Hi GPODers!
Our week in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, continues with stop #3 on their 2025 Secret Garden Tour. So far we’ve seen Teresa’s shady oasis, which is the perfect retreat from the Florida heat (Teresa’s Serene Space), as well as Anne’s colorful garden, which fuels a love of flowers and homemade food (Anne’s Abundant Kitchen Garden). Today we explore Allison’s courtyard garden that includes a potted collection of incredible desert plants that she designed with the help of her talented niece.
Allison Newberry Dennis’s Spanish style home reflects the time she spent in Cabo San Lucas, Baja, which was the inspiration for her courtyard garden of cacti and succulents. She and her niece, India Morrow (@Gardenistajax), designed a unique courtyard. Her distinctive cacti appear like a collection of fine sculptures.
An incredible collection of cacti and succulents piled into one pot is a fantastic start to this display. A marvelous variety of colors and textures thrill, fill, and spill.
Allison has a great array of cacti and succulents that give a taste of the many ways these desert plants can be utilized. The curator of this tour submission, Anne Eshelman, mentioned the sculptural aspect of these plants, and I would like to note their architectural appeal as well. These Peruvian apple cacti (Cereus peruvianusZones 9–11) add a much-needed vertical element to this blank wall.
But smaller cacti can make just as big an impact. The white ghost cactus (Euphorbia Milky ‘White Ghost’, Zones 9–11) in the back of this grouping is one of my favorites and is a great contrast to the light green monstrose Peruvian apple cactus (Cereus peruvianus monstroseZones 9–11) and variegated baby sun rose (Mesembryanthemum cordifolium syn. Aptenia cordifolia ‘Variegata’, Zones 10–11) in front.
Allison and her niece have created some fantastic container combinations, but cacti and succulents are so interesting, they can often create a statement by standing alone in a pot. A brightly variegated agave stands out next to the curling leaves of candelabra aloe (Aloe arborescensZones 9–11).
More one-plant pots that absolutely stun: The pencil cactus (Euphorbia tirucalliZones 11–12) in the back is massive. I would love to know how long Allison has had that plant and what size it started out as. A Golden barrel cactus (Echinocactus GrusonsZones 9–11) is a small but mighty companion.
While Allison has some really impressive large plants, the smaller pots are just an interesting. Variegated rainbow bush (Portulacaria afra f. variegatedZones 10–12) is an exciting spiller and ‘Gollum’ jade (Crassula oval ‘Gollum’, Zones 9–10)—not to be mistaken with its relative, the hobbit jade—is a fun twist on the classic jade plant.
The last tiny pot features a young and small pencil cactus (potentially a cutting of the much larger plant we saw above) and a very dark burgundy echeveria that is yet another example of the diversity (and collectability) of these sun-loving plants. This collectability, unfortunately, comes with some caution. If you haven’t yet, please check out our article on the prevalence of poaching in the plant trade, particularly among rare and collectable cacti and succulents: The Growing Problem of Botanical Theft. No concern for Allison, however; all of her plants look like well-loved, reliably sourced specimens!
Keep an eye on your inbox this week for two more stops on this incredible garden tour. And if you’re feeling inspired to share your garden with a larger community, we would love to feature your plant photos on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.
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