Native Plants of California
The native plants that belong in your yard — what to plant for pollinators, by zone, with bloom timing and a species table.
- Native species grouped by sun, soil, and wildlife value
- Bloom windows and pollinator host-plant pairings
- What belongs in your USDA zone
- A full species table you can take to the nursery
- Typical planting windows, month by month
$9.99one-time
Instant download · yours to keep, with no account and no renewal · full refund within 30 days
A look inside
What the California pages actually look like
From the California edition
Some of what is actually in it
69 native species are profiled for California, chosen for hardiness zones 5a–10b. A dozen of them:
- Showy Milkweed
- Cardinal Flower
- Blue Vervain
- Pink Muhly Grass
- Sideoats Grama
- Blue Grama
- Lanceleaf Coreopsis
- Prairie Smoke
- California Poppy
- Rocky Mountain Penstemon
- Firecracker Penstemon
- Desert Marigold
How the California year breaks down
Counted, not claimed
Something in the California list is in bloom from March through October, and May is the peak — 43 of the 69 species are flowering then.
9 of them are caterpillar host plants and 9 support specialist bees — the ones that do the most work in California yards.
In the box
Exactly what you receive
| California pages | 11 pages — the species table, bloom windows and planting calendar |
|---|---|
| Format | PDF, laid out for both Letter and A4 |
| Delivery | An instant download link, plus a link you can re-open for 72 hours |
| Access | Yours to keep — no expiry, no account, no subscription |
| Refunds | Full refund within 30 days, no questions |
How it works
From checkout to the field
Buy it
Checkout takes a card and an email address — no account to create.
Open it straight away
The download link appears immediately and the California files are yours to keep.
Use it through the year
Print the California pages you want and take them outside; they are laid out with room to write on as the season moves.
Free and paid, side by side
The California pages here stay free. Here is what the edition adds.
| The free California pages | Native Plants of California | |
|---|---|---|
| What it covers | The month California is in, free and always | All twelve California months, planned before they arrive |
| Garden timing | The notes for your zone, once the site knows it | Every California zone from 5a–10b, side by side on the page |
| Where you can read it | On a screen, wherever California has signal | On paper, in the field, with no signal at all |
| Price | Free, and staying that way | $9.99 once — no renewal, no account |
Before you buy
Who this is for
Made for
- Gardeners in California planting for pollinators rather than for a catalogue
- Anyone replacing lawn with something that belongs here
- New California gardeners who want the timing decided for them
Not for
- Anyone wanting exotic ornamentals; every species here is native to California
- Precise planting dates — California timing is given as windows
Everything here describes typical timing across California, drawn from long-run records — weather, elevation and how close you are to water all move the real dates around. So the California pages say "usually early May" and never "May 4th", which is not hedging but the most the data can honestly carry.
Where it comes from
Compiled from
USDA PLANTS Database · GBIF occurrence records · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center · USA National Phenology Network · The Xerces Society · Cooperative Extension (land-grant directory). How each of these is used in the California edition, and which figures are measured rather than modeled, is set out in the methodology.
Questions
Before you decide
Is this specific to California, or a national guide with the name swapped in?
It is built from California's own data. The 69 species in it were filtered to those with verified occurrence records in California and to hardiness zones 5a–10b.
California spans several hardiness zones — which one does this cover?
All of them. California runs 5a–10b, and the guide carries each zone's timing rather than picking one and hoping it fits your garden.
How accurate is the timing for California?
It describes typical timing across California drawn from long-run records, and because weather, elevation and habitat move real California dates around it says "usually early May" rather than "May 4th".
Is it worth paying when the California pages here are free?
The free California pages are the month you are in; this is the whole California year, planned before it arrives and printable, so you are not holding a screen in the garden.
Will it work for my part of California, or just the big cities?
It is written at state resolution — California as a whole, with regional notes where California genuinely differs end to end, and nothing behind it is recorded finely enough to honestly promise more than that.
What format is the California edition, and can I print it?
A PDF laid out for both Letter and A4, one page per sheet — printing it is the point, since the California pages are made to be carried outside.
What if the California guide is not what I expected?
Email hello@birchcompass.com within 30 days for a full refund on the California edition, and keep the files either way — asking for them back would be theatre.
Prefer to read online first? The free California native plants reference covers the same ground on screen.
The rest of the California shelf
Also for California
California Nature Year 2027
Everything Birch Compass knows about a year of nature in one state — the book, the posters, the sky calendar, the…
$34.00
The California Set
Three printable California editions in one purchase — the twelve-month journal, the native plants reference and the…
$29.00
California Nature Year 2027 + Journal
The complete California Nature Year with the undated journal beside it: everything the site knows about the year…
$42.00
The California Nature Journal
Twelve printable month pages: a reference side built from public nature data for your state, and a field-notes side…
$14.00
Birds of California
The state's most-recorded birds, ranked from survey data, with when each is present through the year and a life list…
Not on sale yet