When I first moved to Phoenix, AZ I purchased a package of saguaro cactus seeds from the gift shop of the Desert Botanical Garden. As a transplanted Midwesterner I was eager to grow these curious and fascinating plants. Reality gradually set in – the seeds didn’t survive and I’ve not considered growing cactus from seeds since. This was not the case for Merritt “Sigs” Dunlap, also a transplant, from the Midwest to California. An engineer by training he clearly like figuring things out, and his after work focus was growing cactus, especially from seed.
Category: Pacific Region, US
Madame Ganna Walska’s Lotusland
In the wonderland that is California, Madame Ganna Walska’s Lotusland is as Walska herself put it: “out of this world.”
Ganna Walska was a fascinating, exotically beautiful opera singer. Born in Poland in 1887, her mother died when she was only nine, she lived with relatives until she fled Poland for Russia. By age 20 she had married a Russian Count. She began singing opera to gain the attention of another very wealthy Russian. She created her stage name “Ganna” a Russian form of Hannah, added “Walska” for her love of waltzing, and Madame came as a title given to known opera singers and actresses of the time. The first half of her life was devoted to her singing, her marriages, (six in total), a career which included her very own theatre in Paris, her own special scent and a spiritual quest for personal fulfillment. Men pursued her and her many marriages added to her fortunes.
Zest for Life
Sitting on a Paris bench in May I was enjoying a view of the Eiffel Tower. The beds of the park had been freshly dug exposing the rich dark soil and I knew colorful summer plants would be arriving soon. An elderly woman came walking through the grass pulling her shopping cart. She stopped at the flower bed. In the bright light of day she removed her red trowel and a plastic shopping bag. Bending over she began carefully filling the bag with fresh soil.
Trees Drop Stuff!
The season changes and the leaves of summer’s lovely shade begin to fall, prompting a collective groan as gardeners from the east coast to the west reach for the rake. Falling in red, yellow and brown, the leaves float down, crackling underfoot as you walk along. Yet you might count yourself lucky if leaves are all your trees drop.
Down the Garden Path
Walking a path into a new garden is an exciting moment filled with anticipation. Map in hand, you scout the areas and choose the path you will follow. You are ready to enjoy new sights, sounds and smells.. Before you charge ahead after looking down at the map, look further down and notice the path!
Virginia Robinson Mansion & Gardens
It is hard to say anything but wow, fabulous, amazing, stunning, beautiful and say it over and over and over as you tour this garden and take a brief look inside this Beverly Hills Mansion built in 1911. The docent tells you of dinner parties with Mae West, Charlie Chaplin and other famous guests hosted by Virginia Robinson. Virginia Robinson lived nearly to 100 years and her gardens were her constant opportunity to create something beautiful. At one point she was assisted by a staff of 17 gardeners but it was her design eye that created the space. There is the formal Italianate garden with pool and lawn the sight of many grand parties. The great surprise is the tropical palm garden with a mature grove of over 100 Australian King Palms. Here Virginia would slip away to read among the under canopy plantings of gingers and clivias and plumaries in the cool shade. For her love of entertaining she had a rose cutting garden, from which she had flowers for the table, and a Potager garden providing fresh herbs and vegetables for her classically trained chef. This garden is a gem lovingly cared for by volunteers and the LA County Dept. of Parks & Rec.
Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Garden, Claremont CA
This private non-profit garden/arboretum supports the graduate botany program of Claremont Graduate University. There is a grand selection of California natives in their natural state. The variety of oaks, including live oak, huckleberry oak, majestic oak makes for many happy squirrels. The Coulter Pine produces pine cones once called “widow makers” by lumberjacks because the weight of the cone, some as much as 40lbs., could end a life if you were cracked on the head. The cones when open are as sharp and fierce as bear claws. July is a dry month for a visit but it gives you a clear understanding of how fire can race up a hill and engulf everything in its path. The monarch butterflies gather at the orchid tree’s purple and white blooms. The hummingbirds feast on the pride of madeira’s purple spikes of bloom. Trees are featured here with a fan palm oasis of trees rising 70’ in height and with the spent leaves hanging in a thatch. Wandering through this shaded natural area is a great walk after a long drive. The multi colored flagstone path is a beautiful pattern of colors and shapes.
Self Realization Lake Shrine Meditation Garden
When the intense heat of summer kicks in we find ourselves hiding from the sun. Physically the heat slows us down, it strains our brain and finally our spirits wilt. We need our garden for green and shade, with a bit of water rippling by and a breeze to cool us down. Hopefully you find this right outside your back door, if not search for it in your travels.
What would a gardener do?
When the lottery jackpot grows large we are entertained by stories of speculation as to how a lucky winner might spend the prize. Well, what would a gardener with a passion for beauty and nature do with unlimited funds? Robert Allerton, born in 1893, won the lottery in a sense as he was the only heir to a great fortune accumulated by his father Samuel. “Samuel Allerton amassed more than 80,000 acres of farmland across the Midwest. The elder Allerton was a founding principal of the First National Bank of Chicago, and held prominent leadership positions in five major stockyards, including the Union Stockyards of Chicago.” (Allerton Park website) Robert worked tirelessly to spend the vast fortune that he inherited. His constant effort produced two incredible gardens and major donations to both the Chicago Art Institute (6600 items) and the Honolulu Museum of Art.
Gazing Balls
Bright & Shiny
This time of year Christmas trees decorated with lights and ornaments are showing up all around the town. If you decorate a tree with traditional glass ornaments in red, gold, or silver you will see the beauty surrounding you reflected in their shiny surface. Stories of glass ball ornaments trace back to the 1800’s in Germany, though the origin of glass balls has been documented back to the 1300’s. Venetian glass blowers began creating colorful spheres as gazing balls to reflect the light and the view of gardens. The fragile and colorful balls were a sign of wealth and status used to accessorize the gardens of kings. King Ludwig II, King of Bavaria during the 1800’s, adorned his palace, Herrenchiemsee, his replica of Versailles, with these gazing balls. Could there be a connection?