June is the best time to plant the native milkweeds and nectar flowers that western monarch butterflies need to bloom in Southern California.
And a good place to start your pollination prep is at the Theodore Payne Foundation’s second Pollinator Party on Sunday, June 12, featuring beer, pizza, and ice cream featuring native plants and a selection of pollinators available for purchase at Eagle Rock Brewery, 3056 Roswell St., at Glassell Park from 1 to 5 p.m.
“I like to think of pollination as having two parts,” said Evan Meyer, executive director of the Theodore Payne Foundation, “the literal pollination of plants, but also the cross-pollination of different groups and cultures in Los Angeles. We want daylight saving time.” celebrate, where we live and what’s so cool about being here.”
And a super cool part of being here is accessing the third release of Eagle Rock Brewery’s popular Local Source ale, a lager infused with three plants native to Southern California — woolly blue curls, black sage, and California laurel. Meyer said the draft beer sold out at the Pollinator Party last year, so they’ve made sure they have plenty in stock this year, both on tap and in cans.
Three other pop-up food makers will join the party with treats featuring native plants: Sad Girl Creamery, a Latina-owned LA creamery, makes ice cream; Quarantine Pizza adds native flavors to its sourdough crusts; and food designers/caterers Hank and Bean will demonstrate how to make simple dishes using native plants.
All plants are provided by Theodore Payne, who sent a selection of native stems and leaves to the food makers for inspiration, Meyer said.
“This flora is so aromatic, and the scents are so familiar and unusual, it makes sense for people who love flavors to use them,” Meyer said. “Everyone loves pizza and ice cream, and using native flavors opens up a whole conversation. It’s a great gateway to learn more about native plants.”
People can also learn about native plants the old-fashioned way by checking out the foundation’s pop-up shop in the brewery and the information booth, which Meyer himself will staff.
The store will sell various merchandise, from T-shirts and books to multiple types of plants in 4-inch pots, including narrow-leaved milkweed, yarrow, red-flowered buckwheat, Great Valley gumweed, Allen Chickering sage, and foothill penstemon. Prices range from $5 to $7 or $20 for a mix-and-match four-pack.
Meyer said the event is family-friendly, with non-alcoholic beverages including his recipe for lemonade infused with black sage, “one of the most common plants growing in the wilds of LA.” Here’s how he makes it:
Stir equal water and sugar together (as in a cup of sugar and a cup of water), then dissolve it on the stove to make a simple syrup. You don’t want to boil this solution; heat it until the sugar has dissolved, he said, then take it off the heat and add 4 or 5 leaves of black sage. Don’t leave the leaves too long — about 5 minutes should be enough — as the sage flavors are potent. Remove the leaves and add the freshly squeezed lemon juice mixed with water until you get the desired lemony taste. (Meyer recommends using filtered water to improve the taste.)
The taste will be a little husky, “but in a good way,” Meyer said. “If you do it right, balance the sugar and lemon, it’s not tea-like but more botanical, and man, it’s good. It’s the taste of LA.”
