2024 Benicia & Vallejo Demonstration Food Forest Garden Tour: April 27

By Nicole Newell, Sustainable Landscaping Program Manager

Loam Sweet Loam garden in Vallejo

Sustainable Solano’s annual tour of demonstration food forest gardens in Benicia and Vallejo returns on April 27 for its eighth year. Join us for our largest tour of some of the longest-established food forests in the county!

The day will include speakers and activities to keep you inspired and engaged. Register here!

We will start at 9 am at Avant Garden in Benicia with a talk about the many roles mulch plays in supporting a water-efficient garden with Heath Griffith from Grow with the Flow. Learn about:

  • What is the difference between wood chips and bark?
  • Why is mulch one of the superheroes of permaculture?
  • Does mulch increase or decrease fire risk around houses?
  • How does mulch support a water-efficient garden?

Attendees will pick up the itineraries from 9-11 am at Avant Garden for a self-guided tour of the Benicia and Vallejo gardens. This year’s tour will continue to provide education on topics related to sustainability and highlight the amazing organizations and ways people are involved in uplifting the community. In addition to education, we will also have music, an adventurous scavenger hunt for our youth, two inspired gardens and a special guest that will be present to chat about calming calendula.

The Benicia gardens will be open from 10 am-1 pm, and the Vallejo gardens will be open from 1-4 pm. Attendees who can only participate in the afternoon can pick up the itineraries for Vallejo at the Pollinator Pathway garden on Mare Island from 12-1 pm.

You can learn about each garden and the special events going on at the gardens here.

To prepare a garden tour event that is in service to our community is a gift. As I learn what inspires our food forest keepers to live, grow and contribute, I am inspired in return. Spring brings new possibilities to discover what seeds we want to plant, in our garden and in our life. Each garden serves so many functions that support an abundant, healthy life. I invite you to explore these gardens and gain your own inspiration for your gardens, your communities and your lives.

This program is made possible by the generous support from the Solano County Water Agency.

How It Will Work

You can choose to tour for the whole day or for half a day.
Benicia Demonstration Food Forest Gardens will be open 10 am-1 pm
Vallejo Demonstration Food Forest Gardens will be open 1-4 pm

Register here

Itinerary pickup and special events:

9-11 am: Itineraries will be available at Avant Garden in Benicia (400 First St.). This itinerary will include all of the demonstration food forest gardens in Benicia (open in the morning) and Vallejo (open in the afternoon). Families can pick up a scavenger hunt sheet that will make the day more fun!

9 am: Heath Griffith of Grow with the Flow will talk about the importance of mulch at Avant Garden.

12-1 pm: Itineraries for the Vallejo garden sites (open in the afternoon) will be available at the Global Center for Success (1055 Azuar Dr/BLDG 733).

Throughout the day: Special speakers, activities and information will be available at various gardens.

2024 Benicia & Vallejo Tour: Featured Gardens

Scroll through the list below to read about the Benicia and Vallejo gardens that are featured on this year’s tour, and to learn about special offerings at some of the gardens!

Register for the April 27 tour here!

Benicia Demonstration Food Forest Gardens

The Curious Garden

Mature front yard food forest has mostly fruit trees and native plants that attract pollinators year-round. It has a laundry-to-landscape greywater system.

The homeowner started gardening while living in San Francisco, and took a semester-long Garden for the Environment class on all aspects of gardening including permaculture. The family moved to Benicia about 12 years ago, partly so they could have space to grow a garden.

The family has enjoyed growing their own food and exploring the changing yard and the wildlife it attracts. It also has a very steep hill, which presents its own unique issues — and a great canvas for growing yellow lupine among the other native plants.

Learn more

Giardino su una Collina (Garden on a Hill)

A 4-year-old food forest and pollinator garden installed in 2020 that includes a swale that captures roof water and mediterranean trees and plants mixed with native pollinating and nectar plants to attract bees and butterflies. This site is home to a Monarch Waystation that grows a variety of plants to support Western Monarch Butterflies.

The Monarch Milkweed Project and monarch education will be highlighted. Come to learn how you can support and participate in the Bay Area Butterfly Festival coming to Mare Island on May 19!

