Growing Native Habitat — Together
What a day to celebrate! On September 27, 2025, the community gathered at Highlands Park Senior & Community Center in Ben Lomond for our annual Native Plant Sale Fundraiser — and it turned out to be our most successful yet.
🌿 1,500 native plants sold — 500 more than last year!
🌸 48 species represented, nearly all native to the San Lorenzo Valley.
Each plant species was displayed with a photo, basic growing information, and a QR code linking to a full write-up on our website. We loved watching shoppers scan the codes, trade advice, and chat about which plants might thrive in their gardens. It turned the sale into more than a shopping trip — it became a community exchange of ideas, experience, and inspiration.
The Power of Community
This event wouldn’t have been possible without our amazing volunteers — the ones who tended and labeled plants, loaded trucks, set up tables, and kept the day running with heart and determination.
In the weeks before the event, they nurtured hundreds of plants to ensure they were healthy and ready for new homes. The night before, they loaded trucks, set up canopies, and arranged tables of vibrant native plants. Some stayed until the park closed; others arrived at dawn to greet the community.
Throughout the day, volunteers guided shoppers, shared their knowledge, and kept things running smoothly — from answering questions to checkout. When the sale ended, they cleaned up, packed unsold plants, and inventoried everything for the next season.
The best part of the day was seeing neighbors and garden-lovers of all ages come together — swapping stories, sharing tips, and discovering new favorites. It was a joyful reminder of how much we all have in common when it comes to caring for our land and one another.
Reaching Beyond the Valley
This year, we welcomed more visitors from beyond the San Lorenzo Valley — people eager to bring native plants into their own communities. It’s exciting to see how far this effort is spreading. Each year, we get a little better at organizing, educating, and connecting with others who share our mission: to create thriving, firewise landscapes that support pollinators, wildlife, and healthy watersheds.
Our goal is to help grow a connected pollinator corridor, linking backyards, schools, and wildlands across the region. Seeing gardeners from neighboring towns join in reminds us that this is truly a collective effort.
Your Choices Make a Difference
By choosing native plants, you’re helping to:
🌿 Create habitat corridors that connect gardens and wildlands.
🦋 Strengthen food webs that support birds, insects, reptiles, and mammals.
🌸 Provide continuous bloom from spring through fall.
💧 Reduce irrigation needs by aligning with our natural wet-dry cycles.
🔥 Support Firewise landscaping that balances safety with biodiversity.
Growing Knowledge and Opportunity
Proceeds from this year’s sale reach far beyond the garden. Funds raised will support the Valley Women’s Club’s Environmental Education and Art Grants for Teachers, bringing hands-on watershed and habitat learning into local classrooms. The sale also helps fund three scholarships for local students — two Cabrillo College scholarship open to all fields of study, and one STEM scholarship for students pursuing science, technology, engineering, or math at any college.
It’s deeply rewarding to see how one event can nurture both the natural world and the people working to understand and protect it.
Looking Ahead
We’re so grateful for the native plant enthusiasts, volunteers, and supporters who make this event shine year after year. With every sale, we expand the network of native gardens, strengthen community connections, and inspire more people to join the effort.
This project is a labor of love — months of planning, growing, and teamwork come together for one big day of connection. We do this work knowing that what we plant today will grow into something lasting — for the Valley, for wildlife, and for generations to come.
We were also thrilled to welcome a few new members to the Valley Women’s Club during the sale — a wonderful reminder of how events like this bring neighbors and garden-lovers of all ages together. We hope even more people will join us as we continue this work.
If you’re inspired by what you saw this year and want to be part of this growing community, we’d love to have you join us. Together, we’re helping the San Lorenzo Valley flourish with life.
With gratitude,
Linda Skeff, Laurie Becker, and Karen Edwards
Native Plant Sale Committee
The Native Habitat Restoration Program
Valley Women’s Club of the San Lorenzo Valley
The San Lorenzo Valley Native Habitat Restoration Program integrates environmental and community needs to restore the riparian habitat and ensure the ongoing health and beauty of the watershed.
