Welcome to Sierra Azul Nursery & Gardens

Source for beneficial, edible, and drought tolerant and exotic plants with a 2 acre demonstration and sculpture garden.

Sierra Azul Nursery and Gardens specializes in plants and gardens for California’s Mediterranean climate. Our goal is to promote the aesthetic use of Mediterranean climate adapted plants in water-conserving gardens and landscapes. This includes edibles, fruit trees, and plants for shade gardens.

Sierra Azul Nursery is a retail plant nursery specializing in Mediterranean plants from around the world. Our nursery includes a propagation based growing grounds and two acres of demonstration gardens featuring mature plants in a garden setting, accented by sculptures from local artists. Be sure to check out our special sales, and the workshops, classes, and events we host.

Sierra Azul Nursery and Gardens holds a vision of the garden as a place to link with the natural world and its many wonderful contrasting elements. We hope to share our vision with you. Come visit the rich, aesthetic, physical world of Sierra Azul Gardens.

Fall News

Happy Fall!

It’s officially fall! The mornings are feeling crisp while the days continue to warm up to mid 70s, perfect weather in our opinion. We were happy to receive some early rains – and even counted 0.5″ in our rain gauge one morning. The plants looked extra vibrant after that nice shower. We just love this time of year for many reasons – one of which is of course – fall planting!! And with more soil-softening rains in the forecast for next week, the planting conditions will continue to improve. Keep reading for more on this, featured plants, Sales, and more!

Benefits of Fall Planting

Fall is a great time to plant along the Central Coast. The weather is typically mild, the soils are still warm, and the prospect of fall and winter rains are on the horizon. When it comes to California natives, it is arguably the best time of the year to plant! Natives are naturally accustomed to a wet season and a dry season due to California’s Mediterranean climate. Many natives can also be touchy with summer watering and heat but planting in the fall allows for them to get established with the help of the seasonal rains ahead of the next year’s dry season. We have lots of natives in stock including various types of Arctostaphylos, Salvia, Ceanothus, Eriogonum, Erigeron, Romneya, Fremontodendron, Rhamnus, Heteromeles, Mimulus, Keckiella, Epilobium, and more!

Fall planting isn’t just for natives though! It’s a great time for almost anything whether it’s a perennial, shrub, tree, or even Protea so long as it’s a frost hardy variety or you are in a frost-free area close to the coast. Another factor to consider is ensuring a plant’s drainage needs match your soil profile or consider building a mini mound to improve drainage (see our article on this here). If you are planning to plant in a frost prone area, it is best to plant more sensitive plants in the Spring.

Featured Plants

Grasses for Fall Interest

Muhlenbergia emersleyi

Bull grass is a Southwest native, including California, and grows naturally in oak woodlands. Purple tinged flowers form in summer and last through fall. Great for spots where the 2-3′ clumps are backlit by late afternoon sun. Low water needs and deer-resistant!
Available in 1-gallons.

Featured Edible

Ugni molinae

The Chilean guava is a fruiting shrub that produces tasty, red berries which are slightly larger than huckleberries in the late summer and fall – they are ripe when the fruit is light red. These are great for the in-ground planting or in containers. They reliable fruit for us in 5 gallons and are virtually pest free! In the ground, they will reach about 5-6 feet tall but take well to pruning. Plant two or more for best fruit production. Easy care, yummy fruit for fresh eating or jam, and low water needs – what more could you ask for?

Available in 1 gallons and 5 gallons – no tax!