Santa Cruz drive-by garden

Driving the streets of Santa Cruz, CA, on our way to the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum, I caught sight of an interesting home. Andrew was behind the wheel, and he requires plenty of warning before making an unscheduled stop, so I mentally filed the location away for after the Arboretum visit.

You'd be curious if you saw this too, am I right?

When we returned, we parked on a side street, and the back of the house was visible. I started snapping photos as soon as I got out of the car.

I later learned (doing a little research, which I'll share below) the home's address and main entrance used to be on this side.

But somewhere along the way this corner spot became the address.

Curious what the sign on the door says? I feel a little like they were inviting me in.

Instead I just peeked through the cracks...

Moving on... wowsa, that's a nice Echium.

Another Echium, and Agaves...

Beyond the charming entrance, these are what told me I needed to stop and take a closer look.

Hmmm, another entrance!

These days everyone has security cameras, I was pretty sure I was being recorded as I scanned with my eyes, and pointed my camera. 

Are you looking at me?

More Agaves...

More Echium...

Backtracking along the oddly rustic fence.

Back past the front entrance...

And to where I started, but in the five or so minutes since my first photo, the light has changed enough that you can better see a few details, like the pond and the conservatory off the back of the house.

Rock-edged bridge.

Kind of a jumble...

Zoomed in.

The best shot I could get of the conservatory.

Online sleuthing is where I found this, the property's Historic Building Survey. The home was built for Aloysius G Finn, a Santa Cruz insurance firm owner in the fall of 1926. Estimated costs of permitting and building were $7,500.

The "small" house is listed as 2,170 square feet with 4 bedrooms and 3 baths. I know that's not McMansion sized, but still, I don't think over 2,000 sq ft qualifies as small? Perhaps it was enlarged after this survey was done. If you click on this link and then on the words Fly Around you can take an aerial cruise over the property. I just wish you could see more of the garden!

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All material © 2009-2026 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

James Andrew Gould's garden, last September

Here's another garden visit from late last summer that I'm finally writing about. James Andrew Gould is a serious plant geek (in the best possible way), this is the second time I've been to his place and the changes were staggering. Things have grown and filled in and he's been busy with projects. Let's have a look...

Go big or go home, it's not a bad garden philosophy and James seems to be embrace the idea, especially when it comes to Sinopanax formosanus, he has several.

During my visit they were starting to throw up their blooms, ones that confirm they're in the Aralia family.

There were also several Echium, E. pininana...

Same

And Echium wildpretii.

Another view up the front sidewalk, this one a little closer and a little wider.

The Yucca rostrata claims this shot, with a Eucalyptus on the left and a Lyonothamnus floribundus peeking in on the right.

Phlomis ‘Sunningdale Gold’, I believe.

Agave 'Mateo' (with pups! rather unusual).

James has the happiest Grevillea x gaudichaudii I have ever seen.

Insane (and be warned, there is another!)...

Hmmm, what is this? I should know. A myrtle of some sort I think...

Hi spiky beautiful!

A happy restio, in what is a fairly small garden. James is brave gardener.

Damn fine spines.

Sedum confusum, I believe.

I think (gawd I'm stupid when it comes to Eucalyptus) this tree is getting it's mature foliage?

Meanwhile there were fabulous blooms to appreciate at eye-level (from another).

Here's the second off-the-charts amazing Grevillea x gaudichaudii.

And a peek at one of the carnivorous plant bogs.

Berkheya purpurea

Fatsia polycarpa, maybe 'Needham's Lace'

Yucca schottii, I think?

Another Sinopanax formosanus.

Thinner leaves point to this yucca as Y. linearifolia.

Drimys winteri

Wollemia nobilis

Perhaps another Yucca schottii? But the main reason I included this image, is that I failed to get a shot of the almost finished sunken patio area. It was pretty fantastic, but you'll have to be content with a view through the yucca leaves.

Walking back to my car now I had to get a shot of the expired Berkheya purpurea blooms...

And a spiky yucca (maybe Y. aloifolia). So many cool plants!!!

The Bit at the End

Here's a long post over on Garden Rant that I had to read through a couple times to really make sense of: In Defense of The Gardener’s Voice (on the natives or nothing movement). Gardeners like James, and myself, are plant lovers who fill our gardens with things that bring us joy, pique our curiosity, and that we just want to watch grow. Even things that are not native to our part of the world. Does that make us bad gardeners? Some would say so.

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To receive alerts of new danger garden posts by email, subscribe here. Please note: these are sent from a third party, their annoying ads are beyond my control. 

All material © 2009-2026 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.