Hardscapes and Bizarre-scapes

Summer has settled down a little and it is time to get back to sharing my experiences while in San Francisco.  As I weeded through my 1,000 + photos, I tried to figure out how to go about posting this fabulous trip.  I felt as though I was in another land, another world almost. Some gardens were bold and bright with vivid colors, some were blues and grays foliage and dry conditions.  Some had small vistas, others were views as far as one could see.  Many of the gardens had sculpture and other hardscapes in their design.   So, the San Francisco Fling will be broken into three posts-- this one- sculptures and unusual plant material, the next one will be views and vistas, then finally all the bold colors. These are a little photo heavy, sorry if it takes a while to load.   So let us explore SF---

The bus I was on first stopped at Matt Gill's garden.  Matt Gill's Sculpture Garden.  First garden, first experience in the unusual...both plants and great sculptures caught my eye.

This garden was planted on the hillside under an overpass of the freeway.  Limited only in the space...this gardener was really thinking outside the box.  Some of the plant material was what I have as a houseplant....only 100 times the size!

I have the one below in a small pot......this one towered over my head.

This pretty little blue seed pod was planted in a lot of the gardens.  Dianella caerulea, don't you love it?  There is a variety named 'Becca' - perfect for my family garden. 

The next garden we went to was the Organic Mechanic's garden.  A courtyard in the center of tall apartment buildings....with some great planters and hardscapes.  Isn't this tire a great planter?

Many of the bloggers in my group were taking a lot of pictures of this pathway.  It is all repurposed brickwork, manhole covers, tiles and various other great finds. 

When we got to Annie's Annuals nursery I was tickled to so many pieces of garden art.  Large and small pieces, something for every garden!  Moooooo baby!

Sculptures and unusual plant material awaited us at the Wave Garden.  It was at this point I knew, I was not in my element.  I love the plants, I love the gardens, I love the hardscapes, but I had no idea what all I was looking at.   Isn't this stunning?  Here we have one of the many Mysterious California plants.  I will just embrace them for their beauty.

The bold color of succulents were at every turn.

Glorious sculptures accented spots in the garden.

The Conservatory of Flowers in the Botanical Garden had some incredible plant material.  I have seen some carnivorous plants, but never ones this large nor ones with fangs.

This fly has made a mistake hanging out here!   These carnivorous plants are in the tropical pitcher plant category-  Nepenthes.

The flooring in the Conservatory is not to be missed.   Love the whorled arrangement of the petioles.  Mysterious California plant.

Tree bark far different from what we see in the South.   This grand specimen was in the gardens at Filoli.  It is a Hinoki False Cypress Chamaecyparis obtusa, there was a tag so not a Mysterious California plant.  Hinoki False Cypress in my world is about four feet tall and bark/trunk is unseen unless you crawl into the foliage.

Even in Rebecca Sweet's lovely garden there was plant material unfamiliar and unusual.   Rebecca told me the name of this one......in one ear and out the other.  She thinks it could grow in my zone.  Hmmm..... sure is attractive.   Love the berry pink berries.  Anyone know this one?

Ok, this is a lemon tree...but it is planted in the garden!  Outside, not in a container, doesn't have to be dragged into the greenhouse or garage or house to overwinter.  How cool is that?

The most otherworldly place we visited was Ruth Bancroft Garden.  The sculptures were all over the garden, most for sale as a fund raiser.  Walk with me through the desert landscape in the 100+ degree heat as we see many many Mysterious California plants and some cool sculptures.

 To my untrained eye, the photo above has what looks like Tillandsia or Air Plants....but enormous.  Cactus and palms, aloes and other dry climate plants fill the landscape.

 Then there are the sculptures.... winged dinosaur-like creatures.

And bold colorful large shaped sculptures.

Agaves large enough to hide a small car.  These are quite mature plants.

One of the docents said some were over a hundred years old. 

My dad was a baseball fan, thought he would appreciate this one.

There were three different kinds of Eucalyptus trees in this area of the garden, this one is Ghost Gum Tree in front of a Chilean Wine Palm, Jubaea chilensis.

I enjoyed walking through this garden, appreciating the plantings with their form, size, shape, color and how the light played on each.

After the desert the garden at the Dudan home was peaceful and awesome at the same time.
I love this little setting with a water feature.

Later we arrived at the Nichols garden.  So many great plants, but so huge!!  I love the begonias...never have seen ones this big. 

Next was the garden of Keeyla Meadows.  Artwork was at every turn.  This garden was on a tiny lot but packed full of artwork and colorful plants.   

Love the arched entrance to the backyard.  You can see Keeyla at the entrance.  

I think one of my favorite sculptures in her garden was the Brugmansia flowers next to the living example.

Keeyla had sculptures in every nook -- love her use of color.

Our last stop for the Fling was Flora Grubb Gardens.  If I lived in SF I would be at Flora Grubb and Annie's Annuals at every opportunity.  Wall-hanging succulent planters were quite appealing.  Can't you see your favorite succulents plugged into these letters and hung on your outdoor wall?

Stay tuned for more of San Francisco through my eyes.

©Copyright 2013 Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for The Queen of Seaford. words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.