When it’s 94 degrees in mid-November, there’s only one place to go in southern California: the botanical gardens at the Huntington Library. Not only can you duck inside of the Conservatory for a skin boosting mist of tropical rainforest humidity, you can hide out under the shade of one of the many the luscious viewing points inside of the Chinese Garden.
With a total of 12 gardens and some 15,000 species of plants, it’s easy to spend an afternoon pretending to be a botanist. At one point in the Rose Garden I mused, “I could dedicate my entire career to studying these gorgeous creatures.” Then I saw an as-of-yet unnamed rose variety and thought, “‘Einstein’s Girl’ has a nice ring to it…”
So enjoy this little journey across the world, right in our back yards, as I dabbled in botany for the day.