Family has been visiting for the past week, so I've been off the internet. One outing we made with our visitors was to Sherman Gardens in Corona del Mar. The foliage there is looking glorious. I took many photos of foliage and foliage combinations throughout the garden.An array of Heucheras with some white pumpkins:
A variegated Schefflera arbicola(?). I vaguely recall seeing this in one of our recent terrible drought years--looking painfully stressed. A joy to see it lush and thriving again:
Outside the lath house. The lath paint color echos the soft grey-green foliage:
In the lath house:
Nice trio of tree fern, tropical palm, and slatted light:In the conservatory, warm and humid:Makes you a little dizzy, but in a good way:Outside again, a sedge of some sort with bamboo and stone:That rich amethyst Heuchera foliage looks great with chartreuse:This area was a formal rose garden for many years. The roses never really thrived. As a school assignment, a local horticultural class remade the space as an Asian style foliage garden. The only fail is the potted Sequoia in the center. It's badly scorched.Bromeliads over one of the entrances to the conservatory:That's it for this post. Hope you enjoyed the pictures. We really enjoyed our visit.
No turtle photos? Hope they're okay...
ReplyDeleteI added a photo for you. They were swimming around and happy.
DeleteLove it!
DeleteLovely photos. I haven't been there since April so I haven't seen the Asian-style garden - I must remedy that omission soon!
ReplyDeleteIt looked like they did that garden in late Spring. It was really good except for the scorched Sequoia. Overall you could see what the rainy winter did, just like everywhere else around here. Good things.
DeleteThanks for sharing. The photos are beautiful, I'm amazed at the calatheas growing on the ground and without the brown edges. Mine always end up with brown edges.
ReplyDeleteThe Calatheas in the Conservatory were really thriving. There were some others I didn't photograph that looked just as good. Perhaps the constant very high humidity and warmth (that conservatory gets really warm) is what they need.
DeleteGood morning! How about that bit of rain we had earlier this week? I could get used to that -- though it did make driving into work a pain. Who needs flowers with all those gorgeous heucheras? I may have to rethink those. I began my interest in plants when my grandmother brought me a dracena because she thought my first grown-up apartment needed some life, as she put it. From there it just took off. Over the next few years, I bought every little $0.79 pot that Safewy carried. I found I could identify most of the plants in the conservatory because I had grown them. Of couse, seeing those professional conditions makes it quite clear why many of them bit the dust. There was no way my little Anchorage apartment was going to deliver that amount of humidity, no matter how many trays of rocks were set beneath. Still, the stroll down memory lane was nice and I was surprised I could remember so many of the plants. Hope you are settling back nicely into your daily routine. Elizabeth
ReplyDeleteThe bit of rain was wonderful. We are at 0.34" for October, pretty good! I never had success with those gorgeous Heucheras--expensive annuals for me. I asked a Sherman Garden worker what their secret was--she said they didn't live that long and they would simply replace them frequently. Ohhhhhkayyyyy.
DeleteThe SG conservatory is wonderful, small and crammed full and beautifully maintained. Every time I go there I wish I had one of my own.
Fantastic photos, a place I still have never been. That huge variegated fern in your first image, any idea what it is? I love it!
ReplyDeleteIts a "jewel box" kind of Botanic Garden--small but crammed with interest and very well maintained.
DeleteMaybe Pteris argyraea? Larger growing in a choice climate in the ground for decades. Not everything was labelled.
Some fabulous foliage combinations. Love that huge lath house. I don't think I've ever seen one like it before.
ReplyDeleteThe lath house is fabulous with the towering palms and tall tree ferns. There's one palm they made a hole in the roof for because it grew so tall. Sherman Gardens is right on the coast so the weather there is always mild. Plants are crazy happy there. A few miles inland it is much hotter and with lower humidity--makes a huge difference for plants that can't take desiccating Santa Ana winds like begonias and fuchsias.
DeleteGorgeous combinations. The lath house is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteYes it is. It makes me want one of my own.
DeleteI assume your visiting family members love plants as you do; they had to have been impressed with the Sherman Garden.
ReplyDeleteSome Heuchera is more resilient than other. By winter's end it looks disheveled and I want to rip it out, but then comes spring and they look good again... The "rich amethyst Heuchera" is probably 'Forever Purple': hardy and sun tolerant.
The first photo is stunning example of foliage fireworks. The gently backlit palm leaf is stunning.
Chavli
The Heucheras overall seem to want something this climate can't offer--winter chill? A cooler summer? Come spring they don't look better--they are deceased. Well no climate can grow everything...
DeleteThose are some fabulous foliage combinations. I've never seen a variegated Schefflera arboricola before - very eye catching and would be a quick favorite if we had room to grow one in our house.
ReplyDeleteYes indeed even among other striking plants, it grabs your attention and doesn't let go.
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