Pismo State Beach Golf Course Pollinator Plants

The Pismo State Beach Golf Course within Pismo State Beach (PSB) is operated by a concessionaire agreement through the Oceano Dunes District (ODD). ODD in partnership with the golf course manager proposes to restore and enhance approximately 1/4-acre patch of non-native iceplant (Carpobrotus edulis) and Kikuyu grass (Cenchrus clandestinus) into native nectar habitat for pollinator species. Planting native nectar-rich flowering plants will help provide critical food resources for declining pollinator species such as the monarch butterfly which overwinters at the nearby PSB Monarch Grove. Because golf courses occupy expansive, contiguous parcels of open land, converting out-of-play roughs into native habitats can offer significant environmental value to pollinator species. Additionally, out-of-play areas converted to native plants will require less mowing and irrigation compared to the adjacent managed fairways and greens. The Project includes the following restoration activities: •Removal of invasive plant species with manual, mechanical, and targeted herbicide application methods. •Collection of seeds from locally native dune-specialized species, including, but not limited to dune ragwort (Senecio blochmaniae), California aster (Corethrogyne filaginifolia), Scarlet bugler (Penstemon syntragitholias), Cardinal catchfly (Silene laciniata), and pink sand-verbena (Abronia umbellate). •Installation of interpretive signage and fencing around the project area. This “demonstration garden” will not only be visited by golf course players but the general public will be allowed to visit as well. Anticipated project implementation: The native plants will be grown in the fall of 2026 and planted at the golf course in the spring of 2027.