The Gull's Call - Jan/Feb/Mar 2025

CoverStory Flutter and Buzz – Designing the Corica Tower Pollinator Garden by Marla Lee, Gardens by Marla O N A CRISP FALL MORNING, coffee in hand, I step into the garden, already and movements—a frenzied whirring of hummingbirds like tiny motors, darting between plants in a race, as if someone just yelled, “last call!” Bees hum along, steady in their work. Under a leaf, I spot a sleeping Monarch caterpillar, avoiding the morning rush. It’s nature’s opening act, and I’m lucky enough to have a front-row seat. Pollinator gardens aren’t just beautiful—they’re living, breathing ecosystems. When you plant for bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, moths, bats, or any winged creature, you’re doing much more than adding color to your yard. You’re nourishing a delicate, interconnected food chain. Every plant, every choice, ripples through the garden, influencing the entire space. Welcome the moths, and you’ll likely invite bats, who help keep mosquitoes in check. Prune your coneflowers too soon, and you’re denying the birds their winter protein. It's a reminder that in the garden, every action matters. At Corica Park, Avani and Umesh Patel of Greenway Golf gave me the creative freedom to design a space that welcomes everyone—whether they’ve got wings or feet. The project was inspired by art from the start. The goal: to transform the abandoned fire tower into Alameda’s first public art installation of its kind. Partnering with Local Edition Creative, funded by Greenway Golf, and approved by the City Planning Board, the tower features a vibrant, hand-painted abstract mural by artist John Horton. It captures the essence of Alameda’s unique topography, Corica Park Tower - Before & After ticking off a mental list of to-dos for the Corica Park Tower Garden installation. But before I get far, I’m distracted by a symphony of sounds

and for me, it’s both a tribute to our coastal home and the perfect inspiration for a colorful, lively garden. Sage Loring, Local Edition Creative Director, calls the mural a “flex for imagination and placemaking in Alameda.” I couldn’t agree more. Together with the garden, it feels like a splash of “controlled chaos” in an otherwise planned development. CONTROLLED CHAOS - BALANCING SYMMETRY WITH NATURAL FLOW This garden serves everyone’s needs - an intersecting nectar highway for hungry pollinators, wide paths for summer events, and tough borders for energetic campers learning about insect lifecycles. Instead of sending tons of toxic debris to the landfill, we covered the asphalt with natural stone gravel, giving the space a California-themed makeover. With a coat of hammered copper Rust-Oleum, we transformed metal stock tanks into weathered Corten Steel beds, and elevated them above gravel for efficient drainage.

FALL BLOOMING POLLINATORS MIMIC THE TOWER’S VIBRANT COLORS The plants I selected mirror the mural’s bold colors—sky blue, hot pink, and fiery orange—and provide revolving color for instant human gratification, plus nectar for pollinators settling into their new home. In a smaller garden, I might have to choose favorites, swapping one plant for another to support a particular pollinator. But in this nectar-filled café, some plants do it all. Salvias, Agastache and Cuphea are both crowd-pleasers and bee magnets.

6 January | February | March 2025

The Gull’s Cal