The Flowers That Bloom In Spring

Tra la! Touring beautiful gardens is a favorite springtime pleasure, and San Diego opens its sunny days to accommodate that pastime. From the wide open spaces of Anza Borrego Desert State Park to the quaint little paths of the Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park, you can find all manner of green and blooming things. So, pack a picnic and grab your sunhat for a delightful day’s outing.

The Flower Fields
Get an early start and head north on Highway 5 to Carlsbad, where you’ll see The Flower Fields even before you leave the road. The only commercial ranunculus field in the world open to the public, this 50-plus acre ranch looks like a growing rainbow from afar. The local ranunculus business began nearly 70 years ago when English horticulturist Luther Gage brought a collection of Giant Tecolote Ranunculus seeds to his family’s new home in Southern California. One of the workers, Frank Frazee, began his own flower field ranch with his two sons, Earl and Edwin, in 1933. It was Edwin’s introduction of a giant ranunculus bulb that established his reputation in the 1950s.

The Paul Ecke Family purchased the business in 1988, and maintains it jointly with the growers Mellano & Co., much to the delight of the 150,000 people who visit every year to walk the rows on foot or take a tractor ride through the fields.

Quail Botanical Gardens
To take full advantage of the tranquil Quail Botanical Gardens in nearby Encinitas you will want comfortable walking shoes to visit the variety of horticultural habitats in the canyons and hillsides of this 35-acre former estate of Charles and Ruth Larabee. Worldwide travelers, the Larabees brought home exotic plants to grace their property. Today, the gardens are operated by a private conservation organization whose mission is also to educate the public about horticulture and rare plants.

The most unusual exhibit here is the undersea succulent garden, ingeniously created by Bill Teague and Jeff Moore to resemble the corals and algae that snorkelers and scuba divers tour underwater.

The Old West
Visiting the old west mountain town of Julian means you’ll get to stroll the wooden walkways of Main Street, just like a cowboy. Be sure to take many detours on the side streets, to admire the gardens blooming with lilacs, the local floral attraction during May. If you’re there on a Sunday afternoon, you’ll do a double-take when you see the Julian Doves & Desperados re-enactment group roaming the streets of this former gold town in early western attire.

Be a pioneer and hike the Volcan Mountain Preserve nearby. Although this year’s dearth of rain has deterred the mass profusion of spring wildflowers that characterize wetter springs, you’ll still find some of nature’s own blooms, as well as several species of oak and pine trees. Guided walks are offered on weekends at this majestic pristine area.

The Desert
Anza Borrego Desert State Park offers you a change of ecosystem and another kind of wilderness, the Colorado desert. This year’s blooms are on the desert trees, such as the ocotillo and the high desert shrubs, but hiking the miles of trails in this largest California State Park offers a chance at other rewards. A barrel cactus bloom is dazzling, if you’re lucky enough to spot one. Even rarer, and worth lots the scanning time with your binoculars, are the bighorn sheep that graze the Anza Mountains and give the park its name.  (Borrego is the Spanish word for them.) If you approach via Highway 78 and 79 through Cuyumaca Rancho State Park, you’ll experience marvelous views.  You’ll also see some effects of the devastating fires of 2003 and the miraculous natural recovery taking place.

A Working Farm
Victoria’s Garden off Highway 67 in Lakeside provides another change of pace and purpose. Children especially like visiting this working farm with its petting zoo and train ride. This month, the whole family can enjoy a picnic there, and then take advantage of the U-pick strawberries to provide dessert. A farm stand and nursery offer take-home fruits and vegetables.

Balboa Park
Back home in San Diego, you can't miss Balboa Park, with its 18 gardens within the grand acres and among the museums. The Japanese Friendship Garden, the Old Cactus Garden and the Inez Grant Parker Memorial Rose Garden are the most familiar, but don’t stop with those. Explore Palm Canyon and the Florida Canyon Native Preserve before you make your way to the lush gardens of the San Diego Zoo.

Although the animals are the more famous inhabitants, the Zoo is actually a world-class botanical garden, as well.  More than a million plants live in the combined 1900 acres of the zoo and its sister attraction, the Wild Animal Park in North County.  Some of the plant habitats within the parks preserve rare species, some serve as food for the animals; some complete the naturalistic compounds that showcase both animals and the environments from which they come.

It’s a rare visitor who would not appreciate the diversity of San Diego’s many environments. Take time to admire the gardens that each has to offer.

For more information:

The Flower Fields 
760-431-0352  www.theflowerfields.com

The Quail Botanical Gardens
760-436-3036, ext. 206. www.qbgardens.org

Julian Doves & Desperados
760-765-1857.

Volcan Mountain Preserve Foundation
760-765-2300.  www.volcanmt.org

Anza Borrego Desert State Park
760-767-5311. www.parks.ca.gov

Victoria’s Garden
www.victoriasgardens.us

Balboa Park
www.balboapark.org