Around the World of Succulents

Echeveria elegans, a member of the Crassulaceae family. Photo by Lisa Blackburn.

Two men who are arguably better acquainted than anyone else with the renowned Desert Garden at The Huntington will be featured speakers at the 29th Succulent Plants Symposium on Sept. 1. The deadline for registration is Tuesday, Aug. 28, so be sure to sign up soon to take advantage of this rare opportunity.

Gary Lyons inspects an agave gearing up to bloom. Photo by Lisa Blackburn, 2005.

Gary Lyons, curator of the Desert Garden and author of Desert Plants: A Curator’s Guide to the Desert Garden at The Huntington, will give the keynote address, looking back on his life and career among the spiny denizens of the cactus family and other dry-climate succulents.

And Myron Kimnach, curator emeritus of the Botanical Gardens, will present an “around the world” travelogue, detailing memorable expeditions in search of rare succulent plants. Kimnach’s particular areas of expertise are New World Crassulaceae and epiphytic Cactaceae.

Also featured on the program will be Exequiel Ezcurra of the U.C. Institute for Mexico and the United States in Riverside, Calif., speaking on succulent conservation in Mexico and South America; Maria Cristina Martínez-Habibe of the Universidad Militar Nueva Granada in Bogotá, Colombia, on plants of the Bursera genus found in the Caribbean region; Randy Baldwin of San Marcos Growers in Santa Barbara, Calif., on uncommon succulents in the wholesale nursery trade; and Mark E. Mort of the University of Kansas at Lawrence on the diversity of Crassulaceae in Southern Africa.

Myron Kimnach inspects a Huntington herbarium specimen of Epiphyllum chrysocardium. Photo by Lisa Blackburn, 2006.

The symposium takes place in Friends’ Hall at The Huntington and includes a silent auction, tours of the Desert Garden and Desert Conservatory, and an optional dinner. Registration is $75 ($25 for dinner).

For additional information or to register, call 626-405-3504.

Lisa Blackburn is communications coordinator at The Huntington.