When Ren Daniels received an epiphyllum cutting 22 years ago, it started her not only on a journey with the orchid cacti, but with gardening.
She will be among seven Rancho Bernardo gardeners sharing their love of plants and beautiful home landscapes during the Seven Oaks Garden Club’s annual spring tour from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 17.
“This is where my heart is,” Daniels said when showing her epiphyllum in hanging baskets throughout her backyard.
What started as one cutting has grown into 12 separate epiphyllum plants, some of which are quite large. She said they love shade and do best with just a little bit of filtered sunlight, which they get due to placement under the roof of her patio and a covered dining area.
“They are easy to take care of and almost will not die,” Daniels said, while tending to her first epiphyllum that has grown very large and bears hot pink flowers.
Daniels has the plant in several colors, with a variety called Queen of the Night being her favorite, she said. It blooms in the evening and by morning the flower wilts.
“Epiphyllum caused me to enjoy gardening so much,” she said.
While epiphyllum introduced Daniels to gardening and sparked her love of it, she has expanded into many other types of plants over the past two decades. They serve as the “filler” to her epiphyllums, she said.
Since 2001 she has also planted roses, the Queen’s Tears variety of bromeliad, birds of paradise, palms, various succulents and hydrangea.
As for fruits and vegetables, she has grapes growing over an arched trellis, a fig tree, lemon trees, kumquat, tomatoes, green peppers, eggplant, cucumber, collard greens and blueberries.
Because animals like raccoons and rabbits were eating her vegetable plants, Daniels created mesh cages so she can easily access her vegetables while keeping critters out.
In a corner of her yard, Daniels has created a “wellness center,” an area shaded by a couple trees where she places newly-potted cuttings and plants that need a little extra tender loving care in order to thrive.
An artist, Daniel has added unique features to her garden. In addition to a fountain and pond, artistic elements range from a mural on her patio wall to glass flowers she has made, bird houses and decorated wine bottles used to water her plants instead of a watering can.
“The glass flowers I am thoroughly enjoying because when the sun is shining they are beautiful,” she said.
The other gardens on the tour are also in the Seven Oaks neighborhood. They are:
• The Bacas garden, recently created by Bruce Hoey Landscapes, has been filled with a variety of succulents, flowers and pathways.
• The BeWinter garden has carefully chosen accessories and many flowers throughout.
• The Forough and Lucy gardens are neighboring properties that have created a beautiful space that flows into an open area that serves as a bountiful wildlife habitat.
• The Johnson garden is one of the first in the neighborhood to be landscaped by landscape contractor Greg Rubin, who is known for his work with California native plants. It has a water feature and a wide variety of native plants.
• The McDonald garden scales a high hillside. Visitors who make a trip up its steps will see a panoramic view of the valley. It is a work-in-progress, filled with roses and colorful plantings.
Tour tickets are $15 for Seven Oaks Garden Club and $20 for non-. Purchase tickets at the Seven Oaks Community Center, 16789 Bernardo Oaks Drive in Rancho Bernardo.
During the tour, unique plants and crafts from local vendors will be available for purchase in front of the center. For details, call Loretta LaBianca at 858-442-1280.
