We’ve made it to September. It’s a transitional time in SoCal gardens as well as in our daily lives. It’s the end of summer! The beginning of school! The triumphant return of pumpkin spice! 🤮

In this year of seemingly ceaseless transitions, let’s just take a minute to catch our breath.

Below, you will find, as always, a list of plant-related workshops and events, but I’d first like to consider this lightning-fast year, where titanic changes keep coming with bewildering speed, from devastating and deadly wildfires to ICE raids, tariffs and gut-wrenching international conflicts, to name several.

If you pitched this stuff for a movie (even turmoil with Canada?), it would seem too preposterous to be made. Except we’ve been living this preposterous movie, and it’s been a lot.

A volunteer tomato plant — variety unknown — grows like a champion against a fence, sans any kind of tending, yet it’s outproducing all the other vines planted in carefully prepared beds full of compost and other amendments. To the left is a huge colander of tomatoes picked off the plant with many more left to ripen.

(Jeanette Marantos / Los Angeles Times)

But here’s the thing: Our gardens don’t care, and there’s a certain beauty and reassurance that comes with that. Take the volunteer tomato plant that appeared in a corner of my yard last winter. It grew up and over my fence, while I was preoccupied with everything else going on in the world. Since July, it has been happily producing tons of tomatoes, which are particularly delicious when they’re roasted with garlic and olive oil.

Or consider how at the fire sites in L.A. County, many oaks and other venerable trees survived next to houses destroyed in the flames. I’ve visited burned properties where tall tangles of native sunflowers literally emerged from the ashes to delight native bees, and even roses, supposedly the fussiest of flowers, are blooming on scorched properties sans water, tending or expectation.

Our gardens can’t change the turmoil in our world, but they can help us cope. Even if all you have is a balcony with room for a couple of pots, find a way to plant something this September that can sustain you with fragrance or food or just plain beauty.

Winter veggies

Yvonne Savio ran Los Angeles County’s UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener program for 25 years before she retired. She’s been gardening for nearly 60 years, so I’d put her in the expert category. For many years, she’s been sharing her wit and wisdom on her website GardningInLA.net, and just recently she started writing for L.A. County’s Master Gardeners’ online newsletter, offering timely tips for plant lovers.

Savio has a huge, envy-inspiring garden in Pasadena. She considers September a transitional time to plant the last of her fast-growing warm-season crops such as green beans and summer squash, and the first of her cool-season crops such as lettuces, kale, peppery greens like mustard and arugula, beets, broccoli and peas (edible) and sweet peas (not edible but beautifully, deliciously fragrant).

For those with smaller gardens, she recommends focusing on cool-weather crops. Even a wide container can grow a thick crop of loose-leaf lettuce — just trim a few leaves from each plant to fill your salad bowl.

At Urban Homestead, a family farm in residential Pasadena, salad mix seeds are planted thickly in narrow trenches, so when the plants emerge they can be easily harvested just a few leaves at a time.

(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Remove spent warm-season plants first. Bag any diseased plants and put them in the landfill trash so you don’t taint compost piles. Then, she said, enrich your soil with a few inches of compost and mix in some slow-release organic fertilizer such as earthworm castings or Dr. Earth.

Now comes the fun part — choosing your plants. Browse your local nursery for starter packs of greens, lettuces or brassicas like broccoli. But be sure to pick up some packets of seeds as well, especially for beets, which are a double treat with delicious leaves — a bounty in soups! — and colorful roots. They are so good roasted.

You can also order excellent seeds online from California companies such as Renee’s Garden seed in Felton or the Ojai-based Plant Good Seed Co.

Sweet peas such as Renee’s Garden varietal ‘Fire and Ice’ come in a huge mix of colors, but almost all offer a similar prize: an unforgettable sweet fragrance that fills a room with happiness.

(ReneesGarden.com)

Spring blooms

Bulbs are a miraculous boon of color in snow country, when early spring is otherwise grim and gray. They’re easy to plant, and once established, they spread and return year after year, making that initial sometimes pricey investment seem very worthwhile.

Sweet peas such as Renee’s Garden varietal ‘Fire and Ice’ come in a huge mix of colors but almost all offer a similar prize: an unforgettable sweet fragrance that fills a room with happiness.

(ReneesGarden.com)

But here’s the scoop about bulbs: Although most will grow in SoCal, many require freezing temperatures to spread and thrive, Savio said.

If you have the cash and patience to treat bulbs like annuals and replant them every year, that’s great. But for the rest of us, Savio recommends focusing on bulbs purchased from Southern California nurseries that do well in our climate. Find out your hardiness zone on the USDA Hardiness Zone Map (most of the Greater Los Angeles Area has a zone around 10, meaning our low temperatures generally stay above freezing) and be sure to choose bulbs that will thrive in your zone.

