Collector's garden in Sacramento with a Southwest flair
On Saturday, my friend Theresa had an open garden for the Sacramento Cactus and Succulent Society . I’d visited before (and I posted about it here ) but every time I pull into her driveway, I go “wow.” It’s not only the size of her property — almost two acres, enormous by my suburban standards — but also the architecture of her house. This is her front door: A side patio with her collection of potted mesembs: As you can see, Theresa is serious about mesembs , especially conophytums . The latter range from small to tiny, and you’d think that they’re easy to kill, considering how fragile they look. Let’s put it this way: It wouldn’t take me long to kill them, but Theresa has figured out what their cultivation needs are. Theresa and her husband built their Southwest-inspired home 30+ years ago. It would look right at home in Arizona or New Mexico, but in Northern California, you almost never see this style of architecture. The burnt orange color makes a fantastic backdrop for plants, as ...