I see a lot of familiar old plant friends, but this garden, more than any other in my usual circuit, varies most dramatically from visit to visit. It always feels different.
I didn't notice the cactus apple underfoot before I stepped on it. For whatever reason, I did not realize how pigmented they were inside. Heck yeah, I stuck my finger in there and tasted it. Sweet, tangy, and it stained my fingertip a bit.
It will look different if you're coming for Garden Blogger Spring Fling 2013. I hope this whetted your appetite.
For those of you who live nearby, I have a tip. The Ruth Bancroft Garden has the cheapest annual membership of all Bay Area's major public gardens. Your membership card will get you in to those other gardens, and more gardens nationwide, under a reciprocal agreement they all share.
ADDED: It's kind of a shame that right across the street from this deep resource of a garden, the conservative suburbs retreat into boring convention with regionally inappropriate, water-dependent landscaping like this:
