Gardening splendor on two acres in the country

I often wish I had more room for gardening. I routinely dream of having acreage to play with—5 acres has a nice ring to it. But I’m not picky. I’ll take anything that’s larger than our lot, which is just 8,100 square feet, i.e. 1/5 of an acre. At the same time I know that we’ll never be able to afford a larger property here in Davis. I’d have to move far out into the boonies to make my dream come true—or to another part of the state.

My dream of owning acreage had new life breathed into it last Sunday when I saw first hand what an avid gardener can do on two acres in the country just outside of the Davis city limits. I joined the California Horticultural Society (Cal Hort) for a tour of three Davis gardens, led by Ernesto Sandoval, collections manager of the UC Davis Botanical Conservatory. The first garden was the kind of country property I had always imagined owning: a main house, a guest house, and lots of space for all kinds of things—above all gardens.

Even though my country property would look quite different, I found a lot to like here as you will see below. The annuals (mainly California poppies) were at the end of their peak, but they were going out in a blaze of glory. The perennials were getting ready to take over as the center of attention, and fruit trees were heavy with ripening fruit.

As wonderful as it all was, what I liked even more was the fact this garden was not 100% pristine. There were weeds, plentiful in some areas, and unfinished projects. Like mine, this is a garden in progress—a working garden, not a perfectly manicured showpiece. That’s why I felt so comfortable there.

Arbor on the west side of the garden

Columns behind the arbor. We were speculating if something will go on top of these columns, but apparently this is the look the owner envisioned.

One of the nicest guest houses I've ever seen

The area in front of the guest house is a large sunken garden. The soil that was excavated here was to used to create a berm along the road to create more privacy. 

Looking back toward the guest house

Nobody was able to ID these grasses but they looked gorgeous as a center strip in the sunken garden

Overlooking the sunken garden

Pops of color wherever you look

Unfortunately no ID on the Kniphofia on the left or on the large-leafed plant on the right but this is a killer combo

One of the best-looking Kniphofia cultivars I've seen in a long time

The wide stairs going down to the sunken garden--there were at least four sets--were one of the my favorite features. The California poppies growing in the cracks were pure magic.

Top of the berm along the side of the road. As I mentioned above, this berm was created with the soil excavated from the sunken garden.

View of the guest house from the far end of the sunken garden

Lap pool (with cover on). The guest house is on the left, the main house on the right.

Sea of flowering annuals

I loved the wild look the annuals gave the garden

Farewell-to-spring (Clarkia amoenia) and California poppies (Eschscholzia californica)

Yellow-flowering California poppy

One of several whimsical statues I spotted throughout the garden. Look closer, the lady is holding a garden hose.

There's that orange Kniphofia again

California poppies and barberry

Lavender getting ready to bloom

Cherry time is here!

Shed near the main house

Giraffe statue in front of the main house

Pineapple guava (Feijoa sellowiana). The petals are edible; they have a surprisingly sweet taste.

Deck of main house

Another statue hiding under a tree

Cape balsam (Bulbine frutescens), both yellow and orange form, and Agave americana along the driveway near the entrance

Agave americana is not my favorite agave by a long shot but there's plenty of room here so no problem

Gate with grapes--maybe a nod to the burgeoning grape-growing and wine industry in our area (varietals that love the heat, like syrah, petite sirah, tempranillo and malbec, thrive here)