This was an amazing tour! Fun, informative, and full of Dodger trivia. Plus, lots of exercise! What could be better? I have been to Dodger stadium many, many times and have noticed the gardens, and all the architectural elements, but never really thought much about them.
Well, it was clear to me after this tour that Walter O'Malley, and those that followed in his footsteps, including Chaz Perea, have thought a lot about them. How to display the gardens, what to plant, how to maintain their beauty, and especially, how to develop the sustainability of gardens in 2023 in California.
Dodger Stadium is the country’s first sports arena with an accredited botanic garden.
The vision of Chaz Perea, (the landscape designer at Dodger Stadium) was to create a water-wise landscape that would introduce stadium visitors to the beauty of California native and other drought-resistant plants and water-saving irrigation techniques.
"Today, the slopes and giant concrete martini-shaped planters around the stadium have been transformed into beds of fragrant salvias, agaves of multiple colors and size, and boulder-sized century plants sending their towering blooms into the sky. The boxes outside the Dodgers Team Store at the Top Deck are overflowing with succulents of every color. And true to a botanic garden, all the plants have their tags listing their common and botanical names."*
Even though this video is a little bit longer than most, I just couldn't edit out any more of the video that I took - it was all so interesting, and our tour guide, Elizabeth Lara, was so knowledgable about the history of the stadium and its environs that I didn't want you to miss any of her pearls of wisdom!
Here's the article from the LA Times about the gardens, and the landscape designer, Chaz Perea.. It's completely fascinating!
And here's the link to book a tour! Scroll down until you see the botanic tour link.
* Credit to JEANETTE MARANTOS, LA Times Magazine, MARCH 3, 2022
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