Filmmaker Lori Najvar and architect Glen Chappell loved the view on their hilltop creekside property. Glen designed the home to tuck in gently against a rocky cliff overlooked by live oak trees. To tackle rainwater runoff and erosion, garden designer Leah Churner built a dry creek bed, installed cedar log erosion curbs, and chose shade-tolerant, wildlife habitat plants that work in clay soil.

Dramatic weather’s here to stay, so let’s work with it! Kirk Alston from The Natural Gardener spotlights a few tried-and-true plants for sun, shade and pollinators. Here’s his survivor plant list (and of course, there are lots more).

What’s the secret to germinating milkweed seeds in pots? Sonia Koschoreck, co-founder of The Monarch Sanctuary Project, recreates nature’s trick to scarify and cold stratify seeds to raise milkweed plants for next year’s monarch butterfly caterpillars.