Aloe-centric trip to Santa Barbara

I just got back from a long weekend in Santa Barbara. This was an aloe-centric trip, with aloes in full bloom all over town. I’ll have detailed posts in the coming weeks. For now, here’s a teaser of where I went and what I saw.

Aloe ‘Birds and Bees’ at a business park in Goleta

San Marcos Growers, Santa Barbara

As a wholesale nursery, San Marcos Growers doesn’t sell to the public, but many independent nurseries in California (especially Southern California) carry their plants. Under the leadership of Randy Baldwin, San Marcos has introduced countless cool plants over the last 40 years. Sadly, San Marcos will close their doors for good on January 1, 2026. I feel very lucky that I got to visit for what may be the last time.

Plants destined for a garden in the Los Angeles area

Outside the office building

Aloe chabaudii ‘Dan’s Tangerine’

Agave salmiana var. ferox ‘Medio Picta’

Agave ‘Thorny Warrior’ (A. xylonacantha × pablocarrilloi)

Taft Gardens, Ojai

When I visited Taft Gardens last April, most of the aloes were done blooming. This time I caught them at their peak. I don’t know how many aloes there are, but there must be thousands, including hundreds of tall Aloe ferox, Aloe marlothii, and Aloe speciosa. Since Taft Gardens is off the beaten path and requires advance reservations, I saw only five or six other people as I was walking around.

Requisite selfie with Aloe ferox

Aloes in Wonderland, Santa Barbara

Aloes in Wonderland is the personal garden of Jeff Chemnick. It’s also a nursery where every plant is for sale – you pick, pay, and dig. Aloes in Wonderland is a place unlike any other I’ve ever seen: 5 acres of aloes, agaves, cycads, palms, and exotic trees. I met up with several friends, and Jeff gave us an in-depth tour.

Cold Spring Aloes, Montecito

Like last year, I spent a wonderful afternoon at Cold Spring Aloes, Tom Cole’s garden and nursery in Montecito, catching up with old friends and making new ones. Tom has spent extensive time in East Africa and has described three new aloe species and one new subspecies, including one of my all-time favorites, Aloe lukeana.

Aloe volkensii subsp. multicaulis

Growing Grounds Nursery, San Luis Obispo

On my way home, I stopped at Growing Grounds Nursery in Obispo to see Nick Deinhart, who is the nursery manager. Nick continues to create truly remarkable aloe hybrids, and some are planted on the nursery grounds – as are spectacular agaves, many of them grown by Nick from habitat seeds. This was a great way to end another memorable trip.

Agave cupreata

Agave horrida

Aloe marlothii hybrid

Aloe capitata × white ferox, one of Nick’s early hybrids

Plant haul

Of course I didn’t come home empty-handed. The bulk of my purchases were aloes for the front yard, but I also got a few cool agaves. All shall be revealed in my next post.

Colorful aloe created by TCT Nursery in Thailand

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