Learn more

Greyhawk Grove

Greyhawk Garden after installationA 9-year-old established food forest with two swales that are dug out and refreshed every 2-3 years, laundry-to-landscape greywater to fruit trees, and chickens. The drip irrigation system was removed four years ago and the garden is thriving! Annual beds are hand-watered once a week during the growing season. Greyhawk Grove is a “high-traffic-survival-of-the-fittest-have-three-young-children garden”. There may be lemonade and baked goods for sale by children, as well as products from the garden to give away (dried calendula, lavender, herbs, eggs, fruit, etc.).

Learn more

Living and Learning

Established front yard food forest that replaced a lawn in 2016 with 2 swales, a laundry-to-landscape greywater system and a diverse group of plants and fruit trees that has now expanded throughout the property. Small spaces for relaxing and enjoying are throughout the garden. One of the food forest keepers is a teacher and will be present to share knowledge about growing and preserving tomatoes.

Learn more

Wild Cherry Way

Southern slope food forest focused on pollinators, shrubs and native plants. It also includes fruit trees, perennial and edible plants, swales and a laundry-to-landscape greywater system.

Permaculture Consultant Ron Kane will be on-site to offer tours and answer questions.

Learn more

Yggdrasil Garden

An evolving food forest garden and greywater system installed as part of Sustainable Solano’s 2022-23 Permaculture Design Certificate course. Students transformed the front yard with a rain-capturing swale and planted berms in holistic workshops. The west side yard’s raised vegetable bed and passionfruit vines are watered by a laundry-to-landscape greywater system and include edible plants and native pollinators. The monarch butterfly-hosting back gardens are designed and maintained by permaculture designer Michael Wedgley’s Soilogical, nurtured with specially prepared compost, and supported by Seth Wright’s Water Service Irrigation design created as part of a Sustainable Solano irrigation class. An herb spiral was created with bricks repurposed from the chimney of the circa 1850s historic home, retaining walls from pieces of historic on-site stables, and patios from slate and brick on-site. The east side yard (in development) is watered with both a rain-capturing swale and a laundry-to-landscape system and will have an aquatic garden and feature scented contributions to the edible landscape. Displays feature the historic aspects of the home; its background and ongoing tradition of art, design, and healing; information about the Ohlone Sogorea Te Indigenous Land Trust and rematriation of Carquin land; and the garden’s first tree guilds: persimmon, apricot, fig, passionfruit guava, and meyer lemon.

There will be a water harvesting guided tour with designer Michael Wedgley from 10:30-11:30 am, and PERSONA will perform live acoustic pop/R&B songs from 12-1 pm.

Learn more

Inspired Garden

This homeowner attended our tours and was inspired to transform his yard! This garden, designed by Michael Wedgley of Soilogical, is a unique opportunity to tour a stunning and sustainable backyard that showcases the beauty and abundance of permaculture. This eco-conscious backyard features a rainwater catchment system that can harvest up to 3,500 gallons per year, helping to restore the on-site water table, and providing an abundant source of water for this permaculture food forest.

The carefully designed irrigation system utilizes drip irrigation, which not only lowers water usage but also promotes water conservation. This 1-year-old garden boasts over 80 different species of perennial plants, many of which are edible. You’ll be amazed at the variety and richness of the plants that are flourishing in this environment.

Vallejo Demonstration Food Forest Gardens

Colibri Ochoa (Hummingbird Ochoa)

Front yard food forest garden has a laundry-to-landscape greywater system, a swale, repurposed logs to create planting areas and a variety of plants to provide food for people and pollinators. On the day of the tour there will be a laundry-to-landscape greywater education in Spanish and a translator on-site.

Sustainable Solano partnered with two other organizations to install this garden in 2021 and begin to provide resources in Spanish. Planting Justice partnered with Sustainable Solano on a Spanish-speaking installation. They offer permaculture services and also have an organic nursery in Oakland that sells rare and heirloom varieties. Club Stride translated an educational program about Patio Sostenibles and created a food forest video in Spanish, Entrevista de Patio Sostenible. Both organizations are doing incredible work to reduce inequities. Check out their websites to find out more on how to support their work. 

