LOTUSLAND Nl:\X'SLl:Til:R Volume2 No. I • Summer1993

How to be a Frier1d of Lotuslar1d By now you shouldhave receivedan in­ vitationto becomea Friendof Lotusland. The membershipbrochure (you can't miss the pink lotus on the cover) was mailedin mid-July to all those who cur­ rentlyreceive a newsletter.Please call the ~ ;:iffice(805) 969 - 3767 if you have not yet It'scalled Lotus/and, but there'smuch morethan the lovely lotusgardens to see. receiveda brochureand are interestedin The extensivecactus collection is a specialattraction any timeof year. membershipinformation. One of the benefitsof membershipis that you will continue to receive our We're ope11! newsletterwith advance notice of lec­ Well, almost!We will be opening our number of visitorsand vehicles will be tures and classes. This newsletteris the new gates on Cold Springs Road for limitedon a daily basisto make viewing last issue for non-members.Other bene­ public tours on September15, and we the gardena more enjoyableexperience fitsinclude free admissionpasses for you will beginto accept reservationsstarting for everyone. and your guests.As a specialbenefit of Monday,August 16.(If you are a mem­ Admissionto Lotuslandwill be free somelevels of membership,you mayen­ ber, we'll take your reservation right of charge on two Saturdays,October 11 joy self-guidedtours. If you join now, now!) and November15, although advance res­ you may make an advance reservation Lotusland will be offering guided ervationsare stillrequired. for a visit beginningin mid-September. tours on Wednesdaysthrough Saturdays This will be a very short year for We're only open for a limitedperiod this at 10 a.m.and l :30 p.m. All tours are by tours of Lotuslandas we will be closing year,so reservationsmay fill up quickly. reservationonly. The reservationphone November15 to February15 for winter As a Friend of Lotusland,you not number is (805) 969-9990, and the res­ maintenance.Please call early. We would only receive special garden privileges, ervation office hours are Monday likeour friendsand supportersto enjoy a but your membershipwill support the throughFriday from 9 a.m.to noon. The visitas soonas possible. Foundationin its endeavorto carry out MadameWalska's wishes that her gar­ den be preservedand shared with vis­ itors. Your contributionwill also assist Friendsof Lotuslandreceive : the Foundationin itsgoals to increasethe • Subscriptionto thisnewsletter with newsof upcomingevents and classes _ garden's value to the public by plant • Freeadmission passes for themselvesand theirguests propagation,preservation of rare species • Self-guidedtours (for some levels of membership) ' and by presentingeducational programs The satisfactionof nurturinga uniquebotanical garden and classes. Thirtl)-Or\e r:11thusiasticDoce11 ts Graduate

1n preparation for the mid-September opening, Lotusland conducted a 16- weektraining course for new docents. The informative,demanding program required attendance at every weekly meeting.Course materialcovered every­ thing from botany to garden design to reminiscencesfrom people who worked withMadame Walska. Among local experts conducting classeswere Dr. EdwardSchneider, Di­ rector, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, who spoke on plant anatomy;Dr. Bruce Tiffney, Professorof Geology, UCSB, whogave a presentationon the evolution of major modern plant groups, and Dr. RobertCummings, Professor of Botanyat supplementedby manywalks in the gar­ newly traineddocents added to the ranks SantaBarbara City College, who lectured den to study plants and garden design. of volunteerswho will conduct guided on the life cycles of ferns, cone-bearing New docents participatedin practice tours.Volunteers are alsohard at workin plantsand floweringplants. tours withexperienced docents. the nurserypropagating plants for sale in Lectures,slides and handouts were Lotuslandis delighted to have 31 the GardenShop. u

Left to right: Laura Bridley,Permit Planner; Steven Timbrook, Director; Arthur R.. Gaudi, Secretary­ Treasurer;Carol L. Valentine,President; Anne W. Jones,Vice -President;Michael B. Towbes, Trustee; FrankLouda, General Contractor. Not pictured:Eliz­ abethW. Dake,Trustree.

