make bracelets using traditional (Yucca plant ) and nontraditional materials. Instructor Oscar Ortiz is a cultural/environmental specialist working in the Santa Monica Mountains conducting workshops, teacher and docent training and has been a docent for over 20 years. He is affiliated with Traditional Native American, Chumash Dolphin Dancer, and Chumash Maritime Associations and is the advisor/creator of cultural/environmental curriculum for classroom and outdoor education. He has taught marine science to grades third through high school level for 17 years at Malibu Lagoon.

10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

$30 for members, $40 for non-members

Please call 818-768-1802 to register.

First Saturday Project, Native Plant Horticulture and Introduction to Design, Native Garden Design Workshop and Pruning for Perky Perennials.

Each month, TP members receive a 20% discount on a particular species. In November, it is the magnificent Quercus chrysolepis (canyon live oak).

Growing throughout California (except in the Central Valley), the canyon live oak is an evergreen tree with single or multiple stems and erect grow habit. It can handle sun to shade, semi-dry conditions (once established) and rocky soil. It's a nice choice for courtyards and many garden situations and is loved by a variety of wildlife. The ultimate size of a canyon live oak is approximately 15-70 feet high and 15 feet wide. Come to the nursery and see them for yourself!

There are so many other wonderful plants currently in our nursery. We're well-stocked and now is the perfect time to plant! If you're looking for something a little uncommon, check out: Juniperus communis montana, Lilium pardalinum gianteum, Galvezia juncea, Arctostaphylos silvicola 'Ghostly,' Adenostoma fasciculatum 'Black Diamond' and so much more just waiting to be discovered!

If it's bulbs you're after, we have quite a few, including Calochortus venustus and Calochortus "Golden Orb" in the bookstore. These are terrific in sunny, dry gardens among grasses, perennials or very low-growing shrubs. Both are in the Mariposa Lily group, with large flowers in white or yellow that seem to float above the foliage of other plants. "Mariposa" is butterfly in Spanish, and is very appropriate.

We have available a dynamic, photo-rich PowerPoint presentation that showcases information about California native plants (including the matilija poppy, Mr. Payne's inspiration) and Theodore Payne - the Man and the Foundation. Please contact Carmen at 818-768-1802 or programs@theodorepayne.org if your group is interested. We can arrange to give the presentation here at our beautiful 22-acre property in Sun Valley or off-site, pending staff availability.

If your garden contains at least 50% California native plants and you're interested in being considered for our 4th Annual Native Plant Garden Tour on April 28 & 29 of 2007, please contact Carmen at: 818-768-1802 or by email: programs@theodorepayne.org.

We're also seeking organizations, companies, individuals, etc. to help finance the 2007 Tour. If you'd like to contribute by becoming a major sponsor or by buying an ad in our full color program that goes to every person who purchases a ticket to the Garden Tour (over 1500 people this year), please contact Carmen at the above email address or phone number.

A collaborative effort between Theodore Payne Foundation, Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden and California Native Plant Society, this bi-lingual book is the definitive guide to caring for your native garden.

Purchase it in our bookstore or online or receive it free when you come in and become at member at the $30 level or above.

It's just what your gardening bookshelf has been waiting for!

What to get for the person who has everything?

A membership at Theodore Payne, a class, gift certificate, books that are both beautiful ("Plant Portraits: the California Legacy of A.R. Valentien," among others) and informative ("Oaks of California," "California Native Plants for the Garden" and more), local honey, Juniper Ridge soaps, sachets, teas and incense, native bulbs, native seeds, handmade pottery, Earth Creations tees and more!

Avoid the mall - we've got great stuff for your loved ones!

You may do either at our website and get all the great benefits of membership: discounts on plants and classes, quarterly newsletter: The Poppy Print, a tax deduction and the satisfaction of helping raise native plant consciousness.

Sign up through our E-Store. Just click on the link below to contribute. While you're there, check out our selection of books and seed that you can purchase online. Thanks!

The issue of invasive plants is not to be taken lightly. Many newspapers are covering this subject and highlighting the importance of combining gardening with local native plants and removing invasive exotics. A recent article in the Baltimore Sun hits the nail on the head: "Identify and remove invasive plants quickly." To read the article, click here.

Theodore Payne Foundation was the topic on KPFK's program, "Treasures of the West." To listen, click here and scroll down to the show for October 4, 2006.

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email: programs@theodorepayne.org

web: http://www.theodorepayne.org