As you know, my partner and I lost our beloved furry pal, Scout, last week.  (Here's a free lesson: never have just one pet.  Coming home to a quiet pet-less house is awful if it's not what you're used to.) 

I asked readers to share pictures of their own animal gardening buddies, and I was touched that so many of you did!  Thank you for the heartwarming pictures and condolences.  Here are the pictures of succ-er pets that readers sent in:

What a cute bunch! 

I know there are a lot of pets out there that need good homes, like Scout did almost a decade ago, and maybe eventually I'll be able to give another dog or two a good home.  For now, I suspect I'd just be wandering after the new pet despondently, wondering why it isn't in magic psychic connection with me like Scout was.  I'll keep you posted.

Thanks again to all of the succ-ers who sent in pictures of their furry gardening companions.  It helps so much to see all those wonderful pets enjoying lives alongside their wonderful people!

Well, dear succ-ers, I have some bad news.  My wonderful, beloved succulent mutt, Scout, has moved on to the big succulent garden in the sky.  She was diagnosed with a rare, aggressive form of liver cancer back in November, and the vets expected her to live only a month or two.  But with the help of chemo, love, generosity, and prayer, she lasted six months.  They were good months, too--up until the day before she died, she was enjoying walks, treats, and laying in the sun.  And up to her very last moments on earth, she loved cuddling with her moms.

It's hard to put into words how much I loved this dog, and what a faithful companion she was through some rough times.  And, of course, she hung out with me while I gardened!  Granted, on her part there was more relaxation than actual gardening, but she helped out by chasing cats, highlighting previously undiscovered patches of afternoon sunshine, and letting me know when it was too cold to stay outside.

I know that some of you, dear readers, also have animal companions who are your buddies in gardening and life.  As a tribute to Scout, I would LOVE it if you'd email me a picture or two of your pet(s) in your yard/garden.  Just email me the photo, along with your pet's name and anything you'd like me to say about him or her in the caption.  Meanwhile, here are a few photos of Scout. 

These last two pictures might be my favorite, because they remind me of some of the best, nicest, most relaxing times I've had in the past two years or so since I started succulent gardening: Scout hanging out with me on the front deck while I planted, and Scout curled up on my legs or my lap on the back deck. 

I sure miss her. 

Rest in peace, my dear friend.

I'm not going to pretend that my photos are as cool as Liz's, but I thought I'd share them nonetheless.  (And, hey, not bad for iPhone photos, eh?)  The Ruth Bancroft Garden is also featured, I just discovered, in a book that came out less than a year ago: Succulent Paradise.

Let's start with a few agaves, shall we?

Next, a few aloes.  It's tough to capture the grandeur of the aloes here.  There were really some amazing specimens, including huge aloe nobilis and aloe striata, of which I have no decent pictures.  My favorite aloe, though, was the one immediately below this text, and to the right.

As regular readers of this blog are already aware, I am a bit of a haworthia geek.  I may or may not have squealed aloud with glee when I saw a whole bunch of gorgeous haworthia truncata of various types, shades, and sizes growing among the rocks in a shaded area.  Observe:

Although I wasn't always the world's biggest gasteria fan, I have to admit that they've grown on me more and more...  particularly en masse and variegated!

And sempervivums (doesn't it seem like it should be "semperviva?") abounded:

Can we talk about terrestrial bromeliads for a moment?  ...Actually, I don't have much to say about them; I just love the phrase "terrestrial bromeliad"--though these dyckia look extraterrestrial to me.  I love the combinations of purples and greens.

Onto echeverias.  Like (nearly) everything else in the Ruth Bancroft Garden, most of the echeverias weren't labeled.  Ruth Bancroft (who is alive and kicking at over 100 years old!) doesn't like the way labels can detract from plants in a garden, which I can understand.

Last but not least...  cacti!  The RBG is home to dozens, maybe hundreds, of cacti varieties.  It's a great time to visit the garden, because many of them are in bloom right now.  A few favorites:

Bottom line: if you're anywhere in Northern California, it's worth the drive to Walnut Creek to check out the Ruth Bancroft Garden!  (Especially if you're meeting your awesome parents for sushi.)  And be sure to check out their nursery, too--they had several hard-to-find plants at pretty reasonable prices.  Ta ta for now, succ-ers!

My partner, Liz, and I spent Saturday celebrating Mothers' Day with my parents at the Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, CA.  The RBG was even better than I expected, in part because they allow dogs AND have tables that make picnicking easy.  My parents picked up sushi for the picnic 'cause that's how we roll.  (Get it?  Sushi?  Roll?  Hahaha.)  We had a great time, enjoying the gardens and the nursery, where my mom and I each picked up a mangave bloodspot for $8. 

I need to cull through my own photos and will post those in a few days, but meanwhile I wanted to share Liz's, which I thought were absolutely amazing.  Here's a tiny fraction of 'em:

All in all, the RBG was more than worth the 90-minute drive from our house.  And thanks to my parents' b-day present to me, I can get in for free all year as a member!  Yay!  Can't wait to go back.  I'll share some of my own photography from the day (albeit inferior) soon.