If you are a member of one botanic garden, such as Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, you may be eligible for free admission to other gardens. Check out http://ahsgardening.org/gardening-programs/rap/find/statebystate.
Here are some California gardens that we've enjoyed visiting.
Within an hour or so from Claremont:
- Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (Claremont)
- Sam Maloof House and Gardens (Rancho Cucamonga)
- Chino Basin Water Conservation District (Montclair)
- Descanso Gardens (La Canada)
- Fullerton Arboretum (Fullerton)
- Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden (Los Angeles)
- Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens (San Marino)
- LA Arboretum (Arcadia)
- Theodore Payne Foundation (Sun Valley)
Further South
- Isamu Noguchi Sculpture Garden (Costa Mesa)
- Hortense Miller Garden (Laguna Beach)
- Sherman Library and Gardens (Corona del Mar)
- Roger's Gardens (nursery, Corona del Mar)
- Water Conservation Garden (El Cajon)
- Rancho Los Alamitos (Long Beach)
Towards Santa Barbara:
- Seaside Gardens (nursery, Carpenteria)
- Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden (Santa Barbara)
- Lifescape Garden/Chumash Point Ethnobotanic Preserve (Santa Barbara)
- Firescape Garden (Santa Barbara)
Closer to the Bay area
- Municipal Rose Garden (San Jose)
- Hakone Estate and Gardens (Saratoga)
- Annie's Annuals and Perennials (Richmond, nursery)
- Ruth Bancroft Garden (Walnut)
- Cornerstones/Sunset Demonstration Gardens (Sonoma)
- UC Santa Cruz arboretum (Santa Cruz)
Out of state:
- Springs Preserve (Las Vegas)
- Owen Memorial Rose Garden (Eugene, OR)
- Darlingtonia Preserve (Near Florence, OR)