“Plant It Forward this Spring” Shopping for Native Plants on March 3 to 5 at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden Nursery

Santa Barbara, Calif. – February 16, 2023 – As the end of California’s rainy season nears, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden Nursery offers a weekend “Plant It Forward this Spring” event featuring a larger-than-usual number and variety of native plants for sale. A preview for Garden members only is held Friday, March 3, and public shopping is Saturday and Sunday, March 4 and 5, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

“Native plants do best if they get in the ground before the end of the rains,” says Matt Straka, the Garden’s retail manager. “We are ready to ‘spring forward’ with a large assortment of species that are ready to be planted right now including unique items not always available. We restock almost constantly to ensure a wide variety is available no matter what time you visit.”

Located just inside the Garden’s gate, the Nursery offers a wide selection of easy-to-grow native plants year-round. Garden members receive a 10% discount on every purchase.

For this event, in addition to the expert Nursery sales staff who answer questions and make recommendations, volunteer helpers are available to assist shoppers with transporting purchases to the parking lot.

Visitors wanting to visit the Garden in addition to shopping must make an advance reservation at www.sbbotanicgarden.org/visit/hours-reservations. Visitors just shopping do not require Garden reservations; they can park in a “member” parking spot and check-in at the front kiosk to receive a shopper pass.

Online shopping is also available at shop.SBBotanicGarden.org. Shoppers choose from a list of available species and pick up their purchases in the Garden parking lot at a later date. Photos and lists of suggested groundcovers, shrubs and trees, plants for slope and erosion control, lawn substitutes, and easy to grow varieties can be found at https://sbbotanicgarden.org/grow/gardening-resources.