Some of Savio’s tips for choosing bulbs: Buy the biggest, firmest, driest bulbs you can, without any mold, early in the season. Avoid end-of-season sales because those are usually smaller bulbs that didn’t sell from the previous year.

Savio said she’s found that frilly double-type varieties or late-season bloomers don’t do as well in warmer climates. Try a few by all means, she said, but invest most of your budget in simpler varieties that bloom early in the spring and will likely spread and flourish to give you years of repeat blooms with just one planting.

She said daffodils, paperwhites and fragrant colorful freesias do particularly well.

Her favorite bulb sellers include EasyToGrowBulbs.com, based in Oceanside, and Telos Rare Bulbs in Felton. Most native plant nurseries offer native bulbs, and you can find native Pacific Coast irises and (nonnative) tall bearded irises at Matilija Nursery in Moorpark (which does not do mail order) and Greenwood Daylily Nursery in Somis (which does).

And finally, don’t forget to order some sweet peas! Renee’s Garden and Enchanting Sweet Peas in Sebastapol, Calif., have an inspiring selection. Get some now and be sure to plant them before Thanksgiving as a little happiness insurance for next spring.

Need gardening help?

The UC Master Gardeners of Los Angeles County are once again offering their modestly priced Grow LA Gardens classes, a series of four basic gardening classes in September and October in Boyle Heights, Van Nuys, Hollywood, San Marino, West Adams, Long Beach and South Pasadena. The classes are on Saturdays or Sundays. Times and prices vary, but most cost $70 for all four classes (the highest rate), or $30 for those who need financial assistance.

Upcoming events

Sept. 6 and ongoing
The new Little Tokyo Farmers’ Market from Food Access Los Angeles and the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center opened Aug. 30, and will continue to operate every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the JACCC’s Isamu Noguchi Plaza in downtown Los Angeles. Admission is free. foodaccessla.org

Sept. 6, 7 and 13
Santa Monica Mountains Fund’s free milkweed giveaways provide four to six narrow-leaf milkweed plants per household that were grown and distributed by the Los Angeles Parks Foundation. Milkweed is the host plant for endangered monarch butterflies whose caterpillars dine exclusively on their leaves. Plants will be given away, with instructions on how to put them in the ground, at the Tarzana Community & Cultural Center from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 6; at the Encino Farmers Market in Encino from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 7; and at the Pacoima Back-to-School Resource Fair at Vaughn Global Green Generation Elementary from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 13. Admission is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

Sept. 7
Gardening 101: The Whys of Gardening in San Diego is a free class at City Farmers Nursery in San Diego from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. that will offer growing advice and plant tips for gardeners. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Sept. 11
Intro to California Native Plant Garden Design with Theodore Payne Foundation Horticulture Director Tim Becker. It’s from 9 a.m. to noon at the foundation in Sun Valley. Register online, $103.22 ($81.88 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 12, 19 and 26
3-Part California Native Garden Design with landscape designer Carol Armour Aronson of Seco Verde. It’s from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each day at the Theodore Payne Foundation in Sun Valley. The prerequisite course, Right Plant, Right Place, is available online on Sept. 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. for $37.66. The design course is in person. Register online, $396.11 for one; $471.96 for couples working on one design. events.humantix.com

Sept. 13-14
Southern California Begonia Society’s Begonia Show & Sale is from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days at Sherman Library & Gardens in Corona del Mar. The show includes free talks and demonstrations about growing begonias in terrariums at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 13, basic begonia culture at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 14 and a tour of the garden’s begonia collection at 1:30 p.m. Sept. 14. The show is free with a $5 admission to the garden (members and children 3 and younger enter free). thesherman.org

Sept. 13
Re-wild: Site Design and Establishing New Plants, led by Tree of Life Nursery co-founder Mike Evans, is from 10 a.m. to noon at the nursery in San Juan Capistrano. Learn how to design a native plant landscape. The class is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

Avocado 101 Seminar, a free class about avocado varieties and best practices for growing the trees in your garden, is 10 to 11 a.m. at Otto & Sons Nursery in Fillmore. Reservations are not required. ottoandsonsnursery.com

California Native Plant Container Gardening, taught by Theodore Payne Foundation nursery technician Terrence Williams, is at the nursery in Sun Valley. Register online, $55.20 ($44.52 members). eventbrite.com

Monrovia Community Garden’s Green Care Day is from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the garden in Monrovia. Help weed, mulch and otherwise improve the garden with raised bed maintenance and soil topping. Participation is free. monroviacommunitygarden.org

Your Backyard Orchard, a free class about planning and caring for fruit trees taught by the UC Master Gardeners of Orange County, is from 9 to 10:15 a.m. at the Santa Margarita Water District in Rancho Santa Margarita. ucanr.edu