VisitorCer1ter Nears Completior1

Ground-breakinglast November for Lo­ March. Though other garden areas Center. Buildings accommodate rest­ tusland'snew VisitorCenter culminated lapped up the welcome moisture,the roomsand a GardenShop, connected by fiveyears of planningand design work. clay soil of the constructionsite did not. a brick patio and portico.South of the ChismahooConstruction, Ltd., began Each time the ground dried enough to Garden Shop, landscaped with Aus­ site preparationwith temporaryfencing begin work, new storms shut things tralian tea trees (LeptospermumJae- ) of treeand planterareas. down,resulting in a 10-weekdelay. vigatum),lies a tiledassembly area wher e-.. Tree relocationwas barely finished Finallyin late April,grading work be­ visitorswill meet their docents. when a series of heavy rains drenched gan in earnestat the sametime that foun­ Buildingframing, sheathing and roof­ Montecito from December through dations were poured for the Visitors ing began in late April, continuing ~ Lotusland's Water Gardens ( It shouldbe no surprisefor visitorsto June through September,at which time Lotuslandto discoverthe watergardens. the plantsbegin to go dormant.The tu­ As the name implies,Lotusland is home bers pass the winter months in a resting to the aquaticlotus flower. state, leavingthe pond surface clear to While the Japanesegarden pond no reflectthe sky. longerprovides an unbrokenvista of the On either side of the lotus pond are Asian,or sacredIndian, lotus (Nelumbo waterlilyponds, where both hardy and nucifera),a smallcolony still exists there, tropicalcultivars of the genus Nymphaea a reminderthat KintonStevens grew lo­ are grown. The hardies range in color tus in thispond in the late 1800s. from white through shades of pink and The majorityof the lotus collection, red, as well as yellowand peach. Trop­ however,is now grown in the lotuspond, icalsencompass the samearray of colors Lotusland'snamesake in a radiantphotograph which was once a swimming pool. with the additionof blues and purples. by William B.Dewey. Flankedby a charmingbath house, the Most waterlily flowers open in the pond now hosts three speciesof the ge­ morningand closeagain at the end of the mate. With their up-turned leaf edges nus Nelumboas well as ten lotuscul ti vars. day. Some of the tropicals,however, they resemblean array of giant platters. Lotusgrow froman undergroundtu ­ open late in the day and remain open Although the leaf is not particularly ber, which in parts of Asia is harvested through the night, closing in mid­ tough, becauseof the intricatewebbing and used in much the sameway we use morning.Waterlilies are also grown in of the raisedveins on its underside,it can potatoes.The peltate leaves rise out of the Japanesegarden pond and the koi supportmany poundswithout sinking. If the water as much as four feet, looking pond in the cycadgarden. the weightis evenlydistributed, a person like a forest of green parasols.Towering Three other kinds of waterliliesare can easilysit on the leaf,as manypublic ­ above the leaves,the magnificentflow ­ grown at Lotusland.Spatterdock or cow ity photosattest. ers open for three or fourdays beforethe lily (Nuphar luteum subsp. poly­ In nature,the edgeof a pond supports ( petalsdrop away,leaving a cone-shaped sepalum),a large-leaved,prickly water ­ a greatvariety of other plantsthat require seed head that, when dried, is much lily from Asia (Euryaleferox), and the continuous moisture. Several are in­ prizedby flowerarrangers. wondrousVictona from South America. cluded in a damp area adjacentto the The Asian lotus flowers are straw­ By far the most spectacular, Victoria waterlilyponds . Varietiesof taro, along berry pink, but many shades of white, dominatesthe waterscape. Its leavesmay with cannas, sugar cane, crinum lilies dark pink,lavender and yellow are now reach diametersof six to eight feet in and sageform the majorplantings. An is­ availablethrough the effortsof hybridiz­ their nativehabitat, and can exceed four land of Egyptianpaper plant (Cyperus ers.The floweringseason lasts from mid- feet across even in our less tropicaldi - papyrus)rises from the westpond.

through May,when most of the grading systemswere installedas unusual Aus­ workwas alsofinished. tralian plants were delivered for the In June,replica Tuscan columns, cast parkingarea garden. The landscapeplan fromtemplates made of columnson Lo­ includes masses of Xanthorrhoeaand tusland's existingbath house,were set in Banksiaspecies with a screeninghedge placeat the Visitor'sCenter. The columns of Hakeasuaveolans around the parking arebelieved to be the only exactcopies of area. a Tuscan-stylecolumn by GeorgeWash­ Construction of a small parking ingtonSmith in SantaBarbara. kiosk, final pavement treatments,and A new Cold SpringsRoad entry was continuing landscape installationoc­ constructedin June, connecting to the cupy Julyand August.All construction existing wall. It complementsthe Sy­ willbe completedby the end of August. camore Canyon entry, complete with Twoweeks later, Lotusland will open iron gates and columns.The new entry on September15, to share the mag­ ( was designed with care to seamlessly nificentgarden with the public. blend into the pink stucco wall,long a trademarkof Lotusland. Framingthe patio are Tuscancolumns In late summer,landscape irrigation replicatingthose of Lotusland'sbath house. THEL OTUSLAND NEWSLETITR. is publishedby Ganna WalskaLotusland Foundation 1 ) 695Ashley Road SantaBarbara, California 93108 (805)969 - 3767 Dr. StevenTimbrook, Director LauraBridley, Permit Planner Anne Dewey,Assistant to the Director VirginiaHayes, Associate Curator Mikelven, GroundsSuperintendent PeterStollenwerk, Building o Welcometo Lotusla11d! EquipmentSuperintendent The friendlystaff of Lotuslandgathered for an openingshot at the backof the mainbuilding . Frontrow: FrankFujii, Japanese Garden; Terri Clay, Japanese& EpiphyllumGardens; Mario Newsletter Franceschini,Blue Garden; Laura Bridley, Permit Planner. Middle row, Corey Welles, Cactus, Contributors: Succulent& AloeGardens; Lynda Stollenwerk, Contract Painter; Anne Dewey,Assistant to the VirginiaHayes Director;Michael Furner, Building & EquipmentAssistant; Marguerite Garno, Office Manager, VirginiaHayes, Associate Curator; Steven Timbrook, Director. Back row: Mark Kyriaco,Ar ­ Anne Dewey borist;Andy Babcock,Theatre Garden & Crew Leader;Janet Eastman, Public Programs Assist­ LauraBridley ant; Ken Opiat, Fern Garden; JenniferWilbanks, Plant Propagator,John Lafleur,1PM Co­ ordinator;Peter Stollenwerk,Building & EquipmentSuperintendent; Bruno Reginato, Main Judith Sutcliffe,Design Lawn & Topiary;Jerry Bates, Stude nt Intern; Michaellven, Grounds Superintendent;Marge Printedby J & S Graphix Kelly,Bromeliad & Rose Gardens;Peter Schneider, Cycad Garden.No t pictured,Rik Dennis, Water Gardens;Tod Wilms,Fem Garden.

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