Common name:Silver Carpet Lessingia
Botanical name:Lessingia flilaginifolia 'Silver Carpet'

Silver Carpet Lessingia is one of the best native groundcovers for use in large areas. It grows very quickly once established in the ground and requires little to no care. It will tolerate almost regular water to very little. The fuzzy silver foliage remains attractive through most of the year. Small pink to lavender flowers appear on the foliage intermittently throughout the year for added interest. This plant is very vigorous and should not be planted in small areas. It will grow to 6'-8' tall.

Common name:Ornamental Strawberry, G. Pastures
Botanical name:Fragaria chiloensis 'Green Pastures'

This groundcover will grow no taller than to 1' and has glossy green leaves with white flowers that bloom in the spring.

Common name:El Dorado Gold Fremontia
Botanical name:Fremontodendron 'El Dorado Gold'

This low-mounding shrub has small, green leaves with yellow orange flowers that bloom in spring.

Common name:Julia Phelps California Lilac
Botanical name:Ceanothus 'Julia Phelps'

Fast-growing and densely branched with small dark green leaves, this is a great bloomer showing a marvelous display of delicate, dark indigo blue flowers found in round clusters of 1". It is extremely drought tolerant, and must not be overwatered. It does best in well-drained soil with little to no summer water. It attracts hummingbirds, butterflies and beneficial insects. - Cornflower Farms

Common name:Cedros Island Verbena
Botanical name:Verbena lilacina 'De La Mina'

Verbena lilacina 'De La Mina' is a selection introduced by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden. It is a fast-growing shrub that reaches 3' tall and 3' wide. Flowers are purple and fragrant and bloom all year long in coastal areas. These star-shaped flowers are held high above the mound shaped foliage. It does well in sun and part sun and is considered drought tolerant. It is a beautiful shrub that attracts butterflies.

Common name:Island Bush Poppy
Botanical name:Dendromecon harfordii

An evergreen shrub that grows quickly to 5'-8' tall and 6'-10' wide; the harfordii bears deep yellow poppy flowers to 3" wide with orange stamens. Its heaviest bloom period is in the spring, with some flowers almost all year. The plant requires sun, good drainage, and little or no summer watering. -Monterey Bay Nursery

Permeable Surfaces

If you have impermeable paving that you would like to make permeable, there are two main methods for doing so:
1. Break up hard paved surfaces to create spaces for water to seep through.
2. Remove and replace the surfaces with permeable paving.

Click in the green box for more information