Woodside Library

My third, and final, garden stop on Friday took me to the Woodside Library. The California native garden behind the library is one of my favorite...native gardens. I like to visit when I can.

I found it drenched in sunlight.











So drenched in sun in fact, I could not see what I was taking pictures of in my camera's LCD viewer. All I could do was point the camera, press the button, and hope for the best.



I had forgotten they added three Ceanothus 'Tuxedo' plants the time I was here. They've grown at least 6 feet since then.



The plant was developed for it's black foliage. You can read about it here.



It shimmered copper-bronze in full sun.





I found some respite from the sun under the redwoods at the back of the garden.



I had a little visitor.





Lol.

Gamble Garden

I made a second garden stop in Palo Alto, a short drive from the last place.



Check out the smoke bush, in full smoke (Cotinus coggygria).



I like they let the hydrangea ('Annabelle'?) grow up against the fencing like that. Artful staking.



Most public gardens in the Bay Area have some lofty purpose related to preservation, conservation, natural habitats, etc. That's nice. Unpretentious ornamental flower gardens that exist simply for human enjoyment are nice too.















Not that there isn't some water-wise gardening going on here as well.



What are the odds that both of the agaves you planted next to your greenhouse bloom at the same time?













The Gamble Garden's most remarkable specimen is perhaps a big, old Erythrina crista-galli.



You don't see these around here very often.

Eleanor Pardee Park

in Palo Alto, site of a fabulous community garden and Master Gardeners demonstration garden.



The MG demo garden has two parts, vegetable and ornamental. The latter features familiar natives and other water-wise workhorses.













I was surprised and delighted to find ripe currants on Ribes sanguineum. Usually the birds get them, first thing. They aren't very tasty to humans anyway, but aren't they pretty?





The vegetable gardens here are always padlocked which is a shame. Who steals vegetables from gardens in Palo Alto, anyway? That's so weird.





My life's dream is to move to the suburbs--where it's warm enough for vegetable gardening--and grow squash on an arbor! And corn!



The MG's have a fair amount of signage in accordance with their mission to educate. This is about growing blueberries in the Bay Area.







The MG potager is exquisitely well-maintained. Meanwhile, jubilant chaos prevails the gardens of the hoi polloi.







Asparagus can be a real mess, but I want to grow that some day too.





A lot of ornamental plants grow throughout the community garden plots too--roses, dahlias, buddleia, verbascum, this massive, 6'x6' Leonotis leonurus.









This is a fine place to pass an hour or so when you're in Palo Alto. The address is 851 Center Drive and the website is here. The entrance is dark under the shade of oaks, and the garden is obscured from the street behind thick vegetation. It's easy to miss if you're not looking for it. Park on the street and wander in.