A trip to the Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens is guaranteed to be a fun as well as endlessly interesting. The gardens are located in Mission canyon, in the foothills of the Santa Ynez mountains. A walk through the gardens will take you on a journey in which you will discover the diversity of plants that Santa Barbara and nearby regions have to offer. There is also much to be learned about Santa Barbara’s cultural history.
At the entrance to the gardens there is a large meadow which showcases California’s grasslands. There are many native bunch grasses, and in spring many wild flowers can be found here, notably our state flower the California poppy. This is also where also the gift shop and nursery are located, andmany fascinating books, plants, and other useful items can be purchased. Here, one can start a loop trail that will wind through the gardens. The trail starts along the meadow edge, and then begins to decline down towards Mission creek. There is a small grove of redwoods here, which creates a cool and calm ambiance. The southernmost stand of naturally occurring redwoods is in the Big Sur area, so these redwoods were planted at some point. However, they are old enough to pass for the redwood forests of Northern California, right here in Santa Barbara. After you emerge from the redwoods, you will cross Mission creek. The crossing is no ordinary bridge, and is in fact a dam that was used to divert water to the Santa Barbara mission during the mission years. It is humbling, in an era of faucets that instantly bring water piped from far away, to pause and contemplate a time in which some extremely dedicated and hardworking missionaries settled here. After the old reservoir, the effects of the Jesusita fire are immediately apparent. This fire came dangerously close to destroying the gardens, and indeed destroyed several structures. The oaks are charred and no longer cast shade with their long, leafy branches. There is an abundance of plants growing here, mostly the canyon sunflower. However, the oaks have already sprouted from their trunks, and will no doubt soon grow new branches and create a shady microclimate in which little grows under them. This is not the first time that fire has come to the hills of Santa Barbara, and this process is no doubt what gives the coast live oak its characteristic stately, multi-branched form.
This side of the creek is mostly natural oak woodland, dotted with impressively large boulders. However, there are some unique plants communities here, such as the specimens in the Channel Island garden. This section has a sampling of the island plants, many of which are different subspecies of familiar mainland species. There are also some that occur only on the islands, such as the island oak and the island ironwood. After this, you will have to hop over some rocks to cross Mission creek and head back up the hill towards the entrance. Along the way, surprisingly, there is a quaint Japanese tea house. This may seem a bit out of place, but its purpose is to showcase Japanese tea culture, and there are traditional tea ceremonies held here. Shortly after the teahouse is the discovery garden, which is a great area for children. This section is full of signs which implore you to use your five senses to make observations about the colors, scents, textures and other aspects of nearby plants, and their relationship to animals. After this, a short walk will lead back to the entrance and the parking lot.
Although it is a good start, the description of this walk left out a lot of what the Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens have to offer. In addition to the garden sections mentioned above, there are gardens showcasing specific plants such as buckwheat, manzanita, Ceanothus and others. There are also sections with a climactic theme, like the desert area. In addition to showcasing these various plants and cultural relics, the Botanic Garden also has much more to offer the community. Many classes are held here, both for adults and school children. Knowledgeable docents lead tours regularly. The gardens have also been conducting important botanical research for decades. This includes an extensive herbarium which contains thousands of plant specimens, all meticulously documented. Perhaps more important than this is the gardens role as a living bank of plant species, some of which are rare and on the decline in California. So whatever your interest, the Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens no doubt have something to offer.
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