"Nature is not a place to visit. It is home."
Gary Snyder, Poet & Environmentalist
FREE ADMISSION
OPEN DAILY SUNRISE TO SUNSET
​
DUNE HABITAT
DESCRIPTION
A plant community characterized by low growing salt, wind, fog and drought resistant shrubs adapted to our Mediterranean climate of dry summers and rainy winters. The leaves of many shrubs are blue-grey in order to reflect heat, and are soft to touch but durable against the elements. Some, like Beach Primrose, have a flowering season that can last many months. Their stems are woody and easily broken so always step around them.
​
SOIL
All sand to sandy mixture. Plants require good drainage.
​
WHERE TO FIND LOCALLY
The LAX Coastal Dunes Improvement Project between Vista del Mar highway and LAX runways.
https://www.santamonicabay.org/friends-of-the-lax-dunes/
​
DUNE PLANT and WILDLIFE COMMUNITY
Beach Primrose is the official City Flower of Manhattan Beach, and it still grows wild along the dunes just west of THE STRAND. This heavy bloomer provides nectar and seeds to a variety of birds and insects. Dune Buckwheat, another local, is an essential host plant for El Segundo Blue Butterfly caterpillars, and provides food and cover for Square-spotted Blue and Dotted Blue Butterflies as well.
IF YOU PLANT IT ------------->
THEY WILL COME!
-
Pink Sand Verbena (Abronia umbellata)
-
Big Saltbush (Atriplex lentiformis)
-
Beach Primrose (Camissonia cheiranthifolia)
-
Dune or Sea Cliff Buckwheat (Eriogonum parvifolium)
-
Seaside Daisy or Beach Aster (Erigeron glaucus)
-
Sanddune Wallflower (Erysimum capitatum)
-
Coastal California Poppies (Eschscholzia californica maritima)
-
Seaside Heliotrope (Heliotropum curassavicum var. oculatum)
-
Deerweed (Lotus scoparius)
-
Dune Bush Lupine (Lupinus chamissonis)
-
Miniature Lupine (Lupinus bicolor)
​​
-
White-lined Sphinx Moth; Acmon, El Segundo and other Blue Butterflies
-
Horned Toad; Sootywing and Western Pygmy Blue Butterflies
-
Western Fence Lizard; Acmon Blue Butterfly; House Finch
-
El Segundo Blue, Square-spotted, and Dotted Blue Butterflies
-
Host plant of Orange Tortrix Moth caterpillars; Bees
-
Host plant of Sara Orangetip and Large Marble Butterfly Caterpillars
-
Yellow-faced Bumblebee; dozens of solitary native bee species; Crab Spider
-
Celery Leafier and Blue Butterflies; birds consume berries
-
Orange Sulphur, Acmon Blue and Silver spotted Skipper Butterflies
-
Sweetclover Root Borer Moth; Bumble and Honey Bees; birds consume seeds
-
Likely host plant for over 50 species of butterflies! Birds consume seeds
The dunes are alive with Fence Lizards, Acmon Blue Butterflies, Crab Spiders and Bumble Bees. Beach Primrose and Dune Poppies attract them.
OTHER RESOURCES
Plants
https://www.santamonicabay.org/friends-of-the-lax-dunes/
Beach Bluff Restoration Project: https://www.urbanwildlands.org/bbrp.html
Calscape: www.calscape.org
Las Pilitas Online Nursery: www.laspilitas.com
Theodore Payne Foundation for Wildflowers and Native Plants: www.theodorepayne.org
California Native Plant Society chapters:
Palos Verdes/South Bay/South Coast www.sccnps.org
Santa Monica/Los Angeles www.lasmmcnps.org
Birds
iBird PRO app
iNaturalist app
National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America
Peterson Field Guides Western Birds
Pests
UC Davis IPM (Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program) www.ipm.ucanr.edu
Simple Planting Tips
Theodore Payne Foundation link to Getting Started with Natives:
https://theodorepayne.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/GETTING-STARTED_FINAL.pdf
WHERE TO PURCHASE CALIFORNIA
NATIVE PLANTS
* Educational websites
​
MANHATTAN BEACH
Deep Roots Nursery
207 N. Sepulveda Blvd.

310-376-0567
https://www.deep-roots.net/gardencenter/
​
EL SEGUNDO
International Garden Center
155 N. Sepulveda Blvd.
310-615-0353http://igardencenter.com
​
REDONDO BEACH
South Bay Gardens
2501 Manhattan Beach Blvd.
310-536-9116
​
SAN PEDRO
White Point Nature Center
EVENTS on website tells monthly sale
16oo Paseo del Mar (Access via Western Ave.)
310 561-0917
https://pvplc.org/_lands/whitepoint.asp
​
PALOS VERDES PENINSULA
Natural Landscapes
Contact Tony Baker 
for appointment:
310-377-2536
​
South Coast Botanic Garden
26300 Crenshaw Blvd.

310-544-1948
https://southcoastbotanicgarden.org
​
LOS ANGELES
* Theodore Payne Foundation for Wildflowers and Native Plants
10459 Tuxford Street, Sun Valley
818-768-1802 (days/hours seasonal, call first)
Grow Native Nursery – Part of Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden
1500 N. College Ave.
 Claremont
909-625-8767
​
Marina del Rey Garden Center
13198 Mindanao Way
310 823-5956
​
* Matilija Nursery
8225 Waters Road, Moorpark
805 523-8604 (call for hours)
http://www.matilijanursery.com
​
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
* Tree of Life Nursery

33201 Ortega Highway

P.O. Box 635

San Juan Capistrano
949-728-0685 (call for retail hours)
​
* Las Pilitas Online Nursery
8331 Nelson Way,
Escondido
760-749-5930
www.laspilitas.com (Great website!)
​
* OTHERS
California Native Plant Society (CNPS): www.cnps.org

CNPS Local Chapter: http://sccnps.org
El Nativo Growers : www.elnativogrowers.com
Native Sons: www.nativeson.com
Moosa Creek Nursery: http://www.moosacreeknursery.com