Ocean Friendly Gardens
Urban runoff from gardens and hard surfaces is the #1 source of ocean pollution. In that runoff are pollutants such as:
- pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers and sediment (soil)
- oil, engine exhaust and brake pad dust
- dog poo...etc.
It can run off the property during rain storms and during dry periods, with sprinklers overwatering and overshooting the landscape. In addition, the use of gas-powered equipment to mow lawns and prune and haul away over-planted and improperly spaced vegetation generates air pollutants - that eventually settle onto roofs and streets, and gets washed into waterways. This runoff also contributes to flooding of neighborhoods and erosion of stream banks.
But gardens and hards surfaces can be beautiful, resourceful, wildlife-friendly and prevent runoff. How? Apply CPR to your garden - Conservation, Permeability and Retention © - to revive our watersheds and oceans:
- Conservation of water, energy and habitat through native plants (add allow some climate adapted plants), spaced for mature growth.
- Permeability through healthy, biologically active soil, and utilizing materials for - or making a cut in - driveways, walkways and patios that allow water to percolate into the soil.
- Retention devices like rain chains, rain barrels and rain gardens retain water in the soil for the dry seasons or save it to water veggies, preventing it from running off the property.
CPR can be applied to vegetable and fruit gardens, too.
The OFG blog (click on tab, above) has posts about OFG programs in action around the country as well as how-to tips for the do-it-yourselfers or those who want to be better able to communicate with a professional. There are posts about how to:
- kill your lawn naturally and sheet mulching
- determine your soil type, which helps with choosing the right plant for the right place
The Resources section (click on tab, above) directs you to the:
- Online OFG Map to learn from others and post your garden. There, you can review the OFG Sign Criteria (linked here to a check-box format) and request a yard sign. (Click here for a version of the sign criteria with introductory info about CPR.)
- OFG Activist Toolkit that provides step-by-step direction on how to put on OFG events, case studies and more.
- Program components - walks, workshops and workdays.
- OFG videos and articles
OFG sign criteria - review them and order a sign (pictured at right) at the online OFG Map. Posting you information will not only show you deserve a sign, it helps others learn from you. The data everyone posts, added together, shows the positive impact we are having on water quality, water supply and watershed function restoration.
Ocean Friendly Gardens Activist Toolkit - how to run the OFG Program Components, templates (flyers, etc.) & more.
Ocean Friendly Gardens Brochure - download a copy.
Ocean Friendly Gardens How-To Gardener's Guide Book - order it here.
Volunteer - Contact your local Surfrider Chapter to see if they are conducting an Ocean Friendly Gardens Program.
Videos and articles:
NEW! PSA, short intro video, and 3 videos about levels of OFG programming: Informational, Lawn Patrol, Series.
"Slow The Flow: How To Make Your Garden Act More Like A Sponge" (features San Francisco Chapter's OFG Program)
Pamela Berstler's OFG (Managing Member of G3, The Green Gardens Group)
Elmer Avenue - OFG + green street (Los Angeles Area)
National OFG Program Coordinator, Paul Herzog, interviewed by Los Angeles City Stormwater blog- click here
Article on OFG Program in Watershed Management Group's newsletter ("Get Your Garden Out Of The Gutter") - click here
OFG Program Components:
Watershed Basics Class, Hands on Workshops (HOW), Garden Assistance Party (GAP), Lawn Patrol (neighborhood walk).
May 18 2012
Give A Hoot: Replace NPK With OWL
Ocean Friendly Gardens Basic Class
What's in a typical bag of fertilizer at the neighborhood nursery? More than you thought - and not what you hoped for. What is the Ocean Friendly Garden approach to building soil health, the foundation of an OFG?
May 14 2012
Ventura Chapter Teams With City For Ocean Friendly Gardens Program Series
Slightly overcast weather - perfect for working - greeted 30+ volunteers at an OFG Workday. The Workday was the next step in the OFG Series,
April 10 2012
Restoring Clean Water and Natural Ecosystems in Ventura, CA
Know Your H20 Low Impact Development Ocean Friendly Gardens Water Quality
For the past two decades the Ventura Chapter has been working on integrated solutions to the problems that face our ocean, waves, and beaches. Learn more about the many programs and campaigns they are leading to protect and restore water quality, water supply and watershed function in the Ventura River watershed.
April 03 2012
Fire Station’s Ocean Friendly Garden: Indoor & Outdoor Classroom
Ocean Friendly Gardens Basic Class
Surfrider partners with an LA-based water district to fund ten public demonstration Ocean Friendly Gardens. In Los Angeles, Fire Station 171 holds a class and then goes out to the garden for show-and-tell at the new Ocean Friendly Garden built at their station.
March 06 2012
The Clean Water Program
Blue Water Task Force Know Your H20 Ocean Friendly Gardens Water Quality
The Clean Water Program has grown into a suite of complementary programs, campaigns and tools that Chapters and activists can use to help solve water pollution problems and to educate communities about the many benefits of responsible land and water management.
February 16 2012
OFG Launch in Florida and North Carolina
Florida's First Coast Chapter and North Carolina's Cape Fear Chapter launch their Ocean Friendly Gardens Programs. They have quickly found common ground with local design professionals, government agencies, non-profits and universities.
