Theodore Payne Foundation
Encyclopedia
The Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants, is a private, non-profit organization founded in 1960 to promote the understanding and preservation of California native plants
. The Foundation is incorporated in California
and located in Sun Valley
, about fifteen miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles
, where it operates a nursery and education center focused on California natives. Programs include the propagation of a wide range of species and cultivars of the California flora for use in the home landscape; collection and process of seeds from the wild for use in propagation; educational programs for children concerning plant-animal relations, butterflies, and human uses of native plant materials; and courses in the horticulture, botany, and ecology of California native plants for the general public. Major events include an annual garden tour in the greater Los Angeles area featuring gardens with at least 50% California native plants, the Wildflower
Hotline, from March to May, which provides information on the best places in California to view wild flowers; and an art gallery specializing in botanical illustration, botanical portraits, and other artistic and historical subjects concerning the California flora.
, England and served an apprenticeship in horticulture
. He came to Southern California in 1893 and was soon put in charge of the garden on Madame Modjeska’s ranch in Santiago Canyon, Orange County, California
. It was there that his love affair with California flora began, eventually dedicated his life to its preservation. Even in the early years of the 20th century, native vegetation was being lost to agriculture and housing at an alarming rate. He urged the use of California native plants
and lectured across the state on preserving the wild flowers and landscapes native to California.
In his own nursery and seed business, which he started in 1903, native wildflowers and landscapes were his specialty. In 1915 he laid out and planted 262 species in a 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) wild garden in Los Angeles' Exposition Park. He later helped to establish the Blaksley Botanic Garden in Santa Barbara (now the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden), planted 178 native species in the California Institute of Technology Botanic Garden in Pasadena, helped create the native plant garden at Los Angeles' Descanso Gardens, and advised the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Orange County.
By the time he retired in 1958, Payne had made over 400 species of native plants
available to the public.
California native plants
California native plants are plants that existed in California prior to the arrival of European explorers and colonists in the late 18th century...
. The Foundation is incorporated in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and located in Sun Valley
Sun Valley, Los Angeles, California
Sun Valley is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the city of Los Angeles, California, about 15 miles away from Downtown Los Angeles....
, about fifteen miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, where it operates a nursery and education center focused on California natives. Programs include the propagation of a wide range of species and cultivars of the California flora for use in the home landscape; collection and process of seeds from the wild for use in propagation; educational programs for children concerning plant-animal relations, butterflies, and human uses of native plant materials; and courses in the horticulture, botany, and ecology of California native plants for the general public. Major events include an annual garden tour in the greater Los Angeles area featuring gardens with at least 50% California native plants, the Wildflower
Wildflower
A wildflower is a flower that grows wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. Yet "wildflower" meadows of a few mixed species are sold in seed packets. The term "wildflower" has been made vague by commercial seedsmen who are interested in selling more flowers or seeds more...
Hotline, from March to May, which provides information on the best places in California to view wild flowers; and an art gallery specializing in botanical illustration, botanical portraits, and other artistic and historical subjects concerning the California flora.
About Theodore Payne
Theodore Payne was born in NorthamptonshireNorthamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, England and served an apprenticeship in horticulture
Horticulture
Horticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
. He came to Southern California in 1893 and was soon put in charge of the garden on Madame Modjeska’s ranch in Santiago Canyon, Orange County, California
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
. It was there that his love affair with California flora began, eventually dedicated his life to its preservation. Even in the early years of the 20th century, native vegetation was being lost to agriculture and housing at an alarming rate. He urged the use of California native plants
California native plants
California native plants are plants that existed in California prior to the arrival of European explorers and colonists in the late 18th century...
and lectured across the state on preserving the wild flowers and landscapes native to California.
In his own nursery and seed business, which he started in 1903, native wildflowers and landscapes were his specialty. In 1915 he laid out and planted 262 species in a 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) wild garden in Los Angeles' Exposition Park. He later helped to establish the Blaksley Botanic Garden in Santa Barbara (now the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden), planted 178 native species in the California Institute of Technology Botanic Garden in Pasadena, helped create the native plant garden at Los Angeles' Descanso Gardens, and advised the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Orange County.
By the time he retired in 1958, Payne had made over 400 species of native plants
California native plants
California native plants are plants that existed in California prior to the arrival of European explorers and colonists in the late 18th century...
available to the public.
Theodore Payne Art Gallery
The Theodore Payne Art Gallery features historical and contemporary artworks depicting the California flora as technical illustrations and botanical portraits, as well as cultural, historical, and other exhibits featuring the California flora. Historical artists featured in the gallery include Alice Chittenden, Ethel Wickes, and Jane Pinheiro. Contemporary artists featured include photographers Fred Kuretski, Richard Dickey, and Ken Gilliland, and artists Melanie Symonds, Pamela Burgess and Elinor Nissley.See also
- Flora of California
- Plant communities of California
- Trees of California