Left my heart in the Santa Monica Mountains!

Anigozanthos 'Big Red' Photos Copyright © Alice Joyce

Red Kangaroo Paw from Western Australia blooming in Santa Monica Place gardenscape.

Look for an endless parade of Southern California gardens & mountain landscapes in the weeks ahead on Bay Area Tendrils

& Alice's Garden Travel Buzz

I'll be reporting on my sojourn to the Los Angeles area,

where the Malibu Garden Club invited me to speak on...

21st Century Gardens: Movements, Projects, Trends

The Leaf & Petal Co. is located

across the street from the brilliantly renovated dreamscape for shoppers - Santa Monica Place,

opposite downtown's pedestrian-friendly Third Street Promenade.

Amber.. chrome yellow.. Chartreuse! Canvas of Color

The winter garden is asleep.

Photos Copyright © Alice Joyce

Yet a few specimens bolster the scene of deciduous perennials and shrubs, like Cestrum elegans, with its dense clusters of blooms. Over the years I've learned a valuable lesson: to remove plants that are not performing and replace those unhappy campers that fail to die but never thrive. It's a decade since I created my Zone 9-10 sanctuary space, where I celebrate species that cavort in the specific conditions of my microclimate, adding color at quiet times like January and February, while furnishing a habitat for little critters; beneficial insects, butterflies, and birds.

Many of the earliest selections were actually chosen to boost plant combinations with their bright bursts of vivid hues. Above: Nandina domestica 'Firepower' is a compact variety that looks good in every season. And now that the garden is increasingly shady due to the growth of neighboring trees that tower over the space, plants with brilliant chartreuse foliage, or a spectrum of reds are appreciated that much more.

Choisya 'Sundance'

Photo © Alice Joyce

The downy, palmate leaves of variegated Abutilon p. Thomsonii - Winter 2011

Photo © Alice Joyce

Chartreuse Pelargonium - Winter 2011

Each of these plant genera are extremely well-suited to my garden, and so the garden as an outdoor room teems with many varieties and specimen plantings of Pelargonium & Abutilon, Cestrum & Choisya. No longer do I spend time or waste energy trying to meet the needs of fussy cultivars that are struggling to survive.

Long live the appropriate plants!

Drought-tolerant and happy to be in Alice's Garden.

Hidden in Russian Hill: Fay Park

San Francisco's crookedest ... Lombard Street, Russian Hill -- A serious photo op for tourists.

Photo: Wikipedia

Fay Park: Open Daily 10am to 4pm

Continue down Lombard Street a bit to Leavenworth and you'll discover a tiny, albeit, delightful city park designed by the Mid-Century Modern landscape architect, Thomas Church.

California Garden & Landscape History Society Web Site Photo: Copyright Susan Chamberlin

Thomas Church is surely best known for his design of an iconic American landscape: El Novillero, the Donnell Garden. Although I live nearby, I've yet to be free on a day when the private garden has opened for special events.

Fay Park also holds a unique place in American landscape architecture, as it's believed to be the only residential garden designed by Church that is now regularly open to the community and visitors, alike.

San Francisco Parks & Recreation Department worked to restored Fay Park. A neighborhood group, the Friends of Fay Park helps to keep the garden looking lovely year-round. The city has been enriched by the very special bequest of Mrs. Mary Fay Berrigan, who gifted her home and garden to San Francisco. Should you visit the city by the bay, hop off the cable car, or walk up from North Beach: You'll want to take some time to relax in the serene oasis of this park, where beds of roses bloom for months on end.

**Fay Park is a popular setting for weddings, so you may find a celebration in progress.**

Locavore Heaven! Ferry Plaza Farmers Market - San Francisco

Pomegranate luv! at the San Francisco Farmers Market

San Francisco's beautifully restored Ferry Building at the Embarcadero: Gourmet shops and the Farmers Market offer the finest local foods: breads & pastry, seafood & meat,

herbs, olive oil & flowers.

Tourists flock to the area for the engaging ambience, not to mention chocolates & gelato.

Buddha's Hand : Citrus medica

Saturday was reserved for a winter day in the sunshine.

During my graduate studies, I lived in the city for two years, but I still can't get over the dress code in San Francisco -- Flip-flops throughout the year, no matter what the temperature!

Although the peel of this citrus variety is quite thick, it is an extremely fragrant fruit that grows on a small tree or shrub. I have no personal experience growing it, and wonder....

have you ever grown this tender plant indoors or in your garden?

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Beaux Arts-style Ferry Building was constructed in 1898, with a clock tower some 245 feet tall situated at the foot of Market Street. Restoration was completed in 2003. You must see the building's stunning interior if you visit. It's a breathtakingly beautiful architectural space, with a 660-foot long sky lit Nave and marble mosaic floor.

Visitor Information

Amazed by the Beauty! A Winter Day at Quixote Winery

The Stags Leap palisades create a dramatic backdrop, while seedheads of ornamental grasses soften the surroundings on a winter's day at ...



UNDER CONSTRUCTION....

Quixote Winery, located in the Stags Leap AVA - American Viticultural Area - of Napa Valley.

Former owner Carl Doumani, an avid art lover, once said: "The minute I saw [Hundertwasser's design) I knew it was what I wanted."

Playfully colorful, flowing and undulating, Quixote's design represents a rare example in the U.S. of a site (buildings and grounds) created by the artist, Hundertwasser. Always aware and concerned about the environment, Hundertwasser often added green roofs to structures.

Hundertwasser's paintings and architectural work incorporate an organic aesthetic meant to enrich one's everyday experience, in sharp contrast to the stark, geometric architecture that he loathed.

Ornamental grasses planted throughout add a naturalism to a landscape

designed by Landscape Architect Jack Chandler.

The Quixote vineyards are organically farmed.

"The kind of day that makes you want to live forever."

I basked in the warmth of the Irish: In this instance, the above greeting by Quixote's Wine Club Concierge, Ireland-born Anne White.

Anne's hospitality will enhance your visit to the winery: open by appointment only.

A note: In 2000, Hundertwasser died on a voyage on the RMS Queen Elizabeth, and is buried in New Zealand.

Quixote produces finely crafted Petite Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon.