FormLA Landscaping

Home Improvement Professionals , Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers
13 Reviews
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FormLA Landscaping
13 Reviews

Songbirds' Paradise

If birds ran Yelp!, this songbird restaurant would get top ratings! The Certified Wildlife Habitat bursts with native blooms, berries, and seeds throughout the year. In addition to a great meal, birds of several feathers find the kind of lush, leafy, safe habitat that encourages them to return again and again.

The space was featured on LA's iconic Native Plant Garden Tour in 2010 and 2025.
Project Year: 2010
Country: United States
Others who worked on this project: Lesly Hall Photography
In 2025, the Songbirds Paradise welcomed Native Plant Garden Tour visitors for the second time.
Native Plant Garden Tour
Visitors enjoyed the vibrant foliage and dry stack wall along the parkway every bit as much as they enjoyed the interior garden spaces.
Songbirds' Paradise
Homeowner Gordon Ownby captured this hummingbird enjoying in one of the manzanita in the front garden on a rainy day.
Hummingbird Drinks from Manzanita
During the tour, Manzanita berries joined the last winter blooms - ornaments on an architectural frame. What generous habitat!
Edible Manzanita Berries
Homes and gardens on the Ownby's foothill street sit back from the road on an elevated plane. With no sidewalk, the parkway was integrated into the overall rustic aesthetic and designed to make exiting cars and walking by safe and easy.
Inviting Parkway
A dry stack wall of natural stone reinforces the garden's elevation. California native plants with deep, strong roots sit on either side of the wall, further reinforcing the slope's stability.
Elevated Garden
The garden's National Wildlife Certified Wildlife Habitat sign was proudly displayed at the entrance of the garden. It is wrapped in manzanita, Island buckwheat and Coyote Bush, al beloved by wildlife indigenous to the area.
Certified Wildlife Habitat
Delicate bright, true green branches of Dwarf Coyote Bush trail over the rock wall. This optimally drought-hearty, evergreen groundcover does exceptionally well in areas of LA that experience high,dry heat.
Slope Stabilizing Coyote Bush
Before
When the garden was first featured on the Native Plant Garden Tour in 2010, the young foliage allowed the drystack wall to steal the show.
Drystack Garden Wall
Before
In 2010, the elevated garden and home were still readily visible from the parkway.
Layered Retaining Walls
Before
With no sidewalk, the decomposed granite trail at the garden's edge was designed to offer safe space.
Street View
The garden's foliage is established now and screens the home from view, even from the shaded decomposed granite parkway walk. During the tour, visitors delighted in the manzanita and California Lilac, which, miraculously, had both seeds and blooms.
Protected Parkway
While shy, Gordon Ownby was able to catch this Ruby Crowned Kinglet in one of his many California Lilac (ceanothus).
Ruby Crowned Kinglet
California Lilac (Ceanothus) is known for its sweetly fragrant, delicate blooms. Its seed heads are just as interesting - particularly to the birds.
California Lilac Seeds
The homeowner strolls through Oregon Grape at the garden's entrance as he put last touches in place at the start of the April 2025 Native Plant Garden Tour.
Entrance to Paradise
California native Oregon Grape's spring blooms stopped tour goers in their tracks as they walked up the driveway. They sure do bring the sunshine!
Oregon Grape's Spring Blooms
The Oregon Grape hedges will fill with these bright blue berries in summer. They can be so plentiful, they nearly eclipse its leaves! It fall, it's glossy, holly-like leaves turn shades of yellow, red and mahogany.
Berry-Filled Hedge
Blooms of every color greet those who walk the path of the front garden. sunny yellow Oregon grape, candy pink Redbud, delicate blue California Lilac, lavender Cleveland Sage and purple Woolly Blue Curls - the flowers and fragrance drew gasps and giggles.
Stroll in Spring Blooms
Redbud leaves emerge in deep winter.
Western Redbud in Rain
In the heat of summer, the flagstone and river rock entrance to the garden will still be wrapped in vibrant, varied greenery with abundant seasonal color.
