It’s been too long! In my absence the past few years, there are now reservation requirements, QR codes, and repeated checkpoints throughout the gardens to reverify the QR codes. There’s also sushi in the very crowded cafe to refuel after two hours in the desert garden on a warm day with a high noon reservation. Even on a weekday, by noon the acres of parking were spoken for.
Aloidendron dichotomum aka Aloe dichotoma aka Quiver Tree. I asked staff about the support structure and was told it’s a new acquisition from a private donation and unfortunately is showing a bit of rot…
I was especially excited to finally visit the newly built desert conservatory, construction of which has altered some access to the desert garden for at least…five years? But it’s not finished…yet. Maybe June, I was told, but don’t bet on that date either.
A staff member hinted that some of the delay in finishing the conservatory might be due to funding. (If an institution like the Huntington, with its name recognition and large endowment, struggles to fund projects, imagine the difficulties for small town libraries and museums now that the Institute of Museum and Library Services has become a target for elimination.)
As on this visit, I often skip all the rest that the Huntington has to offer — art, manuscripts, rose garden, Japanese garden etc — and confine my attention to the Desert Garden, which I find can disorder the senses like a psychotropic drug (in a good way). Yet I wasn’t in the Desert Garden five minutes before I heard staff asking a woman to keep her kids out of the plantings when taking photos. She sounded surprised at the request but immediately complied. So there are jarring moments, of course, even in botanical paradise because….well, people.
But when you finally escape the crowded perimeter paths, the garden really begins to work its magic, that unique lost world appeal I find irresistible.
As one of the world’s oldest and largest collections of cacti and succulents, the enormous emeritus specimens provide a rich vertical backdrop that designers expertly use to build up volume and a multi-layered experience. In other words, it is not just a collection, it is emphatically also a garden.
The big views may be breathtaking, but the planting details don’t disappoint either.
Locals can form very intimate, interactive relationships with the Desert Garden, making notes for future plant sale purchases or mourning losses. This morning I took out Aloe ‘David Verity’ after seeing the size it attains at the Huntington, where it was discovered. Seeing aloes I’ve grown and lost, like the Huntington’s selections ‘Kujo’ and ‘Jacob’s Ladder,’ brings pangs of regret as I wander the paths. My white whale, Aloe scobinifolia, was also seen this visit. I did not know when this aloe grew so well for me what a treasure I had, until too much shade overcame it.
I was absolutely wiped out after a three-hour visit, but tired and sore in the best way after getting reacquainted with my local garden lodestar. Next visit, the desert conservatory! (Fingers crossed…)
There’s nothing quite like the Huntington Garden. Maybe Lotusland is a close second, but it’s totally different, too. Interesting to hear about the increased entry requirements; popularity is indeed a mixed blessing. California certainly has her garden delights!
It’s been less than a year since I was last there but your post has me ready to get back there. I look forward to seeing the new conservatory, though, so I may wait until it opens…The fact that the Huntington has a special sign to highlight theft is disconcerting. Unfortunately, I’ve witnessed egregious behavior by visitors to my local botanic garden on a fairly regular basis, despite the addition of rangers tasked with keeping things in check.
I love your update. I haven’t been there in a few years. I for sure thought the renovation of the upper desert garden would be complete by now. Funding issues? That sounds crazy in a place like the Huntington.
This is on my must do list, thank you for the info – I’ll plan ahead! It’s shocking that they would have any lack of funding.
I love how you described a feeling I could not… disorder the senses like a psychotropic drug. Something I inadequately described as “dizzy”, when I’m on a type of plant high and don’t know where to look.
Um, how big does David Verity actually get -asking for a friend lol.
@Jane, maybe because I know it better than any other public garden, to me there’s nothing like the Huntington!
@Kris, I’d love to tour the new conservatory with you — maybe the stars and dates will align!
@Gerhard, the funding issues surprised me too, but then the Huntington works on a big scale. There was mention of the difficulty in finding the $50 million donors a project like this requires…
@Tracy, for your friend (ahem!), DV was about 4-5 feet high with multiple rosettes. If there’s room, I’d keep it. My nearby semi-squashed Agave geminiflora is breathing a sigh of relief today.
When we visited in November I was surprised to see the construction still in progress, since it was underway when I visited back in 2019. It’s good to know I’m not the only one who feels that *high* in the desert garden.