it sits. The project’s unlikely leader was Julie Cain, who had
spent the previous 10 years managing Stanford’s undergraduate
library. In 1998, she gathered a team of volunteers and slowly
resuscitated the grounds. “It was in rough shape,” she says.
More than a dozen volunteer oaks blanketed the entire space
in shade and had to be removed. A layer of leaf litter, several
inches thick, covered the ground. The original serpentine rock
edging that delineated the beds had sunk underground, eras-
ing the pathways. Though Cain and her cohorts tried various
mechanical excavators, they eventually found that an old-
fashioned shovel worked best. “We did a hell of a lot of digging!”
she recalls.
Now restored but still under the radar, this prickly paradise
is poised for another heyday, but for strikingly different rea-
sons. Originally designed for status and showmanship, the
low-water, low-maintenance plot is a beacon of sustainability.
Plant procurement is dramatically different today, too. Due
to its limited budget, the garden relies not on Wild West train
treks but on botanical donations. (The San Francisco Cactus &
Succulent Society has been indispensable in providing expertise
and plenty of cuttings.)
This makes planning challenging; however, the upside is
the opportunity to receive an occasional giant, like a tree-size
Pilocereus, dug up and lifted by crane when new owners of its
home in Salinas didn’t care for the spines. Another break from
the past: Thirsty varieties are no longer mixed in with dry-
adapted species, a signature Ulrich touch that’s neither finan-
cially nor environmentally viable today. “But
textural contrast is still vital,” says current
coordinator Christy Smith, another Stanford
librarian-turned-garden-custodian. As is
generational contrast: In this landscape,
youngsters mingle with old treasures, includ-
ing a dozen rare mature succulents that date
back to Ulrich’s time. These spiky elder states-
men have truly seen it all.
Left: A golden-flowered Aloe marlothii shares a bed with
Euphorbia lambii. Above: Golden-barrel cacti—donated in
2003 from Lotusland, the famous Montecito garden—frame
Opuntia ficus-indica, grown from cuttings of the original
planting. In the background, a columnar Echinopsis ters-
checkii stands next to silvery swords of Yucca x schottii.
Simply hover
your phone over
this smart code
to watch a video
on how to propa-
gate succulents.