Can’t get out to visit gardens?   Visit our Public Gardens photo galleries for a virtual visual reminder of the beauty to be found in the plant world.

Chasmanthe floribunda var. duckittii Yellow Cobra Lily flowering South African bulb in Leaning Pine Arboretum, San Luis Obispo, California

Almost everybody seems to be required to shelter in place these days.  Many public garden are closed even for those near enough to get their exercise in them.  If you need a hit of the beauty to be found in them, there are currently 41 galleries in the Public Garden section of our photo galleries.

Ruth Bancroft Garden, California native plant section

Because of the ongoing work with the Summer-Dry Project, many of the California public garden galleries have been updated recently, supplemented with new plants for the WUCOLS database.

Phymaspermum acerosum, Coulter Bush, silver foliage South African summer-dry perennial in Leaning Pine Arboretum.

Leaning Pine Arboretum is part of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and is maintained by the students to help them get experience with some of the best ornamental garden plants from all the summer-dry (aka mediterranean) climates of the world.  The South African section was particularly good this year.

The Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, California is another great resource for the summer-dry project.  Many know the Bancroft garden for the cactus and succulents, which are truly magnificent, but there are many other herbaceous plants in the garden, many of which are in the nursery trade.

Lachenalia aloides (Opal Flower) South African summer-dry bulb flowering in Ruth Bancroft Garden

Other gardens are being updated every week and we are still able to go photograph some of them as the Media, an essential service.  We hope you agree garden reporting is essential too.