Enchanted Entrance
Prior to the tour, homeowner Leor Ownby removed the established Juncus Elk Blue accent grass at the bottom right to establish a new pocket garden. While wandering the trail, is it possible she introduced you to a baby California Lilac sitting next to Mick Jagger?
Bloom Filled Trail
We've never seen so many large cameras on the tour! While we'd like to think the garden drew them, we know many brought them hoping to capture homeowner and photographer Gordon Ownby!
Photographers' Paradise
If you glanced back while rounding the first bend in the trail, you may have caught this delightful mix of blooms:
Colorful Habitat
In the heat of summer, the rich textures and colors of the garden ensure the home's bay window hold an enchanting view.
Room with a View
Before
In 2010, Hummingbird Sage reached toward the bay window.
Rock Borders
An array of California natives now provide privacy between the garden and the street. In addition to blooms, both Toyon and Manzanita produce edible berries. California Lilac and Cleveland Sage bring fragrance and an abundance of seeds in addition to striking blue and lavender blooms.
Blooming Privacy Screen
Toyon (aka Christmas Berry) is well-loved habitat known for its December harvest of bright red berries. It's summer blooms are every bit as charming. In every season, it tweets as if it were itself a bird.
Blooming Toyon Hedge
Gordon Ownby recommends planting Toyon to those who want to host feathered friends, like this Red Finch.
House Finch in Toyon
During the 2025 tour, Toyon had yet to bloom, but the California Lilac on the other side of the trail provided plenty of eye candy!
Leafy Privacy Screen
Gordon Ownby finds hummingbirds to be some of the easiest and most fun to photograph - they love manzanitas and Lemonade Berry.
Hummingbird in Sugar Sumac
Dense, privacy protecting hedges of native Sugarberry fill with blooms in spring and berries in winter. Hummingbirds delight in all its seasonal variations!
Hummingbird and Sugar Bush
Shaded lounge chairs at the far side of the garden provide the perfect perch for birdwatching. Or letting the birds watch you!
Birdwatching Perch
When looking for wildlife, it helps to look under as well as in foliage.
White Crowned Sparrow in Songbird's Paradise
Whether up with the birds or enjoying the sunset, the lounge has long been a favorite conversation nook.
Lounge in Greenery
Architectural Manzanita, Hummingbird Sage, volunteers of California Lilac, and a variety of buckwheats fill a pond of foliage at the center of the trail. Each attracts an abundance of birds and butterflies.
Lush and Leafy
Before
Originally, a blue-gray sea of low-growing, climate compatible Dymondia filled the center of the garden and only the elevation provided privacy from the street.
Garden Trail
The Island Buckwheat that now fills the "pond" area draws butterflies.
Butterfly in Buckwheat
Coffeeberry's deep, dense green foliage makes for a great privacy screen. As with the other foliage in this garden, it fares well in dry, high heat. Its blooms take over the hedge in early summer and give way to edible berries that can be used to make a decaffeinated, coffee-like beverage - or...
Coffeeberry Hedge in Bloom
Photo: Gordon Ownby, 2022
Dark-Eyed Junko in Songbird's Paradise
In back, the first of three courtyards sits closest to the home. Tall hedges separate this space from the driveway and provide a sense of sanctuary that radiates into the home's interior. The bird bath beyond draws visitors to central patio.
Private Sanctuary
Perpetually well shaded by tree canopy and large hedges, the center courtyard in the back garden is a favorite spot for meals.
Foliage Wrapped Patio
Goldfinch are known to enjoy the water fountain.
Goldfinch in Water Fountain
The sound of the fountain and all-day cool of the center patio make it a favorite year round.
Shaded Courtyard
The newest section of the garden was planted just 6 months before the tour. The sage-scented patio carved from a steep slope now hosts many an evening conversation. The bonsai California Lilac astonished tour goers - the artwork above the Loll bench mimics its charms.
Cozy Nook