SF trip

**Saxon Holt s*@saxonholt.com**

Your visit in October should give you the absolute best weather of the
year but with many gardens on last legs, before fall color and awaiting
winter rains.  If you don't want to do the Botanic gardens (which in my
opinion would be THE places to visit because the plant collections
always look different to me no matter how often I go - particularly
Strybing Arboretum and UC Berkeley), and since I can't recommend private
gardens, nurseries might be the most fun just to see the variety of
wares on display.  I don't know where you are coming from, but here
there is an incredible number of plants available to Bay Area gardeners
- from tropical to Mediterranean, and in my humble opinion, the Bay Area
is at the forefront of ecclectic gardening and the nurseries feed this addiction.

It all started at Western Hills Nursery in Occidental (Sonoma County), a
day trip in itself and after 30 years a bit long in the tooth but still
at the edge of nursery style (imagine Heronswood 30 years from now) and
a treasure for plant lovers.  You might try to visit the Occidental Arts
& Ecology Center while out there, a non-profit educational center
supporting biodiversity and organic gardening.  North Bay has Luther
Burbank's garden in Santa Rosa and tiny nurseries galore, from
carniverous plants to bonsai to native plants rhododendrons or japanese
maple, there is nothing quite like Sonoma County.  Get a tour book,
(there are several) or just follow the Farm Trails. 

And if you get a bit tired of nursery hopping, let's not forget October
is harvest time in wine country and THAT is the reason most tourist
visit the Bay Area in October.  Many wineries have gardens to visit
these days and you could spend your entire visit enjoying that discovery
(on many levels...).

Retail nurseries in East Bay display wonderful selections.  Again, there
are regional guides to these if you are serious but you can find tiny
nurseries like The Dry Garden in Oakland that are run on a shoestring by
their owners to nurseries that are almost a destination such as Orchard
Nursery in Orinda with gift shops and expresso bars.

The South Bay has some great wholesale nurseries that allow vistors.  I
personally love Sierra Azul and Rosendale Nursery in Watsonville, but
since they specilialize in Mediterranean plants, their display gardens
may not look like much in October.  Goldsmith Seeds is in Gilroy and
they are always interested in hosting traveling garden journalists but
not sure what they might have in October.  A new attraction in Gilroy
which I have not seen yet is Bonfonte Gardens - billed as an amusement
park for garden enthusiasts.  While I don't think I would care for the
amusement park side of the garden, the Circus Trees are literally
legendary.  Straight out of Ripleys Believe-It-Or-Not these trees have a
history and story to tell.

Hope you enjoy the trip (And Ashland too. I assume for the Festival ? 
Winter's Tale not to be missed.)

Saxon Holt
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