Learn more

Enchanted Cottage Garden

This front yard lawn was replaced in May 2017 with two swales, above-ground rainwater collection and a variety of fruit trees, grapes, herbs, and year-round pollinator plants mixed with annual vegetables. There is a path through it with seating for anyone who walks by. The food forest concept extends to the back garden. This yard has inspired several neighbors to transform their landscapes. Produce from the garden is used in the food forest keeper’s small home-based restaurant and they donate excess produce.

Learn about supporting local food in Vallejo.

Learn more

First Christian Church

Two separate gardens, one is a peace garden with mostly flowers, cactus and trees and the other is the vegetable garden, called Johnson Ranch. The vegetable garden was revived through the Solano Gardens program. The food grown is donated to the local food pantries (Faith Food Fridays, Amador Hope Center, etc.).

Solano Gardens Program Manager Jazzmin Ballou will be on-site to highlight opportunities to get involved with local community gardens and available to discuss interest in future community gardens within the county.

Learn more

Loma Vista Farm

The Food Forest Garden is an extra special garden at the Farm. It provides a beautiful demonstration to the many thousands of people that visit each year on how to plant their own yard in a variety of fruit trees, perennial vegetables, herbs, native plants and pollinator plants. Volunteers will be available to show visitors the Food Forest Garden. The Farm will close promptly at 4 pm.

The tour will be on the same day as Loma Vista Farm’s annual Spring Open House, making it an extra special day to visit. The Farm event begins at 11 am and ends at 3 pm. Please come before 3 pm if you would like to enjoy both events.

As part of the Farm event there will be a plant sale in the greenhouse of natives, herbs, vegetables, and pollinator plants. The students from Loma Vista Environmental Science Academy produce these plants as part of their weekly farm science lessons.

Pick up a scavenger hunt sheet for a fun way to explore the gardens!

For more information check out: Lomavistafarm.org.

Learn more

Loam Sweet Loam

This 18-month-old, 700-square-foot front yard food forest is sheet mulched and includes a swale. It includes multiple layers of permaculture plants, including young fruit trees, drought-tolerant shrubs such as rosemary and lavender, and soil-amending groundcovers.

The homeowners extended permaculture principles into their 900-square-foot backyard vegetable garden with the addition of a laundry-to-landscape greywater system to irrigate young fruit trees. Future plans include diverting rainwater from downspouts into existing rain barrels to irrigate the yard, expanding the area irrigated by greywater to incorporate more trees, and increasing plant diversity throughout the yard to support a strong and edible ecosystem.

Join Trish Barnes from 1-3 pm for a hands-on opportunity to package your own bath salts made from locally grown calendula, lavender, and olive oil. Learn about calendula’s healing properties and how to grow this easy and versatile flower. Samples of bath salts and seeds will be available while supplies last.

Learn more

Morningside Botanical Bounty

Morningside Botanical Bounty food forest was created as part of the Resilient Neighborhoods Program. This backyard garden has a laundry-to-landscape greywater system, fruit trees (pruned to keep them short and easy to harvest), swales, drip irrigation, bee-friendly plants, native plants and shade trees.

Native plant information will be available.

Learn more

Pollinator Pathway

Pollinator food forest garden filled with a variety of California native plants that support the habitat of butterflies, bees, moths, wasps, hummingbirds and so much more. This garden was installed in February 2023 as a collaboration with a variety of organizations including Vallejo People’s Garden, Vallejo Project, Solano Resource Conservation District and Monarch Milkweed Project. Alanna Mirror wrote three songs inspired by the installation, featured in her Pollinator Pathway Lawn Transformation Mini Series!

Master Gardeners, Solano Resource Conservation District and Vallejo People’s Garden will be on-site with information on how to support pollinators! They will be actively supporting the garden and weeding so the native plants can thrive; bring gloves if you want to participate. Join Suzanne Briley from Vallejo People’s Garden for a guided tour of native plants at 1 pm.

Learn more

Vallejo Unity Garden (Vallejo Project)

Vallejo Project’s Unity Garden initiative restored an abandoned lot that was once filled with sand and garbage and turned it into a multi-level food forest with internationally influenced farming techniques, a mealworm farm and chickens. This garden is focused on urban agriculture.

There will be seeds, plants or art from the garden for sale.

