Winter in the Garden

One of the treasures of Berkeley is the University’s Botanical Garden. I have been a member for many years, and this year began volunteering as a “roving ambassador.”

Today turned out to be what the Irish would probably call “a fine soft day”. I was scheduled to ‘rove’ from 12 to 2, and the weather app said that the rain would let up about then. When I checked in at the kiosk, the person there told me that the weather made it unnecessary for me to be there – there weren’t many people visiting the garden.

She was right, I talked to one family who were just leaving, and a couple who are long time members, so there wasn’t much education to be done. But what a wonderful time to be in the Garden! I could pretend that it was my own private garden, and just enjoy a ramble through it.

The hills surrounding the Garden were wreathed in wisps of fog,

And the spiral aloe (Aloe Polyphylla from South Africa) revealed its intricacies, which were outlined by tiny drops of rain

The Japanese Persimmon (Diospyrus Kaki from Honshu, Japan) was ablaze with color,

And the Japanese Pool, seen through a frame of maples, encouraged a stop to meditate on the joys of water and color…

The pool, visited close up, revealed a montage of leaves amongst the water lily pads

I thought that I saw a newt amongst the leaves, but was unable to get a photo – soon, with the coming of the rainy season, he and his kind will be drawn irresistibly to the pool to mate, lay eggs, and bring forth the next generation.

On the way up the hill towards the rose garden, my eye was caught by these berries. No, they aren’t cranberries or anything remotely like that – they are the fruit of the Asparagus Maritimus, from Italy – the plant we know as “asparagus fern”.

In the winter garden, shapes and textures stand out. Here, the shapes of the Mediterranean Fan Palm, Chamaerops Humilis, Var. Argentina from Italy.

At this point, I suddenly realized how wet I had become, and how few people I had encountered, and home and a hot drink beckoned!

Mary

Berkeley, 12/1/19