17 minute read
The Goodlife
Breathe Deep at One of America’s San Diego Botanic Garden Top 10 Gardens Story and Photos by Kris Grant
Here’s a day-trip suggestion that’s just a few minutes up the coast, and one where you can socially distance in a totally outdoor environment that will transport you like magic to all parts of the globe.
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San Diego Botanic Gardens in Encinitas is an urban oasis. Its 37 acres are located on a sandstone ridge, with undulating canyons and mesas, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, which lies about two miles to the west. Here you will encounter more than 5,000 plant species from around the world. Four miles of walking trails will lead you into 29 separate garden environments that each entice you to linger, breath deep and unwind. You are also likely to come away inspired with ideas to spruce up your own private oasis.
I spent a pleasant morning and early afternoon meandering through the garden on Thursday, July 2. Even at the height of summer tourism, I encountered few other visitors, as the reservation system caps visitors at just 90 per day.
A visit to the gardens begins at a new entrance at what was once the rear of the property; there’s ample free parking. Opposite check-in is the new Dickenson Family Education Conservatory, an 8,000 square-foot glass-enclosed facility housing rare and unusual tropical plants with an adjacent outdoor amphitheater. A highlight of the conservatory are six floating “plant islands” reminiscent of the movie “Avatar” that hang from the ceiling. These “living chandeliers” were the brainchild of the garden’s first President and CEO, Julian Duval, who retired in January 2019 after 24 years of service. Duval took the former quail refuge to a nationally recognized tourist attraction, which was named in 2019 as one of the “Top 10 Gardens Worth Traveling For” by the American Public Garden Association.
Colorful dragonflies pollinate plants at the Tropical and Temperate Rainforest.
The garden’s main trail is well marked with arrows, which suggest a oneway path to maximize social distancing.
One of my first stops was the Bird and Butterfly Garden, well named, as I chased butterflies and hummingbirds around the flowers and plants to capture them in photographs.
The neighboring Hamilton Children’s garden and children’s “Seeds of Wonder” garden are the only two gardens now closed by CDC orders. “The children’s tree house and equipment didn’t lend themselves well to social distancing,” Page 44 Coronado Magazine explained Lisa Reynolds, the San Diego Botanic’s public relations director who kindly escorted my friend Nancy and me on our get-acquainted tour.
So many gardens! Among them are the Canary Islands garden that includes a dragon tree grove among its plantings, while the Central America garden includes a Montezuma cypress, tree dahlias and other plants of the region. Palm Canyon is filled with dozens of graceful palms from around the world, while the South Africa Garden features colorful flora of South Africa, especially those of the southwest Cape region, where the Mediterraneantype climate is similar to that found here.
The Australian garden includes plants from “Down Under” that include kangaroo paws, bottle trees, firewheel trees and many low-water landscape plants.
The “Walled Garden,” adjacent to the former owner’s home, is a secluded space filled with historic trees, ferns and cycads. It reminded me of the garden in the movie “Notting Hill.”
There’s also an herb garden, New Zealand garden, Mediterranean garden with a shady grove of cork oak trees and fragrant low-water plants like lavender, rosemary and rock rose. The Mexican garden shares the rich botanical heritage of Mexico through its plantings of agaves, salvias and cycads. And the Native Plants and Native People display describes the ethno botany of the Kumeyaay indigenous people who once lived here. Among its exhibits are a Kumeyaay dwelling and a ramada.
Prior to COVID-19, the gardens offered “nature bathing” excursions, which is based on “Shinrin-Yoku,” a Japanese practice developed in the 1980s. Led by teachers certified in the subject, individuals immerse themselves in a forest or other natural surroundings and take it all in, using their five senses. “It’s been found to reduce blood pressure, increase creativity, uplift your mood and general sense of well being,” said Reynolds, who participated in a recent class and found it channeled a surprising emotional release.
Although the classes aren’t available due to COVID-19, Reynolds suggested that solo visitors might want to bring along a journal or good book and spend time just relaxing on a bench amid the sights, sounds and smells of their favorite gardens.
