Spring at Taft Gardens

Photos by Nicholas Weissman | Photo Assistant Nicholas Pelton

If Taft Gardens seems otherworldly, that’s because it is. About 200 million years ago, Pangea began to rift and two new continents struck out on their own evolutionary paths.

As Gondwana wandered south, she took most of the cycads with her. We’ve left only one native species in North America, Zamia integrifolia, the lonely and highly toxic Coontie Palm of Southern Florida. A few distantly related, non-native cycad plants are the first to greet you after you sign the guest book and enter the paradise that John Taft built some 30 years ago outside Ojai; off the twisting road to Carpinteria.

The brief presentation of the Ancient Gardens foreshadows the adventure ahead of you.

Laurence Nicklin of Capetown, South Africa was brought to the US by John and his wife Melody to design and plant a South African garden on their 265-acre plot of land in the Santa Ana Canyon. Our Mediterranean climate resembles his own and so the plants took off. He was in Ojai for scarcely a year before falling in love with the Tafts’ daughter, Jenny. The couple dispersed back to Capetown for a spell before returning to put down roots in Ojai. Jenny Nicklin took the helm of the non-profit her father created to steward the property and provide opportunities to educate about conservation. Her niece and John’s granddaughter, Jaide Whitman — who grew up in the canyon — was tapped in 2020 to take over as the board’s President and carry on the family’s legacy. You may see her around the grounds with her quiet confidence that comes from a childhood spent in nature.

South African Natives

Tall aloes dominate the Southwestern end of the garden and present their magnificent red and yellow blooms in early spring. On the other side of the main path live the Proteas of the family Proteaceae, namesake of the shape-shifting god Proteus. All Proteaceae, including these Leucadendron and Leucospermum originated on Gondwana more than 90 million years ago. We Laurasians know nothing like them; angiosperms with a cycad-like cone.

Australian Natives

Continue your walk through Taft as did Gondwana, breaking off into another branch of Earth’s phylogenetic tree. The entrance to Taft’s Australian garden, designed by Jo O’Connell, a veteran of many a revegetation project in her native country, is marked by a copse of towering Xanthorrhoea johnsonii. Much of the flora of this section is more subtle and possibly more familiar as they grow so well here and Jo, of course, keeps the Ojai Valley well-stocked with Australian natives from her nursery just down the road.

If you look closely you can appreciate nature’s creativity. Callistemon seedpods bubble out mid-branch and all the species seem to swap ideas back and forth. Banksia, whose species come in such variety, are sometimes only identifiable by the seed pods lying at their feet. These pods, which resemble alien pine cones, are prized among woodturners and have been affectionately dubbed “muppet mouths” by Taft’s first artist-in-residence, Cassandra C. Jones. Like their South African Protea vicariants, banksias, grevilleas, and waratahs are also of the Proteaceae family and it’s a delight to study the cousins’ similarities.

A few areas of Taft are off-limits to those with a daytime pass. The Eco Garden Pavilion sits temptingly, like a house made of candy, on your way through this foreign forest. The unmistakable style of Ojai architect and Taft son-in-law Marc Whitman promises a delicious interior. For those whose curiosity demands a look inside, the home is available as a guest house.

A stay at the Eco Garden Pavilion offers easy access to the Zen Garden or Artist’s Cottage where Cassandra is foraging inspiration and creating new works set to debut as soon as we are able to gather. Adjacent to the Zen Garden is an Amphitheater waiting until the time is right to host an outdoor performance.

Until then, do not miss Spring at Taft Gardens. Keep your eyes peeled for the first Art in Nature events or one of the plein air painting classes, a nature immersion walk with Elena Rios, or just make an appointment for a self-guided stroll or arrange a tour. Taft is the perfect place for an afternoon picnic, a small gathering, or an extended getaway.

Because Taft is private property and lies off a private road, we cannot post directions. Please register for a visit and you will receive instructions for access. Take careful notes as you may find yourself without service as you make your way into the canyon.

Your donation helps Conservation Endowment Fund (CEF), a 501(c)3 maintain and grow the Taft Gardens & Nature Preserve.

Special thanks to Taft coordinators Marian St. James, Eric St. James-Lopez, John Taft and Jaide Whitman.

Additional photography by David Clode, Mitchell Luo, Heather Mount, Sonny Sixteen, April Pethybridge, Lynda Hinton, Paris Speak, and Wikimedia Creative Commons