ArtPlantae Today

This weekend exhibitions exploring the history of California wildflowers will open at the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens in San Marino and the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Claremont. A third exhibition will open on March 15 at the Theodore Payne Foundation in Sun Valley, CA.

The exhibition When They Were Wild: Recapturing California’s Wildflower Heritage is a collaborative project between The Huntington, Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden and the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants. Works from all three collections, along with loans from several other public and private collections, will be on view in the Huntington show, with related displays at the two other institutions and at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. More than a dozen public programs including lectures, workshops, plant sales, and wildflower walks will be offered at The Huntington, Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, and the Theodore Payne Foundation.

When They Were Wild draws on a rich heritage of wildflower illustration to take a closer look at California’s natural and cultural history: exploring the source of the state’s floral bounty; how people have used, categorized, and depicted these flowers; and how wildflowers came to represent the state.

Below is a list of learning opportunities to be held in conjunction with this exhibition:

At The Huntington (www.huntington.org)

Adult Workshop – Wildflowers at Home
Saturday, March 16; 9:30 a.m.–noon
Join award-winning floral designer Carolyn Bennett in creating works of art with fresh and dried wildflowers. Huntington Members: $70; Non-Members: $75. Registration through brownpapertickets.com.


Lecture – California Wildflowers and Early California Nurseries
Saturday, March 23; 2:30–3:30 p.m. Bart O’Brien, director of special projects at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, talks about the unusual journey that California wildflowers took into California gardens. A book signing follows. Free; no reservations required.


Adult Workshop – Herbarium Tour and Pressed Flower Workshop
Saturday, March 23; 9:00 a.m.–noon
Learn about the Huntington’s herbarium (a reference collection of preserved plant specimens) on a tour with Paul Meyers. See some of the plants and the art that supports scientific research, then create your own herbarium specimen. Huntington Members: $40; Non-Members: $45. Registration through brownpapertickets.com.


Preschool Series – Wild About Flowers
Wednesdays – March 27, April 3, 10 and 17; 10 a.m.–noon
Explore the gardens and the exhibition with instructor Laura Moede. Each class includes garden and art projects, stories, and more. Fee includes one accompanying adult. Ages 3-4. Huntington Members: $85; Non-Members: $95. Registration: 626-405-2128.


After-School Adventures – Pressing Flowers
Wednesday, April 10; 3:30–4:30 p.m.
What’s so wild about wildflowers? Instructor Laura Moede leads youngsters into the garden to explore these fascinating flora. Students make their own pressed flowers to take home as cards or mini masterpieces. Ages 5–6. Fee includes one accompanying adult. Huntington Members: $15; Non-Members: $20.
Registration: 626-405-2128.


Second Thursday Garden Talk – California Wildflowers for the Home Garden
Thursday, April 11; 2:30 p.m.
Bart O’Brien of Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Garden discusses how to select, grow, and care for California native annuals in the home garden. After the program, the audience is invited to self-tour the “When They Were Wild” exhibition. Free; no reservations required.


Lecture – Beauty Within and Beauty Without: California’s Native Peoples and Wildflower Fields
Friday, April 19; 2:30–3:30 p.m.
M. Kat Anderson, botanist and author of Tending the Wild, looks back at the tremendous diversity of California’s wildflower fields and how deeply intertwined wildflowers were with California Indian culture. In exchange for benefits like food, medicine, and ornamentation, indigenous people employed judicious gathering strategies and stewardship of the landscape. A book signing follows. Free; no reservations required.


Second Thursday Garden Talk – Gene Bauer: Paper, Paint, and Postage
Thursday, May 9; 2:30–3:30 p.m.
Gardener, artist and author of Botanical Serigraphs: The Gene Bauer Collection, Gene Bauer tells the story behind her Golden Native serigraphs of the 1970s, some of which are included in “When They Were Wild”. A book signing follows. Free; no reservations required.


Lecture – California’s Wildflower Artists
Saturday, May 18; 2:30–3:30 p.m.
For more than 100 years, artists have documented the California flora for science, education, and conservation. John Wickham, former president of the Theodore Payne Foundation, discusses the work of a wide range of artists, their stories, and their drive to record this extraordinary flora. Free; no reservations required.

At Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (www.rsabg.org)

Nature Walk – Wildflower Walks
Saturdays and Sundays, March 23 – June 9; 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Guided walking tours with RSABG nature interpreters feature beautiful California wildflowers and seasonal highlights. General admission.


Plant Show – California Wildflower Show
Saturday – Monday, March 30 – 31 and April 1; 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
A special exhibition of wildflowers from across the region brought indoors for an intimate viewing. Monday, April 1, is Wildflower Show Senior Day offering free Garden admission and tram tours for visitors over 65. General admission.


Field Trip – Blooms and Beauty of Bighorn Mountain
Sunday, April 7; 8 a.m.–6 p.m.
Naomi Fraga, RSABG conservation botanist and Eric Garton, RSABG director of visitor services, lead this fascinating and beautiful outing to Bighorn Mountain Wilderness in San Bernardino County. The trip highlights a rare transition zone between the mountain regions and Mojave and Sonoran deserts. Roundtrip transportation and lunch are provided. RSABG Members: $65; Non-members: $95. Limited to 10 participants. Registration: 909-625-8767 ext. 224 or registrar@rsabg.org.


Lecture – Clara Mason Fox: Pioneer, Painter, and Poet
Saturday, April 20; 11 a.m.
Clara Mason Fox, one of the featured artists for the “When They Were Wild” exhibition, is the great aunt of Jon Seeman, co-author with his wife, Lorraine Passero, of Clara Mason Fox: Pioneer, Painter, and Poet of Orange County, California, a book about Clara’s life in the late 1800s and early 1900s. A book signing follows. General admission.


Lecture – California Wildflowers and Early California Nurseries
Sunday, April 21; 2:30–3:30 p.m.
Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden’s Grow Native Nursery in the Veterans Garden. Bart O’Brien, RSABG Director of Special Projects, talks about the unusual journey that California wildflowers took into California gardens. A book signing follows. General admission.


Lecture – California Wildflowers and Early California Nurseries
Saturday, May 11; 1–2 p.m.
[See listing above.]

At the Theodore Payne Foundation (www.theodorepayne.org)

Poppy Day Plant Sale & Spring Festival
Saturday, March 23; 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.
A seasonal celebration of California’s state flower with a large native plant sale, expert advice, vendors and more. TPF Members receive 15% off plants; Non-members 10%; Memberships available at the door. Registration: 818-768-1802.


Garden Tour – 10th Annual Theodore Payne Native Plant Garden Tour
Saturday and Sunday, April 6 and 7; 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Showcasing more than 40 gardens in the Los Angeles area, each planted with at least 50% California natives, this special ten-year anniversary tour celebrates native landscapes of the past, present, and future! TPF Members: $10 per person for both days; Non-members: $15. Available at www.theodorepayne.org or by phone: 818-768-1802.


Field Trip – Wildflower Chase in the San Gabriel Mountains
Saturday, April 13; 7:30 a.m. –5 p.m.
In this all-day excursion to view spring-blooming annuals and perennials in local mountains, you meet at TPF and travel by van to the most superb flower-filled sites. Lorrae Fuentes is a botanical educator and native plant advocate and producer of the Theodore Payne Wild Flower Hotline. TPF Members: $75; Non-members: $100. Registration: 818-768-1802.


Adult and Family Workshop – Wildflower Watercolor
Saturday, April 20; 10 a.m.–noon
Capture the beauty of native spring wildflowers in this hands-on class for budding artists of all ages. No experience necessary. Bring your own hat and water, all other materials provided. Instructor Laura Stickney was TPF’s 2012 Artist in Residence. Free, thanks to a generous gift from Susan & Dan Gottlieb and The G2 Gallery, Venice. Pre-registration is limited and required. Registration: 818-768-1802.


Lecture and Nature Walk – An Introduction to California Native Bees
Saturday, May 4; 9–11 a.m.
Approximately 1,600 bees are native to California–and all have co-evolved with the native flora. This introduction includes an illustrated talk covering bees’ great diversity followed by a bee walk on TPF grounds. Led by Hartmut Wisch, whose fascination with insect fauna comes from working for 35 years as a naturalist guide. TPF Members: $20; Non-members: $25. Registration: 909-625-8767 ext. 224.