In 1903 Henry Huntington purchased the San Marino Ranch, a working ranch with citrus groves, nut and fruit
orchards, alfalfa crops, a small herd of cows, and poultry. Today, the estate is home to more than a
dozen spectacular gardens spread across 120 acres. 12 gardens, 15.000 plant varieties...

That red piece of art and object of bewilderment, esspecially if one considers the name 'Jerusalem Stabile', was
created by Alexander Calder - whom I only knew from the artwork on a DC-8 of Braniff Airways.
Why it is supposed to be forbidden to photograph I really can't say.

THE CHINESE GARDEN

We knew the design of the typical Chinese Garden by our visit to Suzhou; very nice

Stop and smell the ...

I was surprised to see fish still present in this shallow pond, inspite of the presence of this cormorant

Liu Fang Yuan, the Garden of Flowing Fragrance.
It reflects the traditional style of scholar gardens in Suzhou, China.
The Garden of Flowering Fragrance features a 1.5-acre lake, a complex of pavilions, a teahouse and tea shop, stone
bridges and waterfalls set against a wooded backdrop of mature oaks and pines.

THE JAPANESE GARDEN

The Japanese Garden isvery refined in its styling

The iconic Japanese Garden includes a drum bridge, Japanese house, walled Zen garden, expansive bonsai court,
and a ceremonial teahouse and tea garden.

Karesansui - Dry Landscape Garden, a.k.a. Zen Garden

Bonsai ('tray planting') is a Japanese art form using cultivation techniques to produce small trees in containers that
mimic the shape and size of full size trees. Similar practices exist in other cultures, including the Chinese tradition
of penzai or penjing, and the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese Hòn Non Bộ. The Japanese tradition
dates back over a thousand years. [Wikipedia]

The inevitable selfies...

The Rose Garden

The Rose Garden features more than 1.400 different cultivars, as does the Camellia Garden, which is considered
one of the most comprehensive collections in the world!

A hummingbird and a 'Sceloporus occidentalis' (NL:Westelijke haagleguaan); it pays to keep the eyes peeled.
The 'western fence lizard' is a common lizard of Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Northern Mexico, and the surrounding area. As the ventral abdomen of an adult is characteristically blue, it is also
known as the blue-belly. [Wikipedia]

AUSTRALIAN OUTBACK

Eucalyptus saligna, 'Sydney Blue Gum'

THE DESERT GARDEN

The Desert Garden, with a perplexing amount of plants!

One of the largest outdoor collections of cacti and succulents in the world, the Desert Garden includes more than
5.000 species of desert plants in sixty landscaped beds.

I liked this part of the entire Botanical Garden probably best, because it managed to surprise me so much.

A house finch (Haemorhous mexicanus; NL:Mexicaanse roodmus)

My visit to the Huntington Gardens was a definite highlight of our trip to California.
Wait, we're not done yet!

Weird and wonderful

Chorisia insignis of South America, a tree with serious defenses!

From the majestic trees to smaller growth lower on the ground

The HUNTINGTON LIBRARY

Decleration of Independence, signed by John Hancock, President.

Hard to see the scale of this book but not much smaller than the lenght of an adult, to be able
to draw animals 'life size'.