Huntington Visit March 2017

 You could see what the rain had done--the Huntington looked particularly beautiful:  renewed after five years of drought.  

Echium candicans (fastuosum)* planted last year in the Entry Garden is now looking glorious.
* "This plant was long called Echium fastuosum but more recently Echium candicans has been determined to be the correct name - unfortunate as the name 'candicans' means "white" while 'fastuosum' means "proud". "  -- San Marcos Nursery website
 I'd be proud too if I was that good looking.

 We saw the Echiums at their best. 
 Also in the Entry Garden a new potted plant--Leucospermum 'Goldfinger'...

...the Rill Garden looked different yet again--the plantings change constantly...
 ...a Mallard down at the bottom of the rill looked annoyed at being woken.  Still on Standard Time, I guess.
 There was a new replacement Aloe barbarae for one that had been removed.  It was ludicrously small in comparison to the one that had been removed due to rot and age.  To the right you can see a bit of a mature one--this is what that skinny little thing could become!
 In the Desert Garden, this finch looked a little grumpy, too.
 Mockingbird on Aloe rupestris
The Mockingbird was either drinking dew or nectar or a mix of both from the Aloe.  We could see it lapping up liquid from the flower cluster.  The bird has pollen on its chin.
 Palms and Beaucarnea and Opuntia and Agave and Golden Barrel cactus and Senecio mandraliscae...
 The rain really made a difference for the Palms.
 Heavy bloom on the Acacia. 
 Many Aloes still blooming.  The conical towers of Aeonium flowers add splashes of yellow. 
 

 As I recall this was a Butia hybrid.  It looked so happy from all of our winter rain.  The foliage looks great, doesn't it? 
 Aloe camperi, maybe. 
 Goldfinch on Aloe africana:
 Aloe rupestris again
 Squirrels were eating Aloe seed pods. 
 There was a Clivia Show at the Botanical Center but we didn't make it there.  The Clivia showing off in the garden itself were impressive enough. 

 Oooh, variegated foliage!
 We were a week or two late for Peak Camellia--it was quite hot all of last week, and it showed in the Camellia flowers.  This bloom of 'Harold L. Paige', however, was still perfection. 
The Australian Garden highlight was Eucalyptus grossa.  Striking large flowers:




 In the adjacent Subtropical area, Handroanthus impetiginosus, Pink Tabebuia, over 30 feet tall, was at its perfect moment.


 The Hippeastrum papilo was blooming here also.  The rain, the rain did it!
 The Shakespeare Garden looked as good.  Green, so green.  

 As we left we walked by the Visitor Center dome, where Beaumontia grandiflora was flowering.  
 Rain is magic!

Comments

  1. Rain IS magic and maybe we'll get a little more this week! Thanks for sharing your trip to the Huntington - it has me wondering what tricks I need to pull to get my husband to drive out there sometime soon. I'd guess my Echium are 2-4 weeks behind those you saw but I'm looking forward to the coming show.

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    1. I'm keeping my expectations very very low on the rain, but still hoping...there's a lot to see at the Huntington. Does Husband like art? There are galleries, not just those plant thingys.

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  2. Beautiful! I was just there on 18 March, and I laughed at seeing some of the same things I noticed. The Huntington always looks great, and with the rains even more so. Thanks for taking us along!

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    1. Great minds think alike. :) I hate the long drive, but it's always worth it, so why do I hate the long drive???

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  3. Thank you for taking us with you to this beautiful garden. I would love to visit it.
    Have a wonderful day Hoover Boo.

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    1. I'm happy you enjoyed it, Marijke. A wonderful day to you.

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  4. Just incredible pictures. As ever I'm so envious of all those wonderful plants. But the whole garden looks SO lush compared to your previous visits.

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    1. It was a delight to see how the plants have bounced back. All it took was 20 inches of rain.

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  5. Everything is beautiful. That pink blooming tree is spectacular. Do they still have the famous long pergola with roses?

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    1. The long pergola has been repaired and has new roses and old favorites growing on it! In the whole large rose garden with its hundreds of plants there were just a handful of flowers--too early yet. Looked like another two or three weeks yet.

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  6. Thank you for the glorious visit to one of my favorite places on earth.

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  7. Another Hippeastrum papilio in bloom! Now I'm convinced it was the rain--and I know to keep mine watered in a dry winter.

    I can't believe how different the rill garden looks each time I see new photos. Kudos to the Huntington staff to keep things interesting for frequent visitors.

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    1. Yep, must have been that wonderful, wonderful rain.

      The Huntington staff must have fun making changes. I would!

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    2. That Hippeastrum papilio is gorgeous, but no more so than your neighbor's beauty. I'm guessing, though, that not too many people have that variegated Clivia. What a stunner, and what a nice quality for a Clivia to have -- they're handsome but fairly dull when not in bloom; this one would enliven any patch of green.

      Gosh, how everything glows; it must be overwhelming in person. Thanks for capturing so much of it so well.

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    3. The variegation on the Clivia was particularly striking because it was intense white against green rather than an ivory or yellow.

      It was quite cheering to be there. If any roses had been in bloom it might have been too much. Couple weeks yet for those.

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  8. Wow - what a marvelous display!!! And such beautiful captures... That Echium is fantastic, not to mention the Aloe rupestre. I honestly have no idea why the birds looked grumpy...

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    1. I think those noisy humans were disturbing their glorious morning.

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  9. The golden barrel cactus in the 'Palms and Beaucarnia and...' picture just crack me up; they look so much like a flock of sheep wandering under the palms.

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  10. Such beautiful photos...! Everything so green, and bursting with life - well, maybe not the little barbarae, but I expect he'll do fine. The Rill Garden is beyond gorgeous. Thanks so much for sharing your visit!

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    1. The barbaraes do seem to start out wimpy--then look how they end up.

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