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Buckwheats for Mid-summer Color
A common misconception about California native plants is that after a showy Spring and early Summer, everything dries up and looks like tumbleweeds blowing through an old Western town. But even in our hot inland climate, there are some natives that are just getting started with their blooms. Many of the Eriogonum, or Buckwheat species not only provide mid-summer color, but keep right on going into the late Fall and early Winter. And, they are great plants if you are trying to provide food for pollinators that might be passing through. Markham only has a few lvarieties in very limited quantities, but here are three to consider trying in your own garden:
 If you've got the space, Eriogonum giganteum, also known as St. Catherine's Lace or Giant Buckwheat is well worth using in your garden. The mid-sized chalky green and gray leaves are attractive year-round, and the large blossoming umbels start out white but eventually fade to a pale pink and then a rusty color as Fall begins. I usually leave space in a garden for this plant to easily and quickly reach 5' tall and wide. Place it where it won't be disturbed, as I find its branches brittle and easily breakable. It's listed as a re-seeder, but I haven't noticed that to be the case in my own garden.
 For a mid-sized buckwheat, Eriogonum fasciculatum or California Buckwheat has a different look to it, with stems covered with tiny needle-like (but soft-to-the-touch) looking leaves. This is a common, easy to grow plant. It reaches 3' tall and up to 6' wide. Place it on a slope where it can multiply without overstaying its welcome, and let it help with soil erosion. (I am careful never to position it near open space since it reseeds so readily.) It blooms with what I can best describe as little umbels of powder puffs at each stem tip. Blossoms start out pale pink or white and fade to rust as Fall approaches.
 Eriogonum grande rubescens or Red Flowering Buckwheat is diminutive by buckwheat standards, with medium green foliage that reaches only 1-2' tall and 1-2' wide. Its blooms are held on wiry green stems above the foliage and are usually either red or hot pink. I don't find it to hold its bloom as long into the Fall as the first two buckwheats I've mentioned, but it's still showy and lovely, providing more of a cottage look to the garden. It has also readily reseeded in my garden.
All three of these buckwheats prefer full sun at the coast, and seem to do fine in full sun or partial shade in our inland gardens. They probably appreciate a deep drink of water once in a while during the summer but appear to be very drought tolerant once established.
As mentioned, any of these buckwheats are great contributors to the wildlife population. Las Pilitas Nursery says their flowers, leaves and seeds are used by smaller animals, birds, and butterflies.
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