Vallejo Project imagines a Vallejo strengthened by new generations of youth and young adults who are inspired to give back to their community as role models, advocates, entrepreneurs, and leaders; who are able to efficiently articulate and implement solutions to challenges in the community based on their learned experience and knowledge gained through youth development programs.

Learn more

Inspired Garden (Sure-Would Forest)

The homeowners had a nearly blank slate when they purchased this property in 2021, and soon started working on enriching the soil, retaining rainwater, and laying the groundwork for a food forest. This garden was inspired by Sustainable Solano gardens and a love of fresh fruit. In just over two years, they’ve gone from food desert to food forest with the ability to eat from their garden year round. They attended a design class taught by Joshua Burman Thayer with Native Sun Gardens in 2023 through Sustainable Solano’s backyard program. In June 2023 they hired Joshua to update the design and add drip irrigation.

Inspired by rainwater harvesting systems seen on the 2023 demonstration food forest tour, the homeowners bought and installed four IBC totes to collect water from their downspouts. The irrigation system for Sure-Would Forest is designed to feed from either city water or rainwater storage tanks, allowing over 1,000 gallons of rainwater to be used to irrigate the garden.

At 2 pm, the homeowner will talk about how he converted IBC totes to capture water and irrigate his garden.

We are incredibly grateful for the generous support of our funders. The first seven food forest gardens were made possible through funding from the Benicia Sustainability Commission; the Solano County Water Agency continues to support the Sustainable Backyard Program throughout the county. Solano Sustainable Backyard Program short videos: Waterwise and Building Gardens and Community. Occasionally we combine funding from other programs to make larger projects possible.

Goodbye Grass

By Tereasa Christopherson-Tso

Tereasa is a Solano County-based artist who is working with Arts Benicia on an “artivism” exhibit focused on water conservation. Tereasa reached out to SuSol about visiting one of the demonstration food forests established through our Solano Sustainable Backyards program, and visited “Living and Learning” in Benicia, where she beautifully captured the garden in spring. She has given us permission to share her painting and artist statement, which we feel encapsulates why these gardens are so important.

You can visit “Living and Learning” and other demonstration food forest gardens during our annual Benicia & Vallejo garden tour on April 27. Learn more and register here!

Keep an eye out for a special exhibition that brings together Arts Benicia and Vallejo Center for the Arts for “Stewarding our Water Resources: Solano Artists Create, Collaborate & Educate” from May 25 through June 23.

Goodbye Grass, Acrylic, 18”x24”

I have always been a lover of pure nature where I find joy in exploring landscapes in their wildest forms and where nature alone stewards the land. The arresting beauty of the forest and the awesome vastness of the ocean have never ceased to stir my soul with creative inspiration. This past year, however, I began exploring what it means to not only be an admirer of plants and bodies of water but how to better steward them. I began attending numerous workshops held by Sustainable Solano and touring gardens they had installed for people’s yards and community gardens. This inspired my garden efforts this year and the desire to create a garden as Monet did to inspire his paintings but also one that takes into account the high value of water as a limited resource here in northern California.

I found inspiration for this painting from a front yard garden in Benecia that Sustainable Solano installed. I had the pleasure of working with their Program Manager Nicole [Newell] to tour gardens I was interested in painting for this project. Here drought tolerant plants are seen throughout the landscape, a pathway of wood mulch provides a protective layer over the dirt, and native golden poppies have sprouted up in all their super-bloom glory. By excluding grass and using more sustainable garden practices this yard requires very little water yet does not sacrifice beauty.

-Tereasa Christopherson-Tso
Take a tour of the “Living and Learning” garden in this video, and join us for the Benicia & Vallejo Demonstration Food Forest Garden Tour on April 27!

Grow Your Gardens and Knowledge Through Our Compost Classes

By Jazzmin Ballou, Program Manager

Compost happens all around us in real time. We see leaves, branches, and fallen fruit decompose back into the soil. In the winter the Earth’s energy is focused on breaking down that which is no longer alive or of use to plants, so that in the spring our soil can be nutrient-rich, and ready to use those nutrients to support the biggest production season of the year.

Soil health is a big focus for Sustainable Solano this year. This March through May, we’ll be offering classes for all levels of composting to build healthy soil. This series will consist of three classes, with a beginners composting class in March, an intermediate class in April and an advanced composting class in May. You are invited to attend the class of your choice or join us for all three to build your composting knowledge and connect with the different gardens where each class will be held.

