Tag Archives: Lotusland

Hawaii on my mind

Posted on May 25, 2018 by Denise

Because my oldest brother on the Big Island, near Hilo, has been waffling over staying, going, staying, going — what to do with the dogs? — for most of May, that’s why Hawaii is on my mind these days. I … Continue reading →

Posted in journal | Tagged Kilauea volcanic eruption 2018, Lotusland | 6 Comments

weekend plans

Posted on March 9, 2018 by Denise

Any big plans this weekend? We’re promised some rain, so it won’t be warm enough for pool parties. I’m meeting up with a friend this Sunday at the Huntington. While she’s traveling in Southern California, she’ll be visiting another garden … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, artists, garden travel, garden visit, MB Maher, succulents | Tagged Ganna Walska, International Women's Day, Lotusland | 2 Comments

Occasional Daily Weather Report; Thomas Fire’s impact on gardens and plant nurseries

Posted on December 20, 2017 by Denise

Stepping out the back door this morning, my skin instantaneously felt the difference. Running to check the hygrometer on the front porch, that immediate sense of all-encompassing hydration was confirmed. The needle registered over 90 per cent humidity. The pergola … Continue reading →

Posted in climate, Occasional Daily Weather Report, plant nurseries | Tagged Australian Native Plants Nursery, Instagram, Lotusland, San Marcos Growers, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, Taft Garden | 10 Comments

postcards from Santa Barbara gardens

Posted on November 1, 2017 by Denise

Ever since the area became accessible by car and rail in the early part of the 20th century, it has been a favored location for estates and marvelous gardens, among them El Fureidis, Val Verde, and Lotusland. — The Lightest … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, climate, garden ornament, garden travel, pots and containers | Tagged "A Genius for Place: American Landscapes of the Country Place Era", American Country Place Era, Austin Val Verde, Casa del Herrero, Dichorisandra thyrsiflora, Isabelle Greene, Jeff Chemnick, Lockwood de Forest, Lotusland, mediterranean climate, Mediterranean Garden Society, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden | 6 Comments

bromeliads for winter

Posted on October 9, 2015 by Denise

Hot enough for you? It’s over 100 degrees in Los Angeles today, so hot that even the devil has left town…(That’s the best “It’s so hot” line I’ve heard all summer, spoken by a gentleman from El Paso, Texas.) And … Continue reading →

Posted in Occasional Daily Weather Report, Plant Portraits | Tagged Aechmea 'Loies Pride', Aechmea nudicaulis, Alcanterea 'Volcano Mist', bromeliaceae, bromeliads, climate change, Lotusland | 13 Comments

the siren call of cycads

Posted on October 2, 2015 by Denise

a local Long Beach front garden, zone 10, south-facing exposure I recently chanced upon a house and garden that I used to drive by a lot more frequently. Habits change, errands take one in a different direction, and in that … Continue reading →

Posted in garden visit, Plant Portraits | Tagged California, Cycad Day 10/24/15, cycads, Fallbrook, Huntington Botanical Garden, Lotusland, Palm & Cycad Exchange, The Cycad Society | 13 Comments

Lotusland, garden provocateur

Posted on September 5, 2015 by Denise

More from that June visit to Lotusland, Ganna Walska’s 37-acre estate near Santa Barbara, California. In the comments to this post, Emily kindly provided a link to an English series “Around the World in 80 Gardens,” in which a visit … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, climate, garden travel, garden visit, succulents | Tagged Around the World in 80 Gardens, Cactus and Succulent Society of America, cactus gardens, California gardens, Donald Culross Peattie, Geoff Stein, James Van Sweden, Lotusland, Madame Ganna Walska, March-April 2015 Cactus and Succulent Journal, Monty Don, Pauleen Sullivan, writer Catherine Phillips, Ysabel Wright's cactus garden Quien Sabe | 16 Comments

Lotusland’s abalone shell pond

Posted on August 13, 2015 by Denise

More from my Lotusland visit this past June. In my guided tour group was a friendly couple with a serious selfie habit, expressed at every turn in a path, at every new feature. We ended up exploring the garden at … Continue reading →

Posted in garden visit | Tagged Lotusland | 14 Comments

scenes from Lotusland; the Lemon Arbor

Posted on July 29, 2015 by Denise

Since I snapped hundreds, I’ll probably be trickling out photos of my June visit to Lotusland for months to come. The Eureka lemon tree arbor, planted in 1988, is probably one of the more sedate and traditional features of Lotusland. … Continue reading →

Posted in edibles, garden travel, garden visit | Tagged California, Lotusland, Madame Ganna Walska, Montecito | 3 Comments

the indomitable Lotusland

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Denise

Following the blue glass slag-lined path on a recent visit to Lotusland in Montecito, Calif. We came upon the startling sight of a greenhouse in the jungle. Not startling in the expected, operatically flamboyant Lotusland sense, but because it was … Continue reading →

Posted in garden visit | Tagged Ganna Walska, greenhouse, Lotusland | 7 Comments