Rose Care Basics, a free class at City Farmers Nursery in San Diego, is from 9 to 10 a.m. and will offer tips about growing roses in San Diego. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Native Plant Summer Maintenance Basics with Theodore Payne Foundation horticulture educator Erik Blank is from 9 to 11 a.m. at the foundation’s demonstration garden in Sun Valley. Register online, $55.20 ($44.52 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 14
California Biodiversity Day Free Day is from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. at California Botanic Garden in Claremont. The event includes bilingual tours of the garden’s production nursery at 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.; a native plant loteria game with help from the Chino Basin Water Conservation District from noon to 1 p.m.; and activities provided by exhibitors from various community organizations between 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tickets are free but must be reserved in advance. calbg.org

Horticulturist Andrew Hankey discusses four new ledebouris species from the Steenkampsberg, Mpumalanga in east South Africa, at the September meeting of the South Coast Cactus & Succulent Society at Fred Hesse Jr. Community Park’s McTaggart Hall in Rancho Palos Verdes. The meeting starts at 11 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m. Admission is free. southcoastcss.org

Gardening for Wildlife, a free class at City Farmer’s Nursery in San Diego, is from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. and covers how to create a wildlife-friendly sanctuary garden for birds, pollinators and small mammals in San Diego. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Sept. 19
Propagating California Native Plants From Cuttings, a Theodore Payne Foundation class led by Horticulture Director Tim Becker, is from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the foundation’s new Los Angeles satellite Los Nogales Nursery at the Audubon Center at Debs Park in Montecito Heights. Each participant will leave with a flat of a few starts for their own garden. All materials provided. Register online, $108.55 ($81.88 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 20
Southern California Horticultural Society’s 2025 Annual Awards Banquet is from 5 to 9 p.m. at the La Cañada Flintridge Country Club and honors native plant horticulturist Katherine Pakradouni with the society’s first-ever Pathmaker Award, created to recognize forward-thinking individuals breaking new ground in horticulture. Pakradouni developed the native plant nursery for the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing project, collecting about 1 million native seeds from the surrounding region, and has developed several micro forests and other ecological landscapes through her business Seed to Landscape. The society’s Horticulturists of the Year award will go to native plant horticulturist Melanie Baer Keeley, who is developing Alta Vista Natives Nursery in Three Rivers, and her husband, botanist and fire management scientist Jon E. Keeley. Banquet tickets, which include dinner, are available online, $80 ($70 members). socalhort.org

Sept. 20-21
Carbon Culture Workshop: Hands-On Hugelkultur is from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Granada Hills and led by Studio Petrichor’s regenerative garden designers Leigh Adams and Shawn Maestretti. Learn how to build hugelkultur berms out of logs and layers of wood chips and soil; and lasagna mulching to tamp down weeds. Bring gloves and a water bottle; lunch provided. Register online $44.52. eventbrite.com

Sept. 26 and 27
California Botanic Garden’s Seeds Walking Tour involves guided tours through the state’s largest botanic garden dedicated to California native plants to learn about what seeds can tell us about their native plants. Tours available from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. and 10 to 11 a.m. both days at the garden in Claremont. Register online, $20 ($10 members). calbg.org

Sept. 26-28
44th Edition of the Fascination of Orchids International Festival of Orchids & Exotic Plants is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. all three days at the Santa Ana Zoo in Santa Ana. The event includes thousands of orchids and exotic plants on display as well as classes about growing orchids and vendors selling supplies. Purchase tickets online, $5.49 per person, valid for all three days. ticketleap.events

Sept. 27
Love Your Lands: National Public Lands Day Event with Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy is from 9 a.m. to noon at the conservancy’s White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro. It will be a day of helping to remove nonnative plant species, watering new native plantings, seed preparation, garden walks and activities for children. Participation is free, but registration is required. pvplc.volunteerhub.com

Re-wild: Planting Design and Installation, led by Tree of Life Nursery co-founder Mike Evans, is from 10 a.m. to noon at the nursery in San Juan Capistrano. Learn how to implement your native plant landscape design. The class is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

What we’re reading

After two winters of next-to-no rain, SoCal is heading back into drought conditions. Is this the year you finally remove your lawn? If you need inspiration, here are two of our latest stories about Angelenos who pulled out their turf to create native plant landscapes, with the help of an ocean-conscious designer in Long Beach and a creative DIY couple in Harvard Park determined to transform their dead lawn into a vibrant habitat.

Altadena was lush with plants before the Eaton fire, and resident Laurie Scott is intent on replacing that green — and lifting her community’s spirit — with her Regrow Altadena project, which gives free plants to residents to plant around their fire-damaged properties.

Finally, in The Times’ series Imagining a Future L.A., my colleague Patt Morrison predicts a “frond farewell” to L.A.’s iconic fan palms.