SANTA CRUZ >> The view of the ocean across a short stretch of rolling beach was clear Sunday, but the scent filling the air was of an earthy rather than salty nature.

A dozen or more volunteers swarmed across an East Cliff Drive slope at Seabright Beach State Park, patting tiny delicate native seedling roots into layers of recently laid mulch and dirt. A short distance away, growth planted by volunteers last year flourished across the hillside, despite suffering through the drought.

Jeb Bishop, who lives just three blocks away from the beach and is a member of the Seabright Neighborhood Association, has been part of a core of people who have volunteer weekly to help maintain the native growth until it takes a firm foothold.

“It’s just beautiful,” Bishop said of the variety of plants around him. “These plants grow only in the coastal fog zone and in this sand. It gives a sense of place to Santa Cruz, and it’s my neighborhood.”

Nearby, fellow beach neighbor Steve Rosich was up to his gloved hands in dirt as he squatted between colorful marker flags.

“I think it’s just wonderful that people from all walks, from children to seniors to volunteers to students, are here,” Rosich said. “I enjoy gardening and hopefully I’ll be able to pass this on to future generations, to restore what we’re starting here.”

Rosich said the change to the area has been noticeable. While still “just an entrance to the beach,” passersby notice the improvement, stopping to look at the beauty or thank volunteers for the work they’re doing.

The coastal restoration effort has its roots in a bicycle ride along West Cliff Drive that Bill Henry and friend Josh Adams took a couple years ago, when they decided to take action about the overgrowth of invasive species and often barren “coastal edge,” Henry said Sunday.

Working through international nonprofit Oikonos, Henry said some of that work slowly has come to fruition in Santa Cruz, getting “people involved in their backyards.” The agency has partnered with California State Parks, California Native Plant Society, neighborhood groups and UC Santa Cruz interns for much of its efforts, now split to different sites across the city and dubbed the West Cliff Ecosystem Restoration project, Henry said.

“If you look at the amount of degraded coastal habitat in Santa Cruz, it’s probably about 95 percent of the coast, plus,” Henry said. “There’s a lot of work to be done. And it’s the coast that we all use.”

The community gardening day was just one piece of the ongoing effort to restore native coastal plant life to Santa Cruz. Nearly a year ago, volunteers and neighborhood residents gathered together to plant what is now a fully flourishing and diverse growth of coastal plant life. Less than two weeks ago, some 30 third-grade students from the nearby Gault Elementary School kicked off this year’s planting efforts, laying down about 300 seedlings, organizers say. Efforts ongoing at the Lighthouse Field on the Westside include similar work.

For more information or to get involved with the Santa Cruz coastal restoration efforts, visit oikonos.org/west-cliff and facebook.com/westcliffrestoration.