Mail-order Reminder and Schedule July 16 is the last day to mail order tickets for the July 26 Wildlife & Native Plant Garden Tour, co-sponsored by RRAS and the California Native Plant Society. Until the day of the tour, tickets can be purchased at Piersons Garden Shop & Nursery, 4100 Broadway, Eureka; Strictly for the Birds, 123 F Street, Old Town Eureka; Freshwater Farms, 5851 Myrtle Avenue, Eureka; the Northcoast Environmental Center, 575 H Street, Arcata; Blake's Books, 2005 Central Avenue, McKinleyville; and Miller Farms Nursery, 1828 Central Avenue, McKinleyville. A ticket to all 10 tour locations costs only $15 per person. (Plus each ticket contains a coupon for 10% savings at Freshwater Farms and Strictly for the Birds!) Following is a bit about each property, to whet your appetite. Garden 1 (Downtown Eureka): An Oriental term for this garden is wabisabi, meaning a mix or jumble. It combines natives, wildflowers, traditional garden flowers (mostly perennials), herbs, wildlifefriendly plants, shrubs, trees, and a vegetable garden. Garden 2 (Downtown Eureka): A bevy of native plants including red and golden currant, blue and yelloweyed grass, red columbine, western azalea, blueblossom, elderberry, huckleberry, dogwood, and hazelnut have been incorporated into a former lawn with a couple of fruit trees. A drip bath, seed feeders, suet and nectar feeders, and homemade nest boxes beckon avian visitors. Garden 3 (Eureka near Freshwater): Over two dozen species of Salvia form the centerpiece, providing hummingbird nectar year round. Rock terraces host other plants attractive to bees, butterflies, and hummers Penstemon, Agastache, Jupiter's beard along with native Fuchsia, columbine, dogbane, and monkeyflower. A southfacing slope has been planted with succulents. Freshwater Farms, situated on 80 acres adjacent to the Freshwater creek estuary, focuses on producing coastal California native trees, shrubs, grasses, and herbaceous perennials for wholesale and retail. This is the refreshment and restroom stop, with punch, cookies, Celtic music, and portapotties provided. AmeriCorps will lead tours of the proposed estuary restoration. Garden 4 (Freshwater): This property boasts seminatural habitat diversity with a variety of food sources for birds, tree and shrub hedgerows for cover, salvia, buddleia, feeders, an organic garden, and bird and bat houses. In 6 years, 112 bird species have been recorded. Garden 5 (Bayside): A woodland garden where Himalaya berries have been supplanted by native plants that provide food and habitat for birds and animals. A changing kaleidoscope throughout the year featuring currant, trillium, ginger, bleeding heart, lilyofthevalley, iris, rhododendron, western azalea, huckleberry, and darlingtonia. Garden 6 (Bayside): The north side of this professionally landscaped garden welcomes moistsite, shadeloving natives. A berm along the south side is planted with local white oak, tan oak, and madrone. Front yard flower borders are complemented by native shrubs, a trellis with hops, and a pond wellused by birds (167 species). Garden 7 (Downtown Arcata): This compact city garden is an eclectic mix of native California plants featuring alpine and subalpine rock, vegetable, and herb gardens. One bed is filled with native bulbs (lilies, fritillaries, calochortus, brodeiaea, trillium, erythronium). Others feature native iris, grass, ribes, mimulus, penstemon, western azalea, Matilija poppies, salvia, manzanita, fremontia, carpenteria, vine maple, vancouveris, heucheras, ceanothus, and lewisias. Garden 8 (McKinleyville): This halfacre garden in a suburban neighborhood combines over 50 species of native plants with an array of ornamentals. The garden is diverse and lush, with a somewhat wild character. It includes a riparian corridor, small pond, woodland garden, and vegetable garden. Garden 9 (Westhaven): During the past two decades, more than 100 species of California natives have been turned loose here, including Pacific reed grass, pinemat manzanita, camas, penstemon, coyote brush, and Western azalea. 82 species of birds, 11 mammals, 9 amphibians, and 2 reptiles have been observed or their sign recorded.