Writing about visiting gardens on a recent trip to the San Francisco Bay Area, I was reminded of the lyrics of the 1960s song San Francisco by Scott McKenzie: “If you’re going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair.” Well, I left my haku lei at home, but I did visit a few interesting gardens and can recommend more, if you’re going to San Francisco.
The Bay Area has been experiencing drought conditions for a few years and gardeners are flocking to the Ruth Bancroft Garden and Nursery in Walnut Creek. Folks are hungry for drought-tolerant plants and interesting succulent varieties, and they are finding what they want here. Several San Francisco friends told me they were willing to cross the bridge to Walnut Creek in the East Bay for the large selection of plants available at Ruth Bancroft.
The nursery carries lots of succulent varieties, many cactus plants and an array of epiphytes, all suitable for xeriscape gardens that need very little water. A ceramic wall with three-dimensional images of succulent and cactus plants greets you as you enter the Bancroft Garden. You can then enter either the nursery and sales area or take a walk through the garden to see mature specimens in the ground.
Before going into the garden, I picked up the monthly “What’s in Bloom” handout, which includes a map locating the blooming specimens in the garden. Several different aloe varieties, some echeverias and the prickly pear were all doing a fall display mostly in oranges and reds with a few yellow spikes from blooming agaves. Quite a show!
Fall in the Bay Area can be chilly and my visit to Bancroft was late in the day. The chill in the air was warmed in one of the cactus landscapes that contained large rocks still holding some of the sun’s earlier heat. The tall spiny greenery added a warm desert feel to the spot.
A tall prickly pear cactus plant (Opuntia tomentosa) was loaded with red fruit, honoring the holiday season. The garden’s rule against picking flowers or fruit kept me from actually tasting the fruit but their appearance conjured the memory of the sweet juicy flavor of the “pear.”
The cactus fruit tastes a bit like kiwi fruit. No kiwis here. The kiwi vine is not drought tolerant, but both the tasty kiwi as well as the prickly pear will grow in Hawaii.
The display of epiphytes was also worthy of note in the garden. Epiphytes are air plants. They can grow without soil and will attach to another plant or object for support. They are not parasitic but get the moisture and nutrients they need from the air. A large, vertically slatted wall in the garden held over 200 epiphyte varieties including several tillandsias and kalanchoe specimens.
Later, when I visited a friend’s house on San Francisco’s Potrero Hill, she happily walked me through her garden pointing out all the plants she had propagated from the “mother plants” she’d purchased at the Ruth Bancroft Garden. She started with a few and now has clusters of succulents everywhere.
On a chilly Monday in the city, I headed for the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. Looking forward to some warmth and floral displays, I was very disappointed to find the iconic structure that first opened in 1879 closed, as it is every Monday. Plan your visit for a different day. Free admission is offered on the first Tuesday of every month.
Instead, I headed to the San Francisco Botanical Garden on 9th Avenue in the Inner Sunset. Many plants are dormant this time of year in the Bay Area, but the botanical garden was alive with people walking, running and strolling along the paths that wind through the various sections of the garden.
The Celebration Garden had a gazebo facing a large grassy area. Perfect for weddings or other events. Probably used mostly in summer. The great meadow offered a lovely vista of trees and shrubs with Sutro Tower noticeable in the distance.
The signage throughout was very helpful. Most plants are labeled and large signs direct you to different areas of the garden. They didn’t necessarily keep me from getting a bit lost as I wandered, however. The coyote alert sign was a bit disturbing but thankfully, I didn’t see any.
Walking deeper into the garden, I did come across occasional flowers in bloom. A mass of yellow Flanders poppies covered a space in an area that I happened upon. The Flanders poppy, in both red and yellow, has become a remembrance symbol for the soldiers who died in the trenches in the poppy fields of Flanders, Belgium during World War I.
I also ventured into the Garden of Fragrance where I found lots of aromatic herbs including yerba buena and lemon verbena. The latter (Aloysia triphylla) is one of my favorites. It grows well in Hawaii and makes a wonderfully fragrant herbal tea. The only fragrant flower in bloom on this day was the lavender.
In the spring, the Rhododendron Garden will be bursting with flowers. I was too late in the season for that, but I had a good walk and thoroughly enjoyed my afternoon at the garden.
Of course, in and around Golden Gate Park are many gardens worth visiting. The Japanese Tea Garden is always lovely and offers a nice tea service. Some others can be seasonally spectacular. Consider visiting the Rose Garden, the Camellia Garden and the Queen Wilhelmina Tulip Garden in spring and summer.
Even if you don’t arrive in San Francisco with flowers in your h air, opportunities abound to see some beautiful flowers and plants in the Bay Area.
Diana Duff is a plant adviser, educator and consultant living part time in Kailua-Kona
