Spring garden tours in Southern California
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We offer our annual list of spring garden tours for your calendar-marking pleasure. Be sure to check websites for more information and updates, because some events do sell out. Additions to the list and suggestions are welcome via reader comments.
March 31: The South Coast chapter of the California Native Plant Society presents its 18th annual spring garden tour featuring three gardens in the Rural Portuguese Bend Area of the Palos Verdes peninsula. 9:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. $20 to $25. Reservations: (310) 629-0500.
April 14-15: The Riverside Flower Show and Garden Tour will highlight private gardens open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. Flower Show hours are 1 to 6 p.m. April 14, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 15. Elks Lodge, 6166 Brockton Drive, Riverside. $10. (951) 643-8890.
April 14-15: More than 30 gardens, including the one pictured at right, will be featured in the ninth annual self-guided tour organized by the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wildflowers and Native Plants. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. $20 covers both days; $25 after March 24. (818) 768-1802.
April 21: The self-guided Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase will feature nearly 80 drought-resistant, edible and ocean-friendly landscapes, including the one at the top of this post. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Free.
April 22: The Los Angeles Garden Tour and Party will include a stream-side garden in the Brookside enclave, plus five other gardens in Hancock Park and Windsor Square. The tour includes a lecture by arborist Darren Butler, a silent auction and a light supper in the gardens of Getty House, the official residence of the Mayor of Los Angeles. Noon to 6 p.m. $65 to $70. (213) 243-8182. April 28-29: The Floral Park neighborhood of north Santa Ana will host its 20th annual home and garden tour. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. $25 in advance; $30 on the day of the tour. (714) 648-0904.
April 29: The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days tour of private gardens in Pasadena. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. $5 per garden. (888) 842-2442.
April 29: The Westlake Village Garden Club hosts its 39th annual Garden and Patio Tour in Westlake Village and Thousand Oaks. 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. $20. (805) 437-6606.
May 4: The self-guided Gate and Garden Tour will highlight gardens in Laguna Beach. 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. $35. Advance tickets only: www.lagunabeachgardenclub.org.
May 5-6: The Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour features more than 30 gardens from San Juan Capistrano to Long Beach. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Donations accepted. (714) 566-4800.
May 5: The annual self-guided Venice Garden & Home Tour will feature contemporary homes and gardens by Los Angeles architects Tom Carson, Dennis Gibbens, Daniel Monti, Santiago Ortiz and Ron Radziner and by landscape designers Russ Cletta, Jay Griffith, Rob Jones and Suzanne McKevitt, among others. (The house with pool, above right, will be among the stops.) The tour also will feature the Gregory Ain tract in Mar Vista. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Rain or shine. $60 in advance, $70 day of event. Neighborhood Youth Assn.’s Las Doradas Children’s Center, 804 Broadway Ave., Venice. (310) 821-1857.
May 6: The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days tour in Los Angeles. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. $5 per garden. (888) 842-2442.
May 12: The Sherman Library and Gardens Volunteer Assn. presents its 16th annual tour in Corona del Mar and Newport Beach. 10:30 a.m. $40 to $45. Sherman Library and Gardens, 2647 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Corona del Mar. (949) 673-2261.
May 18: Friends of Robinson Gardens will present the 24th annual “... Into the Garden” benefit tour showcasing five private gardens. Event also includes a spring festival at the Virginia Robinson estate. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. $200. 1008 Elden Way, Beverly Hills. (310) 550-2068.
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— Lisa Boone
Photo credits from top: Izumi Tanaka Photography; Theodore Payne Foundation for Wildflowers and Native Plants; Venice Garden & Home Tour
