Now, the Desert Garden:

A few more from "the dome"

WOW...Just wow! What a sight to behold

Fantastic. And a nice Aralia in the first pics!

Thank you so much for sharing. What a wonderful place!

Absolutely beautiful.

Killer cool! What a spectacular place! I would get lost there for hours. Do you know what Sans that is in your second post, second picture down? There's three plants that look like hunky, junky vases? I must have one!

If they are the ones blooming I seem to remember them as aethiopica.

It's one of my favorite places to go, amazing desert garden, rose garden, Japanese garden with house from Japan, Chinese garden, huge palm collection, beautiful art gallery...arts&crafts decorative art exhibit, it takes 2 hours to browse just the gift shop. Even the parking lot has trees and shrubs that are striking.

Maybe I can convince my husband we should come there on vacation. It sounds like an awesome place to visit. I'm sure we can find a Veterans Museum for him to get lost in. Are plants always for sale?

Nevermind...just went to the website!

Katrina, if you drive out here, you have to pass through Arizona, hint, hint. Arid Lands Nursery, B&B Cactus Farms....Down San Diego way is Grigsby Nursery. There's a big inter-club show coming up in August, plus one in Anaheim near the end of July with 20 vendors. We have a Navy ship Battleship Iowa in the Port of Los Angeles. We have a very large VA Center/Hospital in West LA and across the street the military cemetery. There is also an American Military Museum just outside of LA, in El Monte, I don't know much as I've not been there. But there is a Civil War Drum Barracks museum not far from the battleship and at certain times of year various battle reenactments, etc. Fort Tejon is about an hour north of LA. The adobe where the Treaty of Cahuenga was signed ending the war with Mexico for Alta California is just across the street from Universal Studios Hollywood. Maybe stay in Long Beach and take in the Pacific Ocean experience, from there you can drive up to Pasadena to The Huntington, Old Town Pasadena (very cool restaurants, architecture, shops), and LB is a good jump off to San Diego or Vista more accurately (not as far south as SD) where the Sans are grown. SD has some nice tall ships, as does Dana Point. I can probably get you passes for The Huntington, save you some $$.

...mind.blown...We'd need 2 weeks. 1 for him and 1 for me! Maybe that's something i can seriously work on. I've always wanted to cross the Golden Gate Bridge (I have this weird thing for awesome bridges) and we've discussed a CA trip a few times. He lived in SD for a while back in his military days. Thanks for that info. If this ever pans out you'll be hearing from me!

"Plant Heaven"

Katrina, the only thing most people are not prepared for is this is a BIG state and things are spread out, plus we have traffic, so getting to and fro takes time and patience. The drive from SF to LA is gorgeous along the coast, you can check the travel times on Google now. Some of the best fruit & veggies in the world is grown around SF and sold at the Ferry St. Market (farmer's), then there is Cannery Row & the Aquarium in Monterey, the vineyards, olive groves, lavender fields, Santa Maria tri-tip BBQ & pinquito beans (only in SM), missions, Spanish Colonial architecture, Hearst Castle, Channel Islands National Park, Catalina Island, the biggest redwoods in the world (Sequoia National Park), Anza Borego National Park (desert canyons with bighorn sheep)...and a few Sansevieria.