“I do this exercise (wandering around the different plant sections) every time I’m at the nursery, and after 13 years I have learned a lot. To me, planting local natives is like historic preservation of buildings or fine works of art. I like to think about what used to grow in my area and try to bring back those plants. You can research what used to grow in your area by visiting parks and vacant lots nearby and looking for vestige populations of natives (although beware, many parks have natives that have been planted recently). Books with historical photos can be useful. The diaries and accounts from early European explorers are another source of information on what used to grow in areas of the East Bay. Fremontia, the biannual publication of the California Native Plant Society (CNPS), has had articles over the years on what plants grew in California landscapes in the past. And just talking to knowledgeable people in native plant circles yields interesting tidbits of information as well.”