MAR VISTA GARDEN PARTY

Mar Vista tour will focus on sustainability. Beauty’s a nice byproduct, though.

This year’s Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase has downsized from 96 gardens to 39, but its emphasis on sustainability remains greater than ever.

The sixth annual free event today is an alfresco education in sustainability as homeowners, landscape designers and environmentalists share how they have transformed their gardens to save water and energy.

Each garden, as well as six neighborhood school gardens, offers much to inspire the conservation-centric. Landscape designer Marilee Kuhlmann and partner Leigh Curran installed a strip of permeable pebbles in their driveway to eliminate rainwater runoff. Others have planted native and drought-tolerant plants to conserve water. And to help water some of the thirstier plants, many have installed rainwater barrels and gray-water systems.

For the first time, the tour in the West Los Angeles neighborhood will be composed of five clusters of three or more gardens, which will allow people to walk easily from one garden to the next.

“We made it smaller so it is more manageable,” said event co-chair Christy Wilhelmi. “People will be able to bike the entire tour from cluster to cluster.” In addition, tour-goers can park their bicycles at a bike valet at the Venice High School Learning Garden and walk to some of the clusters.

Redwood Avenue (Cluster 5) is especially accessible, with five of seven featured gardens on one block. And in keeping with the focus on bike transportation, homeowners Nancy Hastings and Blaine McNutt are installing bike racks outside their homes for the tour.

Like most homeowners on the tour, Hastings, who works for the nonprofit Surfrider Foundation, removed her front lawn and installed an “ocean-friendly” garden of native and drought-tolerant plants. She followed three principles — conservation, permeability and retention — and planted lantana, succulents, princess f lower and African daisies with an eye to keeping water on site rather than having it run into the ocean.

Across the street, Kuhlmann and Curran have transformed their front, back and side yards into edible gardens. Their raised beds are bursting with edibles — squash, tomatoes, lettuces, carrots, tatsoi, zucchini, tomatoes, cabbages — as well as plants such as native sage to attract bees. A 300-gallon rain barrel with a hose attached helps with watering.

On a recent tour of Redwood, the front gardens and parkways were alive with wildlife as the drought-tolerant plants proved a magnet for bees, butterf lies, hummingbirds and ladybugs.

Landscape designers, master gardeners and environmental activists will be at each garden to answer questions. McNutt said he and his wife planned to tag nearly 100 plants for visitors. And each garden will feature an audio tour accessible on smartphones.

Photog raphs by Genaro Molina Los Angeles Times LEIGH CURRAN walks in the backyard of the Mar Vista home she shares with Marilee Kuhlmann. Their edible garden includes cabbage, caulif lower and carrots.

A BAJA COSTERO PLANT can be seen along Mar Vista’s Redwood Avenue. The Green Garden Showcase will feature 39 gardens with plantings that emphasize saving water and energy.

ARTICHOKE THRIVES in the frontyard at Robyn and Blaine McNutt’s. The couple plans to install bike racks for the tour.

KALE AND CABBAGE growing in the backyard of the Curran-Kuhlmann home looks ready for a salad.

YELLOW CALIBRACHOA, in a planter, adds color at the Mar Vista home of Curran and Kuhlmann.

CILANTRO and other herbs grow in a raised f lower bed in Curran and Kuhlmann’s frontyard.

AFRICAN DAISIES are drought tolerant and colorful.