Composting 101 – A Beginners Guide to Composting will be held at the Peace of Eden Community Garden at City Church in Fairfield. A brand-new three-bin system has just been built as an addition to this community garden, so this class is for folks who may want to compost but don’t know where to start. We’ll learn about composting basics: green waste vs. brown waste, what food scraps are compost-friendly and which aren’t, turning your pile, etc. Depending on time, we may weed or harvest from the garden so that participants can contribute to the compost bin. This class will be led by Lori Caldwell, who is not only a very experienced gardener and composter, but a very experienced teacher on those topics as well!

Composting 101 will be followed by Intermediate Compost Skills – An Introduction to Worm Composting, also taught by Lori Caldwell. This class will go over compost mishaps and how to troubleshoot bin repair, pests, etc. The time will also be used to introduce worm composting, discussing the benefits of worms, worm castings, and this compost method that is very friendly for those who want to compost but have less space to work with. The Vallejo Project Unity Garden will be hosting this class, with a worm bin and a three-bin compost system that has been paused due to pest issues and repair needs. This class will be interactive and potentially hands on, as we hope to show examples of bin repairs and give their compost system a bit of TLC.

Our final class of this series will be an Introduction to Advanced Composting Methods- Thermophilic Composting at the Vallejo People’s Garden on Mare Island. Michael Wedgley, owner of Soilogical, will teach this class, using his advanced understanding of soil biology to cover the thermophilic method of composting. As a more maintenance-intensive compost method, thermophilic composting creates an end product that is much higher in nutrients than traditional compost, as the goal is to heat up every inch of the organic matter being composted to a much higher temperature than we normally see for compost. This means it is turned much more intentionally and often, which is why after hosting this class, we will be offering opportunities for people to come back and support with the maintenance of this pile for the entire duration of time that it takes for it to break down (about six weeks).

We look forward to this ongoing process of learning about soil health and compost with you and encourage you to come ready to learn but also ready to teach! Every question asked, idea shared, comment made, in these open learning spaces feeds our own internal soils for when we are ready to harvest that knowledge and offer it back into the world, be that in our own backyard compost bins, or during a volunteer workday at a local community garden.

Sustainable Landscaping, Lawn Removal on Water-Efficient Rebate Budget

Thanks to everyone who came to our class in January with Alana Mirror about how she transformed her lawn into an edible and native landscape, all within the budget of the Water-Efficient Rebate Program from the Solano County Water Agency. You can read her previous blog about this project here.

For resources on how you can make a sustainable transformation in your own backyard (and on a budget!), below are individual videos covering topics from the water-efficient rebate program to DIY sustainable landscape design (or you can watch the playlist of all the videos here). You can view a PDF of the slides from Alana’s presentation here. Within these, you’ll find even more links to resources that can help you on your journey.

Sustainable Yard Transformations: Why Transform Your Lawn?


Sustainable Yard Transformation: Water-Efficient Landscape Rebate Program


Sustainable Lawn Removal: How and Why to Sheet Mulch


DIY Sustainable Landscape Design


Permaculture Principles for Sustainable Landscaping


Installing, Maintaining and Enjoying Your Sustainable Yard


You can learn more about Solano County Water Agency’s Water-Efficient Rebate Program here.

To learn how Alana’s sustainable yard transformation also transformed her life, check out her musical blog where she shares original songs, stories, and videos of her transformation at thelivingmirrorproject.org/blog

If you’d like to be part of Alana’s growing community of creative gardeners and environmental stewards, she’s offering a free online introduction to her upcoming group: HeArt of the Garden.

Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or just starting out, Alana’s introductory HeArt of the Garden two-hour, interactive Zoom event on March 23 is perfect for anyone who wants to

  • develop foundations that serve and connect with the natural world;
  • harness the wisdom of nature;
  • grow trust in your inner-compass through journaling;
  • cultivate confidence in your most honest expression; and
  • make peace with yourself, others and the world around you.

Heart of the Garden is a private online community with monthly Zoom meetings to share creative reflections, build confidence and grow connections.

For the free March 23 introductory event, you can sign up here.

Learn more about Alana’s peacemaking project at thelivingmirrorproject.org