No, not ‘the’ Palm Springs. It is merely a concept for a new garden. It may not begin to develop for quite a while, and certainly will not begin prior to when the rainy season begins this autumn.

Palms and redwoods do not mix. Technically, they can, but they look silly together. However, there are a few young palms here, and there will be more in the future. Some are very important to me. The pair of Mexican fan palm seedlings came from the mature specimen that Brent scattered some of his brother’s ashes under in front of his home at the Jungalow. The windmill palm came from the childhood home of two of my best friends from the fourth grade. The rare hesper palm was a gift from a now deceased friend. It was stolen and then recovered.

Palm Springs may be developed to accommodate the various palms within their own space, away from the redwoods. The preferred location is a small and relatively mildly sloped plateau on an otherwise steep hillside, where oaks and chaparral species grow wild. A natural spring, if tapped, may be able to provide adequate irrigation. Otherwise, water is available reasonably nearby. Other lush or jungly species can also inhabit this garden. This includes heliconia, giant bird of Paradise, canna, calla, blue ginger, cup of gold vine, Philodendron selloum, four cultivars of angel’s trumpet and three distinct species of bamboo palm that are already here. The garden would not be visible from either of the nearby roads until some of the palms get very tall a few decades later. I doubt that anyone would mind if they could see such odd vegetation anyway.

Ultimately, Palm Springs could be like a bit of Southern California within its own confined oasis almost hidden above the redwoods.