Middlebrook Gardens

We had Alrie Middlebrook design our wonderful front yard a year ago. We removed the lawn and junipers, installing all native plants. Randy did the installation and I couldn't be happier with the final result. (Except for the gophers who decided to move in and eat the roots of several plants!) I had a very specific design asthetic when I met with Alrie, asking that the yard not be the typical "wild" native design. I wanted a more groomed look with continuity. The first plant choices didn't quite work, but after meeting she came back with a beautiful design with concentric mounds and plants that flower throughout the year, bring butterflies, bees and hummingbirds, and needs very little water. The yard went from planting small 1 gallon plants in March, 2016, to fill out nice enough that another landscape architect driving by suggested I put it on the Bringing Back the Natives tour the following year. I thought it was too early, but after contacting the organizers of the tour, we are on it this year! Their followup with three free visits by her gardener were great--he taught me how to care for the plants and replaced a few that had died. More...

Reviewed on Yelp

It was awesome last year and I hope I will be able to do it this year with my friends hayley and Gavin and I hope all the others who had experienced this garden camp loved it. By r the way my name is sierra and you might be able to the camp this year with me! I hope I will see everyone there! More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

It was awesome last year and I hope I will be able to do it this year with my friends hayley and Gavin and I hope all the others who had experienced this garden camp loved it. By r the way my name is sierra and you might be able to the camp this year with me! I hope I will see everyone there! More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

I have been here many times taken classes and picked up plants this place is very special.  The thing I come away with here is a new way to look at my front yard, theplants I pick to plant in my yard , the water we use and waste and how importantit is to use what little dirt we have in smart way.  Your yard can be green but it doesn'thave to be all grass. Middlebrook Gardens is a place to start your smart garden. More...

Reviewed on Yelp

Middlebrook is a gem in the neighborhood.  It focuses on California native and edible plants.  They handle a lot of conversion projects where people rip out lawns and go native.  Some cities and water companies even pay you to do this.  A fun funky garden that features edible plants, a California native plant nursery and some fun garden art pieces.My review is focused on the wonderful earth science classes they teach to kids.  Officially called ELSEE (Environmental Laboratory for Sustainability and Ecological Education) project.  They teach next door St Leo students as well as other schools who contract with them.  Kids learn about earth science, composting, worm bins, koi ponds (kids love sneaking worms out of the bins to feed the koi), eating vegetables and fruits right out of the garden, learning how to grow crops without pesticides, doing weeding, looking into microscopes, planting their own native plants to take home and drawing scientific art illustrations based on how nature's internal structures work.The owner is really an artist working with native plants that is ahead of her time (or a throwback to California's rich agricultural heritage).  She hires local college kids wanting to teach earth sciences to help teach her classes.  A walk through her garden having them point out all the wonderful edible vegetation in their natural splendid glory was the highlight.  Ever seen brussel plants?  Wonderful delicate berries that aren't commercially grown because they don't ship well, but have were prized by Ohlone native indians.  Have a discussion on how California Oaks are not only pretty, but how their acorns are harvested into Acorn flour, and how California's first people built their lives around this prized tree. More...

Reviewed on Yelp

Middlebrook staff has been wonderful to work with in the process of relandscaping our front yard with California natives and a native fescue meadow.   We are so happy with the look and feel of the project.   Alrie is a terrific designer and Randy, a very flexible, and capable implementor.  We love the dry creek, the Connecticut blue walkway, the fountain, the meadow and the plant choices.  Our yard now complements our house.   We will enjoy this project for years! More...

Reviewed on Yelp

I had a coupon book which allowed a buy one get one free plant. Since we were in the neighborhood, I thought we'd check it out. What a great selection! They are only open for retail sales on Saturday from 10:00 I think until 3:00. Luckily we caught the owner just as he was about to leave. I thought we would be in & out and spend less than $10. Not so. Half an hour later and $63 lighter, we came out with about six plants including wild strawberries, sages, and some other stuff that the owner raved about. It's great that the owner is so knowledgeable and - being from the valley - he knew what plants to recommend. The actual nursery has a wonderful peaceful feel to it. You can tell that this place has a lot of soul to it.Update: I received a note from the actual owner! It's great when business owners care about customer comments. So - just to be clear - it was an employee who helped us, not the owner. More...

Reviewed on Yelp

We used Middlebrook Gardens to landscape our yard.  We have a somewhat difficult yard, as we have a heritage oak, lots of shade and a steep hill.  They did a wonderful job of creating a California native, low water use woodland garden.  Nancy was our designer and she met with us several times to help us make decisions.  We had the landscaping done last fall, and this spring the yard has been just beautiful with flowers and growing plants.  We are about to start using their maintenance service, so will see how that goes. More...

Reviewed on Yelp

Wonderful California native nursery.  Conveniently located when you don't have time to drive all the way up to Yerba Buena Nursery.  The owner Alrie is very knowledgable and a professional landscape architect.  Get rid of those wasteful lawns and plant natives! More...

Reviewed on Yelp