There is a reason why I love Yarrow so much. It works kind of everywhere. I’ve seen it survive in parkways in Van Nuys, full of reflected heat. It lives here at my house at the bottom of the swale where it gets totally covered with water. I’ve even seen it growing in Seoul, Korea in a parkway blooming in the middle of monsoon season. Yarrow is a versatile plant that works well along pathways and borders and in small spaces between larger shrubs. It performs best and blooms most with sun and more frequent water, but it also can survive and go dormant in the summer, only to spring back to life with the winter rains.

I use Yarrow in my yard in the swale, along the edge of the swale, the riparian area fed by my greywater setup, and underneath my Avocado tree. Plant Yarrow underneath your citrus— they’ll handle the frequent irrigation and light amounts of organic fertilizer that Citrus needs. Lady bugs tend to congregate on the leaves (I’m not sure why) while predatory wasps and butterflies alike visit the plant. This means it’s perfect near or in vegetable beds for integrated pest management and pollination. Use it everywhere!

Yarrow is a cosmopolitan plant that occurs around the world. When purchasing Yarrow, buy it from a reputable native plant store since some of the online seed retailers or general plant retailers may get their seed from areas outside of California to propagate. Island Pink Yarrow and Sonoma Coast Yarrow are both cultivars with Californian roots, while Common Yarrow (the straight species) occurs in California and many parts of the world. EverY garden should have Yarrow in it!