Gerhard's garden, a January visit

I ended my April 2025 blog post about my friend Gerhard's garden by saying I hoped it wouldn't be another 6 years before I returned (my most recent prior visit was in 2019). Who new I'd be back again less than 10 months later? While the trip that made this visit possible (driving back from Andrew's mom's funeral) wasn't one we planned or desired, we still enjoyed getting to see Gerhard, his family, and his garden...

I wish I would have had my camera ready to go when we pulled up, Gerhard was out working the garden along the public sidewalk with long tweezers in hand (like these) pulling debris out of his plants. It's one of those scenes that makes perfect sense to us gardeners (especially the ones with spiky succulents in their gardens), but might cause neighbors to wonder what the hell we're up to.

Look how clean!

Here's the other thing I remember from the start of that visit; Gerhard immediately mentioning that it wasn't a great time to visit. Not in a "I wish you hadn't stopped" way, but rather an honest assessment of how the garden looked, to his eyes. It was January 14th after all, who thinks their garden looks best then (well at least in the northern hemisphere)? But here's the thing, his garden looked so good, especially his variegated Agave ovatifolia...

Of course to my eyes everything in California looks great in the wintertime, I'm used to a grey sky, wet ground, and possibly a freeze-damaged garden. But seriously, by any standard this garden looked fabulous—and I have the photos to prove it...

I mentioned how much I liked this tidy rock edging and Gerhard said it was new... well done!

I almost emailed Gerhard to get ID on the plants I wasn't sure of, but then I decided that wasn't the way I wanted this post to go. Nope, instead it's just a plant appreciation post without a lot of details, other than the few I can provide. Plus, Gerhard is very good about IDing plants when he posts, so I'm sure you'll probably find most things called out on his blog, or in his most recent tour post, here.

Looking down the sidewalk side garden...

I think this is Mangave ‘Bloodspot’ × Agave titanota.

Ah that Lyonothamnus floribundus ssp. aspleniifolius (the tree) inspires serious envy.

Yucca linearifolia

I think perhaps the fact that so many of his aloes were sending up bloom spikes, but not yet blooming, is part of why Gerhard thought it wasn't a great time to visit. Still, for my eyes, the buds are nearly as fabulous as the blooms. 

Oh, I know this one, Aloe marlothii. I have one that I've grown on from a tiny plant I bought back when I visited (the now closed) San Marcos Growers in 2009. My poor plant, forced to spend winters indoors, has never bloomed.

On the left, Arctostaphylos ‘Ruth Bancroft’, a manzanita hybrid of unknown parentage that showed up at the Ruth Bancroft Garden.

Yucca rostrata

Aloe ‘Erik the Red’, with Eucalyptus macrocarpa on the left.

Walking into the front garden, behind the fence, this bamboo culm caught my eye. I've walked right by this bamboo every time I've visited (6 times now) and never noticed just how cool it is. Gerhard warmed me those hairs were dangerous so I looked, but did not touch.

Backlit spines!

Agave albopilosa 

I think this is a Dyckia, but it might be a Hechtia. Whichever it is, it's super spiky. *Gerhard says it's Hechtia argentea*

Ditto.

Oh so many Agave victoriae-reginae! Unfortunately several of these fabulous, slow-growing, agaves sustained major damage over the winter—Gerhard wrote about it in this recent blog post.

Yucca queretaroensis on the left.

Agave nickelsiae

Beaucarnea recurvata, at the back.

Pellaea mucronata

Ferocactus herrerae

Mangave 'Praying Hands'

So beautiful! And in mid-January!!!

Agave desmetiana ‘Galactic Traveller’

And now we're in the back garden and looking at one of the newish planting areas Gerhard developed after the house was re-sided last August (which looks amazing by the way).

Bromelia pinguin ‘Qué será’

And on to the other (extremely exceptional) planting areas...

Maybe Agave victoriae-reginae 'Albomarginata'

New narrow cactus bed

Kumara plicatilis

Mangave 'Frosted Jade'

And with this photo, it's a wrap on my visit. What a garden, am I right? (hell yes I am!)