January 26 2012
OFG Taking Root in Pacific Northwest With Soil & Water Conservation Districts
Ocean Friendly Gardens Basic Class GAP HOW
Surfrider chapters in Oregon and Washington are working with watershed restoration agencies, expanding on the traditional "rain garden" design model and putting on hands-on trainings.
December 16 2011
Making LA City Hall Lawn Ocean Friendly: Occupations for Occupiers
LA Times writer, Emily Green, has written a blog post today about re-doing the landscape at LA City Hall supports both the Ocean Friendly Gardens principles of CPR - Conservation, Permeability and Retention - and hands-on trainning components through building demonstration gardens.
November 10 2011
Chapters Get Federal Funding To Create School Ocean Friendly Gardens
The U.S. Department of Fish & Wildlife's Schoolyard Habitat Program provides up to $8,000 for projects by schools or organizations serving kindergarten through 12th grade students. Funds can be used for: habitat restoration; outreach and education; planning and training in cooperation with community-based groups. The Program serves the Pacific Southwest Region of the U.S. Two California Chapters, Ventura County and South Bay, are participating.
November 09 2011
Barrels Of Fun For Jersey Shore Chapter Hosting Rain Barrel Building Workshop
The Jersey Shore Chapter hosted a build-a-rain-barrel workshop on a rainy October night in the coastal town of Brielle, NJ. Over 25 enthusiastic people turned out from the community to build and take home their very own rain barrel and learn about what they can do to protect the water quality of our ocean and waterways. The chapter is embarking on a mission to develop an Ocean Friendly Garden Program tailored for the East Coast.
October 27 2011
Building Your Core With OFG Professional Training
Ocean Friendly Gardens Basic Class HOW
Through a state grant, the Santa Barbara,CA Chapter sponsored a "Core Concepts Workshop," Ocean Friendly Gardens training geared toward professionals. It attracted reps from government agencies, landscape pros, non-profits and academia interested in grasping the fundamental calculations and communication techniques for sustainable landscaping.The Workshop was developed and is lead by G3/The Green Gardens Group.
August 16 2011
Santa Barbara OFG Series Steps 2 & 3 Next: Site Evaluation Hands-On Workshop & One-Day Pro Training
After a successful Ocean Friendly Gardens (OFG) Basics Class in Santa Barbara, we return there for the next steps in the Whale Tail License Plate grant-funded OFG Series: a Hands-On Workshop on Site Evaluation on September 11 and a training for professionals on October 25.
July 25 2011
Last Chance To Enter Your Ocean Friendly Garden In The 2011 National Greenscape Challenge
There’s only one week left in the Cali Bamboo, Surfrider Foundation 2011 National Greenscape Challenge Contest. Inspired by the Foundation’s Ocean Friendly Gardens program, contestants are encouraged to submit photos and descriptions of their landscapes and gardens that were designed with Surfrider Foundation’s OFG method of CPR: conservation, permeability and retention in mind.
July 12 2011
Hands-On Workshop to Follow OFG Basics Class in Santa Barbara
With a great OFG Basics Class in the books, Class attendees will use the (new) knowledge to evaluate a site for how well it "applies CPR - Conservation, Permeability and Retention" - the principles behind Ocean Friendly Gardening. Everyone is welcome to attend the Hands-On Workshop, not just Class attendees.
June 14 2011
Santa Barbara Ocean Friendly Gardens Program Kicks Off With Basics Class
Ocean Friendly Gardens Basic Class
The Santa Barbara and Isla Vista Chapters launched their OFG Program with a OFG Basics Class. It's the first part of an OFG Series, to be followed up with a Hands-On Workshop on Site Evaluation, Garden Assistance Program Workday, Lawn Patrol and one-day training for professionals. The Series is funded by a grant from the California Coastal Commission through its Whale Tail License Plate program.
June 02 2011
O.C. and Long Beach Launch Lawn Patrol
Ocean Friendly Gardens Lawn Patrol
This first neighborhood walk in Orange County helped develop people's eye for what is and is not an Ocean Friendly Garden. It was also a chance to see if there are others gardens that qualify for an OFG yard sign - or are close and would want some help from volunteers to qualify!
April 11 2011
“Garden Raising” Brings Out Neighbors & Surfrider Members
Though Surfrider is not raising barns these days, we did do a "garden raising" yesterday. The couple that owns the home and garden mentioned how the experience made things a lot less intimidating. Now they can help the new neighbors they met and the ones they already knew do the same at their homes. This street is doing its part to create cleaner surf.
April 01 2011
Surfrider Teams with ELLE Magazine & Aveeno at School OFG
The Surfrider-West LA/Malibu Chapter partnered with ELLE Magazine and Aveeno to transform a 2,000 sq. ft. grassy "carpet" in front of a school in Santa Monica, CA into an Ocean Friendly Garden. It'll be a great learning tool for the elementary students, their parents, the school district and the neighbors.
March 31 2011
Garden Assistance Program (GAP) Workday to Launch OFG in Long Beach & Orange County, CA
The Long Beach Chapter, in collaboration with the Huntington and Newport Beach Chapters, are co-launching their OFG Programs. The Chapters have put the call out to volunteers for the garden workday on Sunday, April 10 from 10am-4pm to learn while actually helping the homeowners create an Ocean Friendly Garden.