The Huntington Gardens - At Long Last

The Huntington Library and Gardens, located in San Marino/Pasadena, are world famous. The library brings scholars from all over the world and the gardens brought me. I definitely have to make another visit before too long to see the museum, and the Japanese gardens are closed for a year for refurbishing so there are plenty of excuses to go back.

Well, I hope you like gardens. I have overdone it with pictures, but I cannot possibly capture the lushness and expanse of the gardens here. I have lived here for over 30 years and this was my first visit. I did not get there until 3:00 and they close at 4:30 so I did pretty good getting as much of the gardens covered as I did. Well, if a picture is worth a thousand words, I have a novel here. Mind you one without much plot...

As always click on any picture to make it larger.

***And as an extra bonus, when I got back home I noticed that I had worn my shirt on inside-out all day. If you want to be alone adding that little extra touch of crazy is useful.

Shakespeare Garden

I assume that what makes it so are typical English shrubs, trees and herbs and such. There were a few things specifically mentioned in plays as seen below.

See

A favorite combo - yellow yarrow and blue salvia. Nothing like having dozens of gardeners and millions of dollars to keep a really decent garden going. I had wanted to come after the spring rains but was unable. I do not think I missed a thing.

In this grouping there is a butterfly bush with plenty of beautiful butterflies fluttering by but none who agreed to pose.

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Entry to the chidren's garden/path

And what kind of large scale garden would be complete without an arbor or five?

I am not a big statuary fan, but it worked here

Another thing I am lukewarm on are rose gardens. As beautiful as roses are, a bunch of them clumped together does not say gorgeous to me. As rose gardens go, it wasn't half bad and I went for the smell anyway. Takes me back to May procession and the fragrant springs of Pennsylvania.

I was a little surprised how many buildings there were. Don't you think the top floor of the left wing could be made into a decent apartment for me? Maybe a lap pool on the ground floor?

Where the scholars go. There is a Gutenberg (1450?) bible on display but I did not get a chance to see it this time.

Something about these just says - vacation

Like being in Hawaii again. All of the plants I was curious about had no markers.

Wonderful scarlet caladium or coleus. Who the hell knows.

I believe above and below are a giant rhododendron - I mean huge - over 30 feet

Beautiful lily pond

Wee little waterfall

They seem so charming, but we all know they are shits



One minute you are walking through a bamboo forest and the next a Gainsborough painting

A montage of the benches.
Being more of a sitter than a walker I found the benches very appealing.
I only took advantage of two of them, however.

And finally...

Within a mile of my home this guy showed up. This one is for Jason. Plenty of bees among the salvia at The Huntington, too. Just as well he wasn't here.