More buckwheat!!!

Yellow-faced bumble bee flying around Ella Nelson's Yellow Nude buckwheat

With our ongoing drought conditions, I've come to the realization that native buckwheat is almost the best plant to guarantee a lot of nourishment for the pollinators.

As I mentioned in previous posts, we have hardpan clay soil in our yard.

The soil is like cement in the summer, so whatever is planted in it won't have great drainage.

Because I'm trying to mainly keep the garden as close to its natural state as possible, without amending soil and planting what is meant to grow in this climate, drought tolerant plants are the key.

Ella Nelson's Yellow Nude buckwheat

Aside from the Ray Hartman ceanothus, native grasses and the lovely California poppies that bring so much cheer amid the dun colored yard, the native buckwheat thrives, visited all day long by bees, small native butterflies and wasps.

Ivory-banded digger bee on red buckwheat flower head

A few months ago I optimistically planted another ceanothus shrub Ceanothus 'Wheeler Canyon', Bush Monkeyflower Mimulus aurantiacus 'Pt Molate', Monkeyflower Mimulus 'Pamela", Coyote Brush Baccharis pilularis, and more native buckwheat, including another Ella Nelson's Yellow and some 'Kannah Creek' Eriogonum umbellatum aureum 'Kannah Creek'.

Red buckwheat with Sphex lucae female wasp and hover fly

We'll see which plants survive and/or thrive.

I'm betting on the buckwheat.