Each trip is a full day.  Bus transportation to and from the convention hotel and lunch are included in the price.  For details, see the links.  Details will be added to our individual pages as the events approach.  So check back!

Nurseries

Shop ‘til you drop at the cream of the crop!  Come visit some of our favorite nurseries.  You’re sure to take home many new friends.

Safari Park (formerly known as the San Diego Zoo Wild Animal Park)

This 1800-acre wild life preserve is also a botanical garden.  Earlier in the day we will enjoy guided tours of their Baja Garden, the Old World Succulent Garden and California Native Garden.  Later in the day you are free to explore the more than 250 animal species in their naturalistic settings.

San Diego Botanic Garden and Safari Park (formerly known as Quail Gardens)

Two-for-one!  The SD Botanic Garden offers us not just a succulent garden and a desert garden, but also rare bamboo groves, a tropical rainforest, California native plants, a Mediterranean climate landscape and fire-safe landscaping in this 37 acre jewel.  On our next stop at the Safari Park (and botanical garden—see above) we will be visiting not the animals, but just the three botanical gardens, with tours of the Baja Garden, the Old World Succulent Garden and California Native Garden

Balboa Park Gardens & Natural History Museum

We will visit two cactus and succulent gardens, a tour of palm trees, an inside look at the Natural History Museum’s herbarium, and the historic Botanical Building (a green-house-without-glass).  But we’ve left time for you to choose among optional exploration of six other gardens (no charge) and 13 other museums (admission extra), in this 1,200-acre “Landscape of Art and Culture.”

Sherman Library & Garden & Palomar Gardens

At Sherman Library & Gardens we will enjoy not just a cactus and succulent garden, but also a more than 50-year-old tropic and rose garden on 2.2 immaculate acres. An article featuring the recent renovation of the Sherman succulent garden will be featured in the upcoming Oct/Nov/Dec edition of Pacific Horticulture magazine. The author of the article, Matthew Maggio, will be our tour guide for this diverse garden described as one of the finest compositions of succulents in all of Southern California. There are more detailed photos of the Sherman Library and Gardens on the Xericworld website. We will also visit Palomar Cactus & Succulent Garden, displaying 3,000+ varieties grouped into gardens representing 35+ distinct geographic origins and environmental requirements. Palomar Garden web site

Native Succulents, featuring Dudleyas

Kelly Griffin will lead this exploration to tour his favorite succulents in their native habitat around San Diego County.  Limit 12.  This trip will sell-out.  Snooze—you lose!

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

Come discover a handful of Dr. Juergen Menzel’s favorite places and plants in this, the largest desert park in the U.S.  We will travel by bus and take short walks into the desert. For a complete field trip description click here.
California Parks Anza-Borrego
Borrego Springs Chamber of Commerce

Water Conservation Garden and Three Private Gardens- East

The Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College promotes water conservation through its nearly five acres of demonstration garden and exhibits.  We will have a tour of the cactus and succulent garden and free time to explore the other areas.  We will also visit three diverse private gardens, including a succulent bonsai expert, a collector with a passion for epiphyllums, bromeliads and cacti, and a two-acre retreat perched on a mountain side, strewn with granite boulders.