Ive other noteworthy Bay Area gardens to explor

BOTANICAL GARDEN AT BERKELEY

ished in 1890, the Botanical Garden covers 34 acres t is described as one of the most diverse landscapes in orld. The collection includes more than 10,000 types nts, many rare or endangered. The plants are arranged aphically into nine regions, from Australasia to South

. The garden also offers special events, classes and plant as well as live concerts in its redwood grove amphitheater.

ls: Open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily by reservation 15) at 200 Centennial Drive in Berkeley; https:// calgarden.berkeley.edu/.

RUTH BANCROFT GARDEN

The Ruth Bancroft Garden is a celebration of succulents and other dry-land plants. It was established in 1971 on a prolific family fruit and nut orchard in Walnut Creek, when Ruth Bancroft decided, against the advice of some, to plant her extensive collection of succulents in the ground. The garden now covers 3.5 acres and includes many unique and diverse specimens from around the world as well as California natives.

Details: Open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday at 1552 Bancroft Way, Walnut Creek; www.ruthbancroftgarden.org/. Admission is $5-$12

UC SANTA CRUZ ARBORETUM AND BOTANIC GARDEN

The 135-acre garden and arboretum feature more than 3 collections of plants from Mediterranean climates, includ conifers, primitive angiosperms and bulb-forming plant fa Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and California — col that include a eucalyptus grove, acacias and otherworldly

Details: The arboretum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. dail High St., Santa Cruz; https://arboretum.ucsc.edu/. Admis $5-$10.

E ESTATE AND GARDENS

-old garden was established by San Francisco sts Isabel and Oliver Stine. Isabel was particularly Eastern culture and modeled the country home after style estate. It is part of the National Trust for Historic . Cradled in the hills of Saratoga, overlooking Silicon arden features 18 acres of beauty and tradition and me of the original plantings and fixtures from the 1915 cific International Exposition in San Francisco. Its spring oms give way to year-round beauty with a blend of rt sharing the space.

n from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. rough October (the gardens close at 4 p.m. November21000 Big Basin Way, Saratoga; www.hakone.com/. $8-$12.

THE GARDENS OF GOLDEN GATE PARK

Golden Gate Park provides a wealth of recreational and cultural opportunities, but for garden lovers, the three main gardens at the park are what makes the traffic and parking worth all the fuss. The San Francisco Botanical Garden, the Conservatory of Flowers and the Japanese Tea Garden are each worth a daylong visit, but for the ambitious, they can all be visited in a day. And what a visit they are, from the magnificent magnolias of the Botanical Garden to the exotic displays inside the fabulous glass house at the Conservatory and the tranquility and harmony of a Japanese-style garden.

Details: Hours vary by season and garden at Golden Gate

Park, 1199 Ninth Ave. in San Francisco. Tickets are available individually ($3-$10) or as a Gardens of Golden Gate Park Pass ($9-$25), which can be used for unlimited visits to all three sites for three days; www.sfbg.org/gggp.