Landscape Designer Daniel Townsend is passionate about flowers. He and his team keep Far Niente robed in an array of colors—but doing so requires a lot of planning ahead. And patience.
Just some of the color we look forward to enjoying this spring!
It’s hard enough to live in the present; try living in the future! Fall is right around the corner in the Napa Valley, and this means it’s time for planting bulbs. We won’t see the fruits of our labor for five-to-six months and, meanwhile, we eagerly anticipate the show. Over the past eight years we have planted thousands of bulbs consisting of tulips, daffodils/narcissus, hyacinth, scilla, naked ladies and many others. Many of the bulbs we treat as annuals and must replace each year, and others continue giving each year, multiplying over and over.
Once the bulbs are planted, in go the wildflowers. We have wildflowers in several locations around the Far Niente property, and in the spring, you will definitely see alyssum and carpet of snow along the steps leading to the Great Hall entrance. These complement several varieties of rhododendron, camellia, and many flowering trees including pink and white dogwood along the walkway and throughout the property.
You can expect the flowering to begin as early as mid-February with the red emperors first to show, followed by assorted daffodils, mid to late tulips through May into June. Along with the thousands of azaleas that bloom in the late spring and early summer, the grounds are truly an explosion of color.
As we look to the future, we know that months of fantastic colors await us. Delaying gratification doesn’t come easy, testing our patience through the winter months, but it’s so worth it. I’ve seen it firsthand—the smiles and warmth the gardens bring to the faces of those who come to Far Niente. Come in and bring your smiles …
