This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

A day at Western Hills Nursery, Occidental, CA

The rain and wind is singing outside so it must be time to sit down and 
share a recent visit (November 5th) to magical Western Hills Nursery, in 
Occidental, California, (about an 1 31/2 hours north and slightly west of 
San Francisco). The three acre display garden with streams and ponds is 
complimented by a nursery featuring many of the plants seen in the 
garden. The nursery & garden are open Thursday thru Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 
p.m. from February thru November, being closed in December/January.

Its easy to get lost on one of the many wandering garden pathways. There 
are bridges to cross, stems to brush aside, birds to see, flowers to 
smell and benches here and there to rest and reflect on. Soon your 
walking again along another pathway with several new and exciting plants.

My visit last month was full with fruit, seed pods, fall colors and 
flowers. I often gravitate to the big pond to see whats happening. The 
Pond Cypress (Taxodium ascendens) was decked in vibrant orange needles 
which contrasted well with the burnt yellows of a nearby Japanese Maple. 
Nearby the yellow fruits of Quince peeked through the branches. Not far 
away the huge, pure yellow fruit of Pseudocydonia sinensis looked like 
some strange mutant citrus while a trailing cotoneaster was rich with 
rich red berries. I wonder how long until the birds decide to feast upon 
the tasty crop. The Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo) boasted several 
pendant strawberry-like fruit in various tones of yellow, orange and red.

Ornamental grasses are one of my favorite fine foliage plants. The 
vibrant orange threads of Carex testaceae were evident throughout the 
garden as was the quiet brown foliage of Carex flagelifera. The airy 
flower clusters of Deschampsia were in perfect form for dried flower 
arrangements as was the cream soda spikes of several Miscanthus grasses.

Along one pathway the purple flowers of Sage (Salvia mueleri), Lavender 
(Lavender stoechas), Society Garlic (Tulbaghia violaceae) and Verbena 
bonariense contrasted well with the orange-reds of California Fuchsia 
(was Zauschneria, now called Epilobium but I still call them 
Zauschneria!). Even the fragrant Rosemary had small displays of light 
blue flowers. Further down the path I tasted the burnt carmel fruit of 
Leycesteria and found myself along side the cheerful orange flowers of 
Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia). Nearby the deep reds of Salvia splendens 
'Van Houttei' and Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum' (Red Fountain Grass) were 
blooming fiercely before the first frosts of autumn arrived.

I must not forget to mention the upright yellow spikes of Mullein and 
Salvia madrensis plus the yellow daisy-like flowers of Tagetes lemmonii, 
the yellowing leaves of Kerria japonica and the upright coarse leaves of 
a particularly good yellow form of Flax (Phormium). The deadly green 
thorns of Poncirus trifoliata contrasted well with the the yellowing 
foliage along its coarse stems.

Back towards the entrance a large Salvia elegans 'Honey Mellon' was in 
full bloom with hundreds of small red flowers. However, the intensively 
red, large leaves of  our native grape, Vitis californica 'Rogers Red' 
was gathering all the attention. Even our evergreen Coastal Redwood 
(Sequoia sempervirens) had dropped a layer of brown leaves around its 
trunk. The deciduous Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) was in 
full orange array while the Barberry (Berberis) displayed various tones 
of green, orange, red and purple.

As you walked away from the pond towards the upper sections of the garden 
the glowing variegated leaves of Cornus controversa 'Variegata' were 
truly amazing. Further along the path the cool blue-green foliage of 
several Euphorbia and the indigo blue flowers of Salvia mexicana brought 
rest to the eyes.

Somewhere along a pathway the soft pinks of Japanese Anemone and the the 
cheerful daisy flowers of Santa Barbara Daisy (Erigeron karvinskianus) 
caught me eye as did the cool blues of Aster frikartii. Here and there 
airy clusters of pinkish white Gaura lindheimeri flowers lightened the 
landscape. A whiff of a flowering Sweet Olive (Osmanthus fragrans) caught 
my attention for a brief moment but soon I was distracted by the rustling 
of branches of migrating birds just ahead. As the wind brought a large 
clump of bamboo to life I was soon off along another pathway hunting for 
more fall treasures.

I was tempted to pick a dark hanging Redbud (Cercis) seed pod but kept my 
hands in my pocket even when I passing the perfectly round seed pods on 
the Handkerchief Tree (Davidia involucrata) and the bumby soft red fruit 
of the Evergreen Dogwood (Cornus capitata). Bending over I took a closer 
look at the intense orange seed pods of a Gladwyn Iris (Iris 
foetidissima).

Large yellow flowering Abutilons contrasted nicely with smaller 
orange/red flowering forms. A pure yellow form of Alstroemeria would have 
made a great cut flower for the vase in the office. And even some yellow 
and orange forms of Kniphofia were in bloom. Looking at the multitude of 
plants around my me, I suddenly realized that I was standing under a 
large pine tree which had carpeted the area with a layer of orange pine 
needles.

One of the many blooming Camellias which caught my eye was C. 'Misty 
Moon'  with big pink flowers. 
There were even some red, pink and white roses still in bloom.  

As you can see, Western Hills is one of those gardens that carves out a 
permanent niche in ones gardening heart. Every time you visit, there are 
new plants to be found and old favorites that bring back memories of 
previous walks in the garden. If you are ever in Sonoma County, treat 
yourself with a visit.

Listening to the rain and wind,

Ernie

P.S.
My nominations for additions to the Soundscape theme are:
Any tall bamboo that makes noise on windy days and Quaking Aspen, which 
flutter in the wind and in your ears!

"Adapt,Migrate or Die"
 -  Hal Magarian, 1967

Ernie G. Wasson
Horticulturist
in the Berkeley-Oakland hills
Sunset Zone 16/17, USDA Zone 9/10
"All Plants Considered" column at www.gardens.com
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index