As Lisa, Nancy and I left the whimsical Undersea Garden where a tropical coral reef is surrounded with succulents and overflowing with imaginary marine life, a gentleman rode up on his Vespa. It was Dr. Ari Novy, the garden’s new President and CEO, who took over the helm last year. Novy is a plant biologist with degrees from New York University and Rutgers University who formerly served as Executive Director of the United States Botanic Garden in Washington, D.C.
Asked about his favorites of the 29 gardens here, Novy called out the Tropical and Temperate Rainforest, where shady paths follow streams and pools with a beautiful waterfall at the center. I had to agree on his choice.
Another of his favorites (and mine, too!) is the bamboo garden. “It’s great any time of year,” he said. “It’s shady in the summer and warms you on colder days because the tall and thick bamboo acts as a wind shield.” The American Bamboo Society was started at the garden in 1979. Its collection of bamboo, which began in the late 1970s, has long been the largest collection in any U.S. public garden.
Novy added that he also enjoys walks along the boardwalk to the Overlook Tower. In the early 1990s, students at Mira Costa College developed this special garden to demonstrate the merits of California native plants. A wooden boardwalk was built to protect its sensitive Southern maritime chaparral habitat including Coastal Sage Scrub and the endangered Del Mar Manzanita.
At the end of our tour, Nancy was ready to sign up for Master Gardener classes so she could one day be a volunteer docent. In fact, one volunteer docent, Jeff, greeted us at the end of our day. “I love it here,” he said. “It’s the happiest place
A little history…
San Diego Botanic Garden’s history is as rich as its soil.
The garden would have been celebrating its 50th year in grand style this year, if not for the coronavirus. Public relations director Lisa Reynolds says that if all goes well, next year’s gala will use the 50th anniversary celebration as its theme.
A century ago the garden’s canyons and mesas were dotted with native plants. That began to change in 1917, when a 45- acre land parcel was purchased by Donald and Nan Ingersoll who built a small ranch house on its hilltop; Nan planted some eucalyptus trees. Donald Ingersoll, in partnership with developer J. Frank Cullen, built much of Cardiff-by-the-Sea, a seaside village that is part of Encinitas. A 16.5-acre portion of Ingersoll’s land was next sold to Anton van Amersfoort, who planted many trees, including a grove of avocados. A German settler, Herman
Ruth Baird Larabee planted more than 200 species of plants, shrubs, cacti and succulents on her land that she later donated to San Diego County as a preserve for California quail. Photo courtesy of Sally Sandler.
Seidler, bought a second 10-acre parcel.
In 1942 and 1943 Ruth Baird Larabee purchased both parcels. Well-educated and independently wealthy, Ruth and her husband Charles hailed from Kansas City. The Larabees shared a love for Latin cultures, gardening and conservation. It was Charles Larabee who led the way west. He was the owner of the Larabee Flour mills, founded by his father, which was the third largest flour mill in the nation after Pillsbury and General Mills. Ruth’s father was a multi-millionaire bank owner in Kansas City and wealthy real estate owner with considerable investments in Texas.
Charles spent the years 1938 to 1942 traveling and photographing throughout Mexico, South America and the American Southwest, where he also participated in a two-month journey down the Colorado River.
Ruth accompanied her husband on some of his trips, and she became an avid collector of Native American art, particularly black-on-black pottery.
Over the course of the next seven years, the Larabees developed the landscape of their ranch, which they named “San Ysidro de las Flores” with more than 200 species of trees, shrubs, cacti and succulents, many of which came from Mexico and South America and required low water usage. Ruth, typically wearing overalls and green rubber boots, often began working in her gardens at sunrise.
While the Larabees didn’t have children of their own, Ruth, who had been a Camp Fire Girl in her youth, became a troop leader for senior Girl Scouts. Charles became a Scout Executive for the Senior Explorer Scouts, sponsored by the Encinitas Rotary, where he was a lifelong member of the club that was founded in 1939. The Larabees often brought the scouts to their ranch and educated them about conservation.
