The Green Room: Ruth Bancroft Garden: aloe there!

While the Ruth Bancroft Garden (RBG) in Walnut Creek, CA is a great place to visit at any time of year, it's particularly beautiful right now. The photo below shows you why: Many of the aloes are in bloom.

The RBG has an extensive collections of aloes, both species and hybrids. Brian Kemble, the garden's long-time curator, is a world-renowned aloe expert and has been creating hybrids for decades, many of which are planted out at the RBG.

Last Saturday I had the opportunity to get into the RBG at 7:30 am as part of an open photography session. My earlier post highlights the breadth of succulents on display at the RBG. This post is all about aloes. It's not meant to be comprehensive; it simply showcases the aloes that caught my eye. If you live in Northern California, why not make plans for a visit and experience the aloe bloom for yourself?

Flowering aloe panorama

Here are some non-aloes you don't see very often: Eriocephalus africanus (white flowers) and Euryops speciosissimus (yellow flowers), both from South Africa

Left to right: Aloe marlothii, Aloe ferox (candelabrum form), Aloe ferox

Aloe 'Tangerine', an Aloe ferox hybrid

Aloe 'Creamsicle' and Euphorbia rigida

Aloe 'Creamsicle', a hybrid between a yellow-flowered specimen of Aloe arborescens with a yellow-flowered of Aloe ferox, was created by RBG curator Brian Kemble. I've never seen it look so stunning.