Wonder how to create wonder? Wayne says it’s all about the wire.
February 2026. Isara Ongwiseth: Each time we visit the Urban Wildlife Habitat, homeowners Hilda Weiss and Wayne Lindberg introduce a new wonder. In 2023, an eye-popping espalier was the talk of the tour. This year, it may just be another one of Wayne’s wire-supported wonders.
Here’s what we learned as we walked and talked with Wayne:
Q: You’ve trained foliage to grow in some distinct ways. Can you tell us a bit about that?
Wayne: The first project started with a Catalina Perfume which began to overflow its location – our success there inspired more recent efforts.
Catalina Perfume Espalier
Catalina Perfume (Evergreen Ribes, Ribes viburnifolium) normally grows as evergreen mounds. Rather than cutting it back, I created a very loose wire trellis on the face of the bare (and boring) adjoining wall. The Catalina Perfume followed our plan perfectly! Its long delicate branches became a highlight in our garden, and it continues to fill in the space and expand.
Morning Glory Rampage
The latest project began with a plan to mask a split-unit condenser next to our backyard studio. I put a section of wire fence in front of the unit and planted an Anacapa Pink Island Morning Glory (Calystegia macrostegia) beneath it, expecting the vines to eventually cover the fence and create a privacy screen. Nature took a different turn.
Before the vines could take hold, a nearby Baja Bush Snapdragon (Gambelia juncea) spread wide enough to hide both condenser and wire fencing. So, I needed a different plan for the Morning Glory. I attached a web of wires to the studio wall and trained the vines onto it. Morning Glory leaves and blossoms soon covered the wall, even hanging down in bunches. I added more wires, training the vines above the studio door and around the corner of the building onto its south wall. The little century-old structure has taken on a bit of a countryside vibe.
Q: The space feels so welcoming – how did you maintain that while adding privacy?
Wayne: Just by spending time in the garden, we have come to see how some plant choices and placements can enhance the visual experience. Also, we have discovered how some choices can provide privacy and even security. Here are examples of the latter that we’ve added since the last tour:
Structured Grape Vine
We share a deck with our tenant’s house. To create some mutual privacy, we installed a metal screen with patterned cutouts that we realized could provide a surface where vines might flourish. We trained one arm of an existing grapevine (Vitis californica) from a nearby bed onto the screen. Now grape leaves completely cover the screen for much of the year, maximizing privacy.
to Isara’s left, adding privacy.
into a pretty and private patio.
Elevated Fairy Duster
To decrease visibility between the rear of our property and an adjoining public alley we had FormLA Landscaping fabricate and install a metal-frame trellis on which a Fairy Duster (Calliandra) now creeps, creating a colorful privacy screen between us and the building across the alley. A hummingbird favorite, we have a California native version (Calliandra californica) that borders the entrance walkway to our home.
Goosing-Up Security
On the public alley we planted Fuchsia-flowered Gooseberry bushes (Ribes speciosum) to obscure two perpetually locked entryways to the property. The red blossoms draw hummingbirds while the barbed-wire-grade thorns add an extra layer of security.
Q: You have new victories to report – tell us!
Wayne: The Urban Wildlife Habitat has weathered some challenges. For example:
a natural focal point.
a perennial tour favorite.
New Lilac
The large California Lilac (Ceanothus Concha) that was a star of our last tour unfortunately later met with disaster—at my hands! Some small branches had encroached on a nearby stairway. Rather than snipping them off individually, I cut off the larger branch they sprang from. What seemed like minor surgery proved fatal to the plant. As our gardener later explained, California Lilac usually cannot survive aggressive trimming.
We planted a new one in the same spot. It’s now as large and spectacular as its predecessor.
Native Street Tree
When the old magnolia tree on our parkway failed, we immediately engaged to regain the tree canopy. We asked the City of Santa Monica arborist if he could replace it with a native tree. Since that is what he encourages, he was happy to furnish us with an Island Oak (Quercus tomentella). The young tree will be structurally supported for some time and receive regular visits from a city water truck.
Echoes of a Victory Garden
We are told that during World War II, the family who lived there grew vegetables throughout the yard in support of the war effort. Today, on a smaller scale, we continue to grow many edibles and share the bounty of a navel orange tree and a Eureka lemon tree, both many decades old.
We hope you’ll join us to see the latest wonders in this beautiful space during the 2026 Native Plant Garden Tour April 12th.
