With a nod toward the NCAA’s March Madness, the San Diego Bird Alliance has launched its public advocacy campaign to select a new San Diego native flower.

SDBA’s “Your City, Your Flower” campaign features three rounds of bracket-style voting before an eventual winner is selected and presented to the San Diego City Council for final approval. “This initiative aims to replace the current non-native carnation with a flower that truly represents our local ecosystems and supports our native wildlife,” said Savannah Stallings, SDBA’s conservation advocacy coordinator.

“San Diego County is the most biodiverse county in the nation, and this initiative aligns with the City’s existing environmental commitments, including its designation as a Bee City and the Mayor’s Monarch pledge,” said SDBA wildfire resiliency fellow Hailey Matthews.

The eight flower finalists include Black Sage, Bladderpod, Blue Elderberry, Blue-eyed Grass, Bush Sunflower, California Buckwheat, California Rose, and Cleveland Sage. These varieties were selected based on their environmental benefits, Kumeyaay cultural significance, drought resistance, native status, conservation concerns, and artistic potential.

Andrew Meyer, SDBA’s director of conservation, spoke of the impetus behind this initiative to designate a new native City flower. “For us, native plants support birds, and if we can get more native plants in the ground, we’ll have more nesting sites, nectar, seeds, and insects for our native birds,” he explained. “And our group of stakeholders is involved for lots of other reasons, including promoting Kumeyaay connections to our habitats, drought resistance and efficient water use, local history, wildfire resiliency, and habitat-restoration value.”

In April 1964, the San Diego City Council adopted the carnation as the City’s non-native official flower, without choosing among the carnation’s many colors. The council was surrounded by bright floral arrangements as it cast its secret ballot for the official flower. During two hours of campaigning in the council chambers at that time, supporters of various City flower “candidates” placed them on tables in the room, pinned them on council members, and presented them, in various arrangements –even including seeds and growing plants – to council members.

Mrs. Allan D. Zukor, a florist, was the floor manager for the winning entry, the carnation. She wore a full-bloom white carnation on her black hat.

Zukor and other flower advocates suggested festivals, queens, and other promotional and tourist-oriented uses of an official City flower. She noted carnation growers had agreed to donate 20,000 carnation blooms to the City for a summer fiesta, suggesting they be displayed in parks and plazas.

Discussing how SDBA’s Floral March Madness finalists were selected, Meyer noted: “These eight made it through the six selection criteria that we have on our website, sandiegobirdalliance.org. The big criterion that keeps a lot of great, beautiful, and important flowers off the list is that there isn’t a known name for them in Kumeyaay anymore. The names of so many native plants have been lost in the Kumeyaay language. With time and research, many names are being rediscovered, remembered, and reattached to the plants, reconnecting our original stewards to the species and places where these plants grow. The stakeholders selected these eight – and now the public chooses.”

Meyer said the three rounds of bracket-style voting are open to everyone and can be accessed online, as well as the flower bracket being available for free download for “inter-office contests and bragging rights.” Meyer added, “At the end of the voting, the stakeholders will bring the contest winner to the City Council, and we’re advocating that they (council) update the official City flower to that species.”

SELECTION OF NATIVE SAN DIEGO CITY FLOWER

When: Public voting will occur:

● Final Flora: March 29-April 7

● Corolla Championship: April 9-14

Following the final vote, San Diego Bird Alliance will present the winning flower to the San Diego City Council in mid-April, coinciding with Earth Day, with the goal of official adoption.

Where: For more information and to participate in voting, visit sandiegobirdalliance.org/what-we-do/advocacy/, or on Instagram @sandiegobirdalliance