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Rewild Santa Ana

Frequent Questions

Answers to the questions we hear most from people who want to plant natives in Santa Ana: where to buy them, what it costs, where to see them growing, and where to learn more.

Where Can I Buy Native Plants Near Santa Ana?

These are the nurseries we trust. Whichever you choose, plan to buy and plant in the fall or winter. Nearest first:

  1. Laguna Hills Nursery (opens in a new tab) — 3.1 mi from downtown. A local for-profit nursery at 17th and Tustin. They don’t specialize in natives, but they carry a small selection, and their Gary’s Top Pot soil mix is perfect for potted natives. Expect to pay a little more than at a specialist nursery.
  2. Fullerton Arboretum (opens in a new tab) — 10.8 mi from downtown. Order native plants online and pick them up at the arboretum, or watch for their semi-regular in-person sales, which carry many natives suited to our gardens.
  3. Environmental Nature Center (opens in a new tab) — 11.0 mi from downtown. A Newport Beach nonprofit with native plants for sale year-round, Saturdays and Sundays from 10 AM to 3 PM.
  4. California Botanic Garden (opens in a new tab) — 31.7 mi from downtown. An on-site native plant nursery in Claremont, inside an 86-acre garden of more than 22,000 California natives.
  5. Theodore Payne (opens in a new tab) — 48.1 mi from downtown. The widest selection of native plants in the Los Angeles and Orange County area. Worth the drive to Sun Valley for a big project.
  6. CNPS Orange County (opens in a new tab) — The Orange County chapter of the California Native Plant Society sells plants at its events around the county. Check their events page for dates and locations.

Is Rewilding Expensive?

It doesn’t have to be. A native garden costs less to keep than a lawn once it is in, and three things bring the up-front cost down:

  1. Get Paid to Remove the Lawn — Be Water Wise (opens in a new tab)’s turf replacement program (opens in a new tab) pays by the square foot to swap lawn for a native garden. Submit your application before removing any sod, or you will not qualify (see step one of our guide). Make use of grants and programs too, such as the Xerces Society Pollinator Habitat Kit (opens in a new tab), which gives Orange County residents free native plants, or CNPS Orange County’s Acorn Grant (opens in a new tab) if your project is at a public K–12 school.
  2. Buy Small Plants — Plants in 1 gallon pots or smaller cost a fraction of 5 gallon ones, and they establish faster and succeed more often. Here is why.
  3. Get Mulch for Free — Tree crews pay to dump wood chips, so many will drop a load for free if you ask, and ChipDrop (opens in a new tab) matches arborists with people who want chips. You will need more mulch than you think, so free matters. See our mulch tips.

Where Can I See Natives Growing?

Seeing mature plants helps you picture your own garden. Closest first:

  1. Santiago Park (opens in a new tab) — 1.8 mi from downtown. Santa Ana’s own nature reserve, with native habitat along the creek and the Wildlife and Watershed Center at 600 East Memory Lane.
  2. Santiago Creek (opens in a new tab) — 1.8 mi from downtown. The trail along Santiago Creek runs through restored native habitat. The Santiago Creek Greenway Alliance maintains it and runs volunteer days.
  3. Santa Ana Zoo (opens in a new tab) — 2.0 mi from downtown. A pollinator garden and natives tucked throughout the grounds, including Coast Live Oak, Lemonade Berry, Manzanita, and sages. Most are labeled, but not all.
  4. Fullerton Arboretum (opens in a new tab) — 10.8 mi from downtown. The closest place to see mature natives in a designed landscape.
  5. Environmental Nature Center (opens in a new tab) — 11.0 mi from downtown. Fifteen California plant communities on a few acres in Newport Beach, with a butterfly house in season.
  6. Upper Newport Bay (opens in a new tab) — 9.5 mi from downtown. One of the largest coastal wetlands in Southern California, with trails and an interpretive center. Coastal sage scrub and salt marsh natives, and some of the best birding in the state.
  7. California Botanic Garden (opens in a new tab) — 31.7 mi from downtown. The largest garden of California natives anywhere: 86 acres in Claremont.

Where Can I Learn More?

  1. Calscape (opens in a new tab) — The California Native Plant Society’s plant finder: enter your address and filter by size, color, and care. Also available in Spanish.
  2. Native West Nursery (opens in a new tab) — 101 mi from downtown. A native plant nursery further south in San Diego. They have a wide range of helpful guides and plant lists on their website. Unfortunately, they’re too far away from Santa Ana to be a good source of plants.
  3. CNPS Orange County (opens in a new tab) — The California Native Plant Society’s Orange County chapter: conservation work, field trips, news, and educational material.
  4. Environmental Nature Center (opens in a new tab) — 11.0 mi from downtown. Classes for all ages, field trips for school classes from preschool through 12th grade, and grants to help schools pay for them.
  5. Theodore Payne (opens in a new tab) — 48.1 mi from downtown. Classes, events, and workshops in Sun Valley, with past presentations on YouTube at @TheodorePayne.
  6. OC Habitats (opens in a new tab) — 2.1 mi from downtown. A local nonprofit doing restoration, education, and monitoring around Orange County, and a great place to learn about our local plants and wildlife.
  7. Homegrown National Park (opens in a new tab) — Makes the case for adding native plants and removing invasive ones wherever we live, work, learn, pray, and play.