Bring a Wagon to West’s Biggest Plant Sale
Most of the unusual things in my garden came from plant sales, especially the huge Huntington Botanical Gardens’ sale, planned for next Sunday, May 19.
Designer Cheryl Lerner, whose plant-packed garden is on the cover of this year’s Los Angeles Times Gardening Calendar, will be there with her collapsible cart to tote her purchases. Many of the plants in her garden also came from this event which some describe as “the plant sale to die for.” Although there are many good sales in the Southland, this one is the biggest, maybe in the whole country.
Plant sales are a great place to find those special plants grown in such small quantities that they seldom appear at nurseries--plants that are new, rare or simply special.
For instance, stopping strollers by our front walk is a delicate little subshrub with reddish stems covered with bright green foliage and yellow bells at this time of year. It’s not the kind of thing one finds at a nursery, but the Huntington has it.
Called honeybells, Hermannia verticillata, it’s from South Africa, likes heat and sun and dislikes water in summer. It grows a foot tall by several feet wide. It would look even better in a hillside garden or draped over a retaining wall because then you could look up at the dainty little bellflowers.
The Huntington sale is full of such treasures. Some they grow in their own nursery, but they also bring plants in, this year from as far away as Santa Rosa.
From orchids and bromeliads to old roses, vines and trees, there’s something for every part of the garden, even the kitchen garden. They’re famous for their herb selection, and years ago we bought our first fraises de bois there.
We’ve been dribbling these tiny wild strawberries on whole-wheat pancakes or over ice cream ever since. These woodsy, moisture-loving plants grow in bright shade, which can be said of little else that is edible. Their taste is equally unique--”perfumy” is one frequently heard description. They’ll have them again at this year’s sale.
Focus on Foliage
The theme this year is foliage, and they’ll have lots of plants with striking leaves. Shirley Kerins, the organizer of this big event, points out that foliage, unlike flowers, adds interest to the garden at any time of the year.
They’ll have all kinds--gray and silver, burgundy and copper, variegated and golden.
A Mediterranean herb named Calamintha grandiflora ‘Variegata’ has pennyroyal-scented leaves strikingly speckled with gold. It grows a little over a foot tall in part shade and spreads slowly, adding a pinch of Provence or Tuscany to your garden.
Lysimachia ciliata ‘Purpurea’ is an example of a plant with tarnished copper-colored foliage. This herbaceous perennial is a native of our East Coast and has three-foot-tall spikes of clear yellow flowers. Try to find it at your local nursery.
Plectranthus argentatus, from Australia, is one of the more interesting silvery plants because it grows in the shade where silver is not expected. Under a magnolia in my garden (I got a plant at last year’s sale), it quickly grew to three feet high and slightly wider and looks like a spot of sunlight. I don’t know how big it will grow, or quite how to care for it, and neither does the Huntington.
Kerins confessed they sometimes sell plants that they don’t know much about, but she said she thinks most gardeners would rather have the newest plants now, before all the facts are in. It adds to the adventure and gives gardeners something to talk about.
Shady Deals
Walking through all the plants lined up for the sale, I kept finding unusual things for the shade, probably the area most in need of interesting plants in any garden, certainly mine.
For instance, they have an incredible 15 varieties of violets, including a little spotted thing named ‘Freckles.’ They even have a primrose they say persists in Southern California. Named Primula kewensis, it has fat green leaves, grows only a few inches tall and sends up spikes of little buttercup-yellow flowers. Imagine it between stepping stones in a shady part of the garden.
Lamiums are spreading ground covers for shady spots and they have one named Lamium maculatun Beedham’s White with chartreuse leaves that positively glow. Several kinds of these excellent shade plants will be for sale Sunday.
They also have a large selection of dianthus, or “pinks”--those little carnation relatives that can be exasperating to grow because they are so short-lived. But it’s hard not to love the decidedly old-fashioned flowers and many have an exquisite, candy-like fragrance, so one keeps replanting. The most fragrant is one they sell as ‘Gloriosa.’ One sniff and it sells itself.
Succulent City
Because this is the Huntington with its world-class collections of succulents and cactus, expect to see an amazing assortment of these plants. Curator John Trager was quick to point out that succulent plants have the most interesting foliage of all.
If you like bright, look for a strange euphorbia named ‘Sticks on Fire’, or Crassula ‘Campfire.’ Dark? How about kalanchoe ‘Chocolate Soldier,’ with its fuzzy brown leaves or the almost black aeonium named ‘Zwartkop.’
Some succulents, cactus in particular, are grown more for their flowers. Look for the Sulcorebutia--squat little barrel cacti with huge neon flowers--collected in Bolivia. They divided their collection this year, so this is the first time these have ever been available.
Members get in the day before, so expect a few of the things I saw to be sold out on the public day, May 19. Or, visit on the 18th and join at the entrance; some people do, even though memberships costs $45.
* The Huntington Botanical Gardens is at 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, (818) 405-2100. The sale runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 19 and regular admissions apply: $7.50, adults; $6, seniors, $4 students and children. There is a special children’s corner and, after 2 p.m. on Sunday, a free plant for each child under 12.
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Tips for the Plant Show
* Arrive early and expect a big line. While in line, look for the posted plan that shows the layout of the sale, orient yourself, then locate where your favorite plants will be. There are sections for different kinds of plants, such as orchids, succulents or shade plants.
* Watch for banners. One big category--perennials and shrubs for sunny areas (except perennials in four-inch pots, which have their own tables)--are arranged in a color wheel radiating out from a gazebo. Banners indicate the color of the flowers and foliage.
* Look for name tags. Experts in their fields, such as Clair Martin in the rose area or John Trager and Joe Clements with the succulents, will be wearing name tags and are ready to answer your questions, like “how big does it grow?”
* Bring a wagon to load your treasures into. For those with “eyes bigger than their wagons,” as Kerins put it, there is a holding area next to the cashiers. Once you pay (cash or check), volunteers will help you cart your treasures to the car. In the car, keep plants out of the sun.
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