The Bit at the End

Okay, here's my chance to talk about how lucky I am to know Gerhard Bock and give him a proper shout-out. I've known Gerhard almost as long as I've been blogging. He started his blog in October of 2010, a little research tells me I made my first comment on his blog in January of 2012, he was commenting on my blog then too. I finally got to see his garden in September of 2014, and he posted about my garden in 2014 as well, after visiting during the Portland Fling. Gerhard also graciously offered to proof my book, Fearless Gardening, and he's been a tireless supporter. So that covers the basics, but what really comes to mind when I think of Gerhard is his generosity of spirit. He's far more tech savvy than I am and he's helped me out of more than one bind with the blog, photo storage, or just random computer issues, never hesitating to reply with a well-researched answer. He shares plants when I visit, and ships plants without a second thought (and packs them well too!). Gerhard and his wife Heather have put me up at their home several times and are the best hosts you can imagine. As I write this I'm looking forward to our getting to host Gerhard in just two short weeks, as he's coming up to Portland for Hortlandia and a few garden visits. It's gonna be great fun, plant people are the best!

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A quick trip to the beach and a walk through the Wonder Garden

I almost called this post "21 hours at the beach," because yes, that's how long I was there.

A plant talk at the Hoffman Center for the Arts in Manzanita was the reason for the trip, but time at the beach is always a good thing, so I took advantage and spent the night (2 hours drive time each way made it an easy choice).

A walk on the beach before my talk gave me time to check out the area's architecture.

It's always nice to see what the locals are building.

Since the Hoffman Wonder Garden (a small garden filled with plants that thrive in this location, a sort of demonstration garden) is right across the street from the Center for the Arts, there was time for a walk there too... 

On the left, Arctostaphylos auriculata 'Diablo's Blush'... 

Arctostaphylos 'John Dourley' 

Arctostaphylos silvicola 'Ghostly'

Arctostaphylos densiflora

A pulled back shot of the Arctostaphylos (manzanita) border and the Hoffman Center in the background.

That euphorbia is one I covet...

Is it E. stygiana or E. mellifera? I'm not sure anymore but since I love them both the coveting goes on.

The restio (Rhodocoma capensis) does well in this garden.

Diplarrena latifolia, a new to me plant that Ketzel (as in Ketzel Levine, former NPR correspondent and their "Doyenne of Dirt"—now the force behind the Wonder Garden) pointed out.

Those flowers are pretty sweet.

I look at this structure and think it's calling out for a vine, but then again with a vine you wouldn't be able to see it as well.

An eryngium with very thin leaves, perhaps E. paniculatum?

Another euphorbia, this one (with the orange blooms) I think is E. griffithii.

Acanthus sennii (so spiny!)

Yet another eryngium there on the lower left, maybe E. guatamalense?

Pretty fabulous, am I right?

This one is definitely Eryngium guatamalense.

One of mine is just starting to push out a bloom spike, I look forward to watching it grow.

I didn't get a chance to ask the origin story of this raised trough planter, it's all sorts of fabulous don't you think?.

Agave americana var. medio picta 'Alba' gets protected in the winter and planted back out again when things warm up and dry out.

There were folks relaxing here just moments before, it looks like a great place to kick-back and soak it all up.

Melianthus major (perhaps 'Purple Haze') and Dodonaea viscosa var. purpurea.

Leucadendron galpinii 'Silver Cone' and...

...Acacia pravissima show just how mild this area's climate is compared to mine here in Portland.

Close-up of the acacia's fabulous foliage.

There's a eucalyptus towering over a corner of the garden.

And I was thrilled to catch Fabiana imbricata 'Violacea' in bloom.

What a stunner!

Chondropetalum tectorum (Small Cape Rush)

Astelia chathamica 

Back-lit callistemon buds.

And my final Wonder Garden photo (succulents as summer annuals)...

...before returning to the hotel and a gorgeous sunset.

The moon!

The next day was misty moody.

But of course a beach-walk was in order before I left.

At first I thought this was a fish sticking out of the sand... (just a piece of wood).

Finally, I couldn't resist stopping to snap photos of a couple gardens I passed by on the 101 between Rockaway Beach (where I stayed) and Manzanita.

That's a wrap on this beach trip!

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All material © 2009-2025 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.