Filoli
Woodside, California
September 2007
Filoli is a spectacular example of a
grand estate garden, rivaling any estates I’ve visited in England.
It is all very formal and designed, with a European flavor that is
evident in both the design and the naming of features. This is
evident to the visitor immediately. One side of the parking lot
bordered by “The Gentlemen’s Orchard”. The very name smacks of
European nobility. On the opposite side of the parking lot, the
trail to the entrance meanders through an old olive grove to a
modern brick visitor center, which seemed very
functional.
The building is isolated enough from the rest of the site that its
modern, utilitarian character didn’t detract and all the staff were
extremely pleasant and helpful. There’s a small room where they
show an interesting film on the history of Filoli.
An attractive allee of sycamores made the entrance to the gardens
obvious.
It brought us into a hubbub of activity at the retail nursery and
garden shop.
I prefer gardens that encourage you to exit through retail areas
rather than enter through them because when I arrive I’m anxious to
see the garden and don’t want to be distracted, so after a brief
period of distraction we made our way through to the “Sunken
Garden”. This is a very symmetrical garden, with manicured lawns,
tightly trimmed hedges and formal ponds. Everything is managed to
perfection. The design also manages to capture great views through
the garden to the mountains in the distance. However, because of
massive hedges and walls you can see almost nothing of the rest of
the gardens, an interesting design feature.
The garden’s are a series of rooms,
divided by Irish Yew hedges or walls. The giant dark hedges make a
much more imposing barrier than brick walls. Each garden room
displays a different gardening theme but all are beautiful and
open, and because they are so visually separated from one another,
each is a surprise when you enter.
Making our way from the Sunken Garden
into the Walled Garden, the first feature we encounter is the
Chartres Garden.
According to the interpretation, this
garden replicates, in living plants, a stained glass window from
Chartres Cathedral near Paris. The trimmed boxwood and standard
roses, surrounded by colorful annuals, makes a stunning display,
but I guess you need an aerial view to see the stained glass scene.
I admire the ambitious intent and for me, it worked as a beautiful
garden anyway. You leave the walled garden through an allee of
massive Irish Yews.
The areas of most interest are different in late fall than they
would be in spring or summer. At this time of year, the Daffodil
Meadow, Dutch Garden and Cutting Garden were recognizable only by
their signs. Fortunately, the Rose Garden was still in abundant
bloom.
Roses are not my favorite flowers but
the fragrance is always a treat. I particularly liked that these
roses were very well labeled so even an amateur like me could know
which I liked best.
Even this late in the year the Woodland Garden was abuzz with
mosquitoes. We were unprepared so passed quickly through. Keep this
in mind for your visit.
We exited through the manor house. It's a pretty spectacular place,
with 43 rooms and 17 fireplaces! The hardwood floors, murals on the
walls and beautiful period furniture are something to see.
The whole experience of Filoli is something special. This is a
garden worth going far out of your way to see.
Click here to
see more photos of Filoli.
To visit the official website of Filoli, click here.