Curious to determine the status of the new rose garden at
South Coast Botanic Garden and finding nothing on the garden's webpage or in its weekly newsletters, I decided to drop by and check things out for myself. The garden is about 5 miles from my home and factors into my commute at least a couple of times each week so it wasn't hard to fit a visit into my schedule.
The rose garden's been under construction since last June at least and was originally targeted for completion in the fall. The last time I dropped by in late December, it looked as though it was nearly finished but, as it turns out, it's still a work in progress.
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| The hardscaping appears to be complete but the area is not open to visitor traffic. I asked a worker if he knew when the garden would be open and he indicated it would probably be sometime in April. |
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| This is the center of the new garden looking down from a viewing platform |
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| There's a rose-inspired metal railing with a fountain below |
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| View to the right: there were at least 3 of the pergola structures, presumably geared to wedding ceremonies |
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| View to the left: workers are still preparing beds and planting out roses |
With the visit to the rose garden a bust, I took a wider look around. I didn't bother to check the lake, which has been drained for some time now, but there were pretty flowers here and there.
However, the desert garden stood out as the most impressive at the moment.
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| The Alluaudia procera (left), aka Madagascar Ocotillo, always fascinates me. I was also drawn to the variegated Agave vilmoriniana (upper right, aka 'Stained Glass'). Aloe arborescens (lower right) was in bloom throughout the desert garden. |
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| The desert garden is expanding. It seems that it's at least doubling in size but I couldn't find anything on the garden's webpage with a status or details of its development plan. |
While my visit was relatively brief, I didn't leave without checking out the nursery area surrounding the gift shop. And, as the plants are always a deal, especially with my member discount, I didn't go home empty-handed.
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| My purchases (left to right): Agave deserti, Crassula falcata, and Aloe striata x maculata. My total was less than $22 with tax! |
Three new plants isn't a bad way to get the weekend off to a good start. I hope you find some treasures to take home this weekend too.
