UC Santa Cruz Arboretum will hold annual spring plant sale on Saturday, April 26

Brighten up your garden with kangaroo paws, pincushion flowers, and sweet-smelling blossoms from the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum.

The Arboretum is holding its annual Spring Plant Sale in conjunction with the California Native Plant Society on Saturday, April 26, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The sale will take place at the Arboretum's Eucalyptus Grove on High Street near the intersection with Western Drive.

The annual sale features plants that grow especially well in the Monterey Bay Area. This includes native California plants as well as ones from Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand. Plants featured this year include colorful kangaroo paws (Anigozanthus) from Australia, pincushion flowers (Leucospermum) from southern Africa, and many other striking garden plants.

Most of the plants were grown at the Arboretum and are not available in nurseries. Additional plants donated by local nurseries, including California Succulents, Monterey Bay Nursery, Sierra Azul, and Suncrest Nurseries, will be for sale.

Each plant comes with a written description of its color, size, and best growing conditions. The sale features drought-tolerant plants, frost-resistant plants, cacti, groundcovers, and plants that provide nectar to hummingbirds. A complete list of available plants can be found on the Arboretum's web site (http://www2.ucsc.edu/arboretum).

The sale will be open to Arboretum and California Native Plant Society members only from 10 to 11 a.m. Memberships can be purchased at the gate on the day of the sale.

The Arboretum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. Norrie's Gifts is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. The Jean and Bill Lane Horticultural Library is open Wednesday through Sunday from 12 to 3 p.m.