A visit with C and D
Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2014 3:29 am
Unfortunately I don't have nearly as much time as I'd like for visiting local cactus and succulent collections. When Craig Fry answered the call with a couple of cacti I really wanted, he made the offer to visit him at C and D Plants so I could inspect said cacti and bring them home with me. I simply couldn't pass up an opportunity like that, so on March 15 I took the drive out to Costa Mesa. And what a lovely time! The experience was a treat in and of itself, but the opportunity to talk c&s with one of our SoCal forum members made it even better.
Craig invited me to bring my camera -- a situation I took full advantage of. What I didn't know was that I'd be going into a scaled-down version of the Huntington Desert Garden! When I visited the Huntington about 2 years ago, I entered the desert greehouse and it took about 10 minutes before I went into sensory overload as I photographed the heck out of the place. C and D gave me deja vu all over again, although I put my Huntington camera experience to good use. It's amazing how much detail can be pulled out of hi-res photos, so that's how I took 41 pics and turned them into 114 after I completed my post-production work using Photoshop. Here are just the highlights -- if you like what you see, I'll give you the OneDrive link to my virtual tour of C and D at the end of this little presentation:
First, I'll introduce you to my gracious hosts Craig and Denise.
This is the cactus & succulent GH, jammed to the rafters with an incredibly diverse selection of plants.
This GH is all about succulents.
Since SoCal's November-April rainy season can be a problem for winter-sensitive plants, this mini-GH is a clever way of dealing with the overflow when there's not enough room in the "big house".
Now for the outdoor collection.
Here's an old but obviously well-grown Stenocactus in full flower.
A 2-headed Eriosyce senilis, rather rare I believe.
Even rarer -- one with 3 heads and an offset unusually high on the plant.
Here's Craig tending to just a few of his bazillion plants.
And finally, here's the OneDrive link I promised you:
https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=70339293 ... wXXKCmML2I" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I honestly don't know how the Frys manage to grow so many plants so well. With all the wonderful cacti and succulents I viewed, the equally wonderful conversations I had with Craig and Denise were just bonus. This was a morning I'll always cherish, and I wish y'all could've been there with me live and in person!
Cheers, everyone!
Craig invited me to bring my camera -- a situation I took full advantage of. What I didn't know was that I'd be going into a scaled-down version of the Huntington Desert Garden! When I visited the Huntington about 2 years ago, I entered the desert greehouse and it took about 10 minutes before I went into sensory overload as I photographed the heck out of the place. C and D gave me deja vu all over again, although I put my Huntington camera experience to good use. It's amazing how much detail can be pulled out of hi-res photos, so that's how I took 41 pics and turned them into 114 after I completed my post-production work using Photoshop. Here are just the highlights -- if you like what you see, I'll give you the OneDrive link to my virtual tour of C and D at the end of this little presentation:
First, I'll introduce you to my gracious hosts Craig and Denise.
This is the cactus & succulent GH, jammed to the rafters with an incredibly diverse selection of plants.
This GH is all about succulents.
Since SoCal's November-April rainy season can be a problem for winter-sensitive plants, this mini-GH is a clever way of dealing with the overflow when there's not enough room in the "big house".
Now for the outdoor collection.
Here's an old but obviously well-grown Stenocactus in full flower.
A 2-headed Eriosyce senilis, rather rare I believe.
Even rarer -- one with 3 heads and an offset unusually high on the plant.
Here's Craig tending to just a few of his bazillion plants.
And finally, here's the OneDrive link I promised you:
https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=70339293 ... wXXKCmML2I" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I honestly don't know how the Frys manage to grow so many plants so well. With all the wonderful cacti and succulents I viewed, the equally wonderful conversations I had with Craig and Denise were just bonus. This was a morning I'll always cherish, and I wish y'all could've been there with me live and in person!
Cheers, everyone!
Such a large and beautiful collection. I strive to have a collection like that some day. 