Charles eventually established a business as a river guide for tours in Utah, Arizona and Colorado and separated from Ruth. The Larabees divorced in 1950 and Ruth remained at the ranch through 1957, then deeded her 26-acre estate to the County of San Diego as a park to preserve the habitat of California quails.
By 1961, Quail Gardens Foundation nonprofit corporation was formed with the task of preserving and enhancing the property and envisioning its future. The board decided upon a horticultural garden and in 1968 began building roads, bathrooms, a parking lot and water lines to the property, in preparation of opening the gardens to the public.
On March 8, 1970, Quail Park Botanic Gardens opened its gates. The following year, neighbor Paul Ecke, Sr., known as “the Poinsettia King,” donated another four acres and a Scout Hut to the county, which was later enlarged and used as administrative headquarters. Eventually, the gardens leased an additional seven acres from the City of Encinitas.
Over the years, the gardens have expanded; new plant species have been added, a visitors center and gift shop opened and two name changes came about; the last, San Diego Botanic Garden, was adopted in 2009.
And what ever became of Ruth Baird Larabee, you ask? This woman was nothing short of remarkable! She could have settled back comfortably in one of Kansas City’s finest mansions, but Ruth had a penchant for service and adventure.
For several years Ruth and her friend and neighbor Magdalena Ecke [Paul Ecke, Sr.’s wife] took food and clothes and other provisions down to Mexico, explains Sally Sandler, author of the book “Sowing Seeds of Wonder – The Stories of Ruth and Charles Larabee and the Origins of San Diego Botanic Garden.”
“Ruth was comfortable there, saw a need, and seemed to
want to shed her wealthy background for something more meaningful and dedicate herself to service,” she noted. So, after deeding her ranch property to the county, Ruth left for Puebla, Mexico where for the next seven years she provided nursing care to needy people at the Baptist mission Hospital LatinaAmericana. Next, she moved to Lubbock, Texas, where her sister lived and where she developed a relationship with Texas Tech University.
While traveling in Europe in 1969, Ruth was killed in a hotel fire in England. In her will, she left an endowment for the Camp Fire Girls, money to assist nursing students in Mexico, a bequest of Texas land and funds to build a 36-bell carillon at Texas Tech, and money to Tuskegee University in Alabama for scholarships for African-American women.
So, one might say that the seeds of San Diego Botanic Garden were planted with loads of good karma!
If You Go...
Admission prices are $18, adults; $12, seniors (60+); $12, active military; $10, youth, 3 – 17. Reservations must be made in advance at sdbgarden.org. Only 90 individuals are allowed into the garden each day. This creates a near-ideal environment for strolling and only occasionally encountering other visitors. No one over two years of age is allowed to enter the garden without a face covering, which must be worn throughout the garden when coming within six feet of other visitors.
While the garden’s coffee cart, gift shop and other indoor areas are currently closed, visitors are encouraged to bring their own water and snacks. Restrooms are cleaned and sanitized every two hours.
The garden is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday; closed Monday and Tuesday.
The entrance has been moved to 300 Quail Gardens Drive; exit I-5 at Encinitas Boulevard.
From My Shelf To Yours: Quarantine Reading To Transport Your Mind By Alex Brady
Lionel Shriver is known for being contrary. In a June profile for The New Yorker Shriver said that in all her work she aims to “tackle precisely the subjects that everyone yearns to avoid” — “Game Control” is no exception. Eleanor Merritt is a bright-eyed hopeful working as a family planner in Kenya; she distributes condoms and birth control to locals. Calvin Piper is a famously controversial demographer (he recites statistics of overpopulation like scripture and wonders whether one might “revenge” oneself “ ... on an entire universe”). Calvin has a murderous solution for Africa’s over-peopled woes: literally. Eleanor epitomizes white guilt; she’s driven to neardelusional efforts of savorism, blinded by the modern discomfort that she “costs too much.” Meanwhile if Calvin, who is an unflinchingly irreverent man whose politics have “veered so far left they had ended on the far right instead,” shared his murderous final solution on Twitter, he would surely find himself “cancelled,” and then some. Shriver’s novel is a farcical look into the precarious politics of the modern intellectual and an investigation into the ways the upper class may try to save, or destroy, the plight of the oppressed in the name of some greater good.
