Page 32 - Oct.Nov PDF For Flipbook

Official members of the garden also get some special perks—member-
ship opportunities are available and they help fund all the happenings
you can enjoy at the garden. In addition to members-only classes and
special events, one of these perks includes getting an invitation to the
annual tasting tour. “You actually get to go around the garden and taste
some of the cacti fruit,” Vidal said. “We have other palms and things
that you get a chance to taste. With about 12 stations you get to sam-
ple fruit as you wander!” This only happens once a year in October. Of
course, there is a limited supply and it must be restricted to only 40
people. So if you’re a member, or are planning to become one, contact
the garden right away!
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With about 3.5 acres of garden to roam, most people spend about
an hour to an hour and a half on an average visit. If you’re try-
ing to pick the perfect time to visit the Ruth Bancroft Garden,
really any time will do. “There’s always something in bloom in
the garden, no matter what month you’re here,” Vidal assures us.
“There’s always something unique and interesting.” A lot of peo-
ple think that spring would be the best time to visit, but even in
the dead of winter a lot of their aloe plants are in bloom.
You can also find many interesting hybrids on the land. “Our
curator will do a lot of experimenting,” said Vidal. “Trying to
take the pollen from one aloe that maybe has a wonderful color
and another aloe that’s very hearty and he’ll cross pollinate things;
there’s a variety of interesting and unique hybrids that are here.”
New plants are added to the garden all the time as it is ever changing.
“The garden is a living, breathing thing,” said Vidal. “Things die with
the heat or with the cold, so we have to replant. We try to do so in
Ruth’s vision, but she was an experimenter as well.” Ruth would take
plants that might not even be able to grow in Walnut Creek and put
them to the test, just trial and error all along the way, wondering which
plants will work no matter where they came from. “So we continue on
in that experiment to try new things.”
The garden is certainly expanding as far as their facilities are concerned.
And the nursery has been growing exponentially over the last few years.
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