If your in the bay area or near,Tilden Botanical Garden has the primo native plant gardens in norcal. Coffeeberry might do well in light shade. Watering some natives in summer with lawn water probably wont work out unless they are native to a wet habitat like coastal Redwood or Oak woodlands.

If you want low water needs around a lawn,much better choices are Aloe's,Crassula's and other succulents.

Watering a lawn once a week for 45 minutes seems long unless you are using low flow sprinklers. http://ipm.ucanr.edu/TOOLS/TURF/MAINTAIN/irrfreq.html

This is fun, I haven't done more than divide and move things around for quite a while. Making a list of places to visit and have my nurseries figured out. Also figured out my Glenn Keator book has plant lists so I've been looking hard at ones on the watered sun and water/shade list of perennials. Pulled out a bunch of poor performing plants, put on the curb and they are gone now.

Went for a hike this morning and there were a couple different buckwheats in full bloom looking really nice. One was ashy leaf, the other no idea but the dried flowers were a really nice rusty color that would be great with Mexican Bush Sage. They were on the north facing side of the ridge, did not notice buckwheat on top of the ridge or east facing slopes.

Hi Kathy - Part sun/shade native that has big, scented leaves is Salvia Spathacea (Hummingbird Sage). Prefers more shade than sun in my area. I have it in my HOT Livermore garden and it doesn't get much summer water and it gets crisp in the summer but survives year after year. It looks MUCH better with some water. Attracts hummingbirds and should be deer resistant since it has scented leaves. Sounds like this would do well in your spot and look good all year round. Worth a shot :)

I see that sage here but I've never seen it look nice. Not in the shady places it grows naturally, not in the arboretums and not even in the pot! I love the purple and black sages on sunny hills but that one always looks ratty whether flower spikes are just opening or almost finished. Would cleaning it up before the first rain storm of the year help? It would definitely be an improvement on the prostrate Rhus trilobata that isn't noticeable until the stems catch and trips you.

Where are you? Plant you want (Carpenteria) needs shade in hot inland areas but may do well in your city.

Yes, I coppice Salvia spathacea every winter.

I've got a sad Carpenteria that's been here for many years, too much shade and zero water. It flowers every year but doesn't grow much. They should do great at the woodland's edge where they get some water and some sun. I'm in eastern Ventura county north of the Santa Monicas and get some ocean influence. Not this week!

That sounds promising on the hummingbird sage then. I love doing my early winter garden clean out then watching the perfect baby leaves open up.

I live and hike within the natural range for Carpenteria californicia in Fresno county. They grow in shade along creeks so they always have access to water and grow in the shade of other plants (pines, oaks, ash). I've grown them in my garden, and they always look best in shade and when given plenty of water.

My Carpenteria definitely has the shade but zero water. A trooper, it's hanging in there! Excited, sounds like it would work well in that area of the border.

Well the deed is done. Went to Theodore Payne last week and picked up half a dozen pots - Bush Anemone, Lemon Drop Monkeyflower and Catalina California Fuchsia. The Epilobium was the tallest variety, love the idea of yellow MF and really want the bush anemone. Selection of buckwheat was limited so dropped the idea for now.

Dug out an ashy leaf buckwheat seedling from the dry part and it's in the cottage garden area. Dug out my existing bush anemone and replanted it in the cottage garden area. Am not counting on those two surviving but they couldn't stay where they were so not really a loss.

Did some moving around of plants, dividing and clean up so already it looks nicer.

Awesome! Looking forward to some pics if you are willing to share!

Not much to see yet. The baby plants aren't much larger than the oak leaf mulch! California fuschia in particular is so nothing unless it is blooming.

The plants I moved around mostly look fine and all the new pots are looking terrific in spite of getting so little rain. I pulled the buckwheat transplant as dead and replaced with 2" tall seedlings I would have used if only I had looked harder but the California Anemone is hanging in there which is quite a surprise. I only replanted it because it did have some roots, never expected that a roughly treated older plant could make it. It probably will survive until summer then die just as flower buds open. Had a California Styrax do that to me, was heartbreaking.