Chilean Garden

The Chilean Garden is located in a previously undeveloped space in the Preserve that had been overtaken by an invasive, tall wildflower called Crown Daisy or Glebionis coronaria.  The area had become densely overgrown, causing seasonal maintenance issues to clear the dead flower stalks. In 2016, Greenhouse Manager Donnie Walton began growing Chilean Plants from seed and small 4-inch specimens.   Donnie scoured the Internet for Chilean plants to start the collection due to limited Chilean plant availability in local nurseries.

Pathways were installed in early 2017 to connect to existing NBP trails.   Next, plants were installed on Earth Day 2017 with a variety of Chilean specimens endemic to the coastal regions of Chile, whose climate mimics our own Mediterranean Climate.   Flowering Trees, bushes, and succulents (including several varieties of Puya and Rock Purslane or Calandrinia spectabilis) encompass the garden, which is one of the largest Mediterranean Chilean plant collections in North America.  Mature trees from Australia that existed in this space before 2017 were kept for their shade and maturity.  Installation of the dry creek bed and bridge in the fall of 2017 solved an ongoing erosion problem caused by winter rains.

Many Chilean plants tend to bloom in the summer heat more so than most plants in our other gardens.  Solanum crispum, commonly called the Chilean Potato Vine, is found along the dry creek bed and features abundant summer blooms.  Chilean Pitcher Sage or Lepechinia salvia flowers along Grandiflora Path.  The Soap Bark Tree or Quillaja Saponaria found along Palm Canyon Pathway has been used medicinally by the people of the Andes for centuries and has most recently been used to develop worldwide vaccines.

Still a garden growing into its maturity, the Chilean Garden continues to develop and thrive, with new specimens being added throughout the year.