April thru June are the months that are the most floriferous at Dawn Gardens. We generally have open gardens at the beginning of May. There are also many flowers in the summer but it is generally too hot to hold open gardens. Here are some scenes from spring of 2021: Chinese Houses wildflowers Halimiocistus wintoniensis…

Photographers love to come to Dawn Gardens to photograph their clients in a beautiful garden context. Wedding pictures, graduation photos, high school senior pictures, maternity pictures and other special occasions can be enhanced by flowers, green scenery, water features and moss covered rocks. WEDDING PHOTOS: In the Spring season there is an abundance of flowers…

Deciduous trees create the beautiful seasonality of the garden. Many of them have Spring or Summer flowers and most of them have noticeable Fall foliage colors. Without trees a garden would not have a feeling of space or protection. Golden Rain Tree (Koelreuteria paniculata) This is a dwarf variety of the Smoke Tree (Cotinus coggygria…

Trees create the ambience of a garden. They provide shade to cool off the day and provide color in their flowers, seeds and evergreen foliage. Without trees a garden would not have a feeling of enclosure or protection. Michelia yunnanensis ‘Inspiration’ – fragrant Hymenosporum flavum Cork Oak (Quercus suber) Cork is made from the bark…

Junipers are some of the most drought and poor soil tolerant plants used in gardens. They have been used so much in the 1950’s and 1960’s that they have become a cliche and are seldom used any more. Junipers are so carefree that I have started to use them at Dawn Gardens. Here are four…

Winter and spring bulbs at Dawn Gardens are in bloom from January through May. About 5,000 bulbs have been planted almost every year since 2002. Even though over 50,000 have been planted there are probably more than that now because the bulbs, especially the daffodils, multiply every year. Many people ask how that many bulbs…

I have used many different vines to grow on the wire fences and trellises at Dawn Gardens. Here are a few of them: Chilean Bellflower (Lapageria rosea). National flower of Chile. Very slow growing. Also available in pink. Part shade. Variegated Porcelain Berry (Ampelopsis brevipedunculata ‘Elegans’)  The birds and the bees love these berries which…

The following is a series of photos of the same spot at Dawn Gardens showing different weather conditions at different seasons. The photos go backwards in time. Note the different lighting conditions in the different seasons and different times. February 18, 2026 January 29, 2026 November 14, 2025 March 29, 2025 May 9, 2025 April…

The most floriferous plants in the garden are the deciduous shrubs which include plants such as: Bridal Wreath (Spiraea thunbergii) Spiraea prunifolia ‘Plena’ Spiraea reevesiana Spiraea japonica ‘Neon Flash’ Spiraea japonica ‘Goldflame’ Ogon Spiraea (Spiraea thunbergii ‘Ogon’) Deutzia ‘Pink-a-Boo’ Forsythia x intermedia ‘Lynwood’ Dwarf Forsythia (Forsythia x intermedia ‘Bostoniensis’) Beauty Bush (Kolkwitzia amabilis) with shredded…

The structure of the garden is more evident in the winter than any other season. At Dawn Gardens the grasses don’t get cut back until February so they are very visible. Some details in the garden are more visible such as bark, winter foliage color, fruit and branching structure. Strawberry Tree (Arbutus ‘Marina’) bark Paperbark…