Evaristo’s “Girl, Woman, Other” is like stained glass. Once assembled, the 12-character narrative offers a compelling look into Black womanhood. Evaristo jumps from woman to woman. First, we meet Amma. The formidable middle-aged theatre director is working on a new play alongside her longtime friend Dominique who, swept up in love, runs off to America with a psychotically possessive new age woman and ends up trapped in the rural commune of Spirit Moon. And then there’s Yazz, Amma’s “woke” teenagerebel-girl daughter who the two women are co-raising — not without difficulty. Evaristo’s writing is funny in that she writes in list-style-sentences-with-dashesand-or-commas-with-exacting
tongue-in-cheek character observations (Dominique’s possessive paramour, Nzinga, is a “teetotal, vegan, non-smoking, radical feminist separatist lesbian housebuilder.”) From there, more women join the cast. Evaristo delves into the realm of the “other” through these women’s everyday experiences; she charts their pains and their joys in equal measure. “Girl, Woman, Other” will take you out of your four walls and ask you, often humorously, to consider the “other,” and to inhabit her.
This 250-page whirlwind follows three anthropologists entangled in a love triangle. The novel, which is loosely based on the life of the famous anthropologist Margaret Mead, follows Nell Stone and her husband Fen. The couple’s marriage, while often dysfunctional and abrasive, breeds a sort of magnetism. When Andrew Bankson (the third anthropologist) meets them, he is instantly enthralled. Set in the jungles of New Guinea, this one is likely the most “transportive” of the bunch — the dense flora of the jungle welcomes secrecy and accelerates the trio’s increasing obsession. You’ll get sucked in, too.
“The Glass Hotel” by Emily St. John Mandel
Emily St. John Mandel’s spring release opens with a command: “begin at the end.” And so the opening chapter starts the way the final chapter concludes. Mandel, much like her 2014 hit “Station Eleven” which gained popularity early on in the pandemic due to its post-apocalyptic setting, gives you fragments that slowly start to coalesce. “The Glass Hotel” drifts through time to trace the origins and fallout of a sprawling Wall Street ponzi scheme. Partly set at the crime scene in Manhattan and partly set in a secluded luxury hotel in the Pacific Northwest owned by the very financier responsible for the scheme at the novel’s center, Mandel’s novel ultimately asks what it means for a life to go off track. Through her characters’ increasingly interconnected narratives,
Mandel shows how individual decisions reverberate throughout countless lives and time, and how old griefs can connect us and render our memories seemingly corporeal.
On a daily morning walk with her dog, a 72-year-old-widow named Vesta finds a note in the dirt. It reads: “Her name was Magda. Nobody will ever know who killed her. It wasn’t me. Here is her dead body.” In her lonesome, quiet life in a remote forest cabin, she becomes desperate to piece Magda’s life together and, ultimately, to solve the mystery, freeing both the alleged dead girl and herself from obscurity. The premise masquerades as a classic whodunit, but Moshfegh’s slim volume asks more of its reader. Vesta’s story reveals the ugliness that loneliness unearths; our crippling fear of death, and the feeble attempts we make to evade it. But Moshfegh is not one for clearcut morals. Throughout, she punctuates her plot with self-aware asides on the absurdities inherent in writing a mystery novel, and writing fiction more broadly. In one aside, Moshfegh pokes that it’s “the job of the writer to belittle the miracles of this Earth, to separate one question out of the infinite mystery of life and answer it in some sniveling way.” As Vesta dives deeper into her investigation, the clues become more and more immaterial, and Vesta’s control becomes less and less certain. “Death in Her Hands” doesn’t settle for easy answers, and the mystery is all the better for it.
