I have found the most beautiful Spring Garden in California, and it’s just the most amazing pastel flower wonderland that you can imagine! Huge pink magnolia trees, majestic cherry blossom trees, beautiful tulips in every color, and a huge daffodils field, are just some of the Spring blooms that you will find there, all in the most beautiful countryside estate setting. This garden is Filoli, and it is, without a doubt, the most beautiful Spring Garden in all of California! No other garden has left me gasping in wonder at each turn like Filoli has in March and April! In this post, I’ll share with you some of the photos that we took there and also details of the Spring blooms.
p.s. I recently uploaded a video featuring the best of Spring flowers at Filoli over the past 2 year on my YouTube channel! Please give me a follow there if you love gardens, nature & flowers too! 🌸
All photos were taken by me and my husband Ken. If you’re interested in flower photography, you may be interested in my post on the Best Lenses for Flower Photography. Or take a look at my photo gear!
* This blog post may include affiliate links for which I may receive a small compensation. Learn more about my affiliate & cookies policy here. Thank you for supporting this flowery blog! 💛🌸🌿
The Beautiful Spring Flowers of Filoli – Cherry Blossoms, Tulips, Daffodils and Magnolias!
Filoli is a spectacular garden all around – the 16-acre countryside setting with a huge 43-room Georgian mansion, the amazing garden design with many areas to enjoy, each more beautiful than the last, the meticulously maintained grounds, the brick garden house with sunken pond in front of it, the cute gift shop and the popular café… all surrounded with endless Spring blooms in every color… truly the most beautiful garden in California!
I’m surprised that I haven’t visit earlier since I love pretty gardens, but now that I have discovered the wonders of this amazing flower wonderland garden, I’ll be making up for lost time! In March and April of last year alone, Ken and I visited the garden three times, and each trip was well worth it! Each visit had different flowers in bloom and the garden was magnificent in different ways each time.
Some of the highlights of Filoli in the Spring are:
- Mature (meaning HUGE!) magnolia trees in pale pink, dark pink and white. Peak bloom for most magnolias is usually in February.
- Mature weeping cherry trees… so rare in California! There are a couple of them just outside the gift shop and several more inside the garden. The ones inside the garden bloomed in March and the ones next to the gift shop bloomed in April.
- Multiple cherry trees that bloom at slightly different times, so that you’ll be sure to catch some in bloom whenever you visit in March or April! They’re surrounded by tulips, bluebells, violas and other colorful Spring blooms that make the place feel like a Spring flower wonderland!
- Tulip in every color imaginable! Everything from pastel pinks and yellows to dark purple. The ones in the center circle near the weeping cherry blossoms are a showstopper!
- A semi-secret field of daffodils in the back of the garden. This is the largest field of daffodils that I’ve seen in the Bay Area! (maybe all of California?) These were blooming during our first visit in early March, but were gone by the end of March.
- Potted Spring flowers are placed everywhere, as if the garden itself didn’t have enough flowers blooming!! Potted tulips, fragrant hyacinths, magnolias and more are found in the garden house, next to most doorways, next to benches and seating areas… basically everywhere you look!
In short, Filoli is a true flower wonderland in the Spring – it just doesn’t get any prettier than this! If you like gardens and flowers at all, I highly encourage a visit – you won’t be disappointed! And if you do plan to visit at least twice a year with a friend, a yearly membership will pay for itself with the second visit!
Btw – I have a few more pictures of the cherry blossoms at Filoli on my “Where to Find Cherry Blossoms in the Bay Area” post.
About Filoli
Filoli is located 30 miles south of San Francisco in the city of Woodside in San Mateo County. It’s open daily from 10 am to 5 pm, with advance reservations suggested. Free parking is available at their parking lot.
According to their website, the estate includes a 54,000+ square-foot Georgian revival-style mansion, 16 acres of exquisite English Renaissance gardens, a 6.8-acre Gentleman’s Orchard, and hundreds of acres of Natural Lands with 5 distinct ecosystems and a 1-mile Estate Trail. It would take several days to visit the entire estate! Filoli’s working gardens also produces fruit butters, hard cider, honey, dried lavender, and culinary herbs. You can visit their website for more information on what’s in bloom, their special events and how to make reservations.
Fascinating History & Meaning of Filoli
Filoli was originally built as a private residence in 1917 for William Bowers Bourne II, owner of the successful Empire Gold Mine in Grass Valley, and a utility pioneer (he led a merger to what later became PG&E). He lived there with his wife and daughter, who are all buried at the family cemetery on the property. According to Bourne, the name Filoli is an acronym for the family motto: “Fight for a just cause; Love your fellow man; Live a good life.” The 654-acre estate was opened to the public in 1975 and is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. You can read more about Bourne’s interesting career and life at Wikipedia and Historynet.
My YouTube Channel!
I’ve started a YouTube channel! If you love nature, flowers and gardens as much as I do, make sure to give me a follow there! 😊🌸🌿
I’ve posted a video featuring highlights of the beautiful Spring flowers at Filoli over the past 2 years on my YouTube channel!
Step Inside the Most Beautiful Spring Garden!
Featuring the best of Spring Flowers at Filoli over the past 2 years! Tulips, cherry blossoms, daffodils and much more!🌸
California Flower Calendar
If you love flowers and gardens, you may be interested in my new California Flower Bloom Calendar post! Some of the flowers I cover include cherry blossoms, peach blossoms, poppy fields, wildflowers, roses and much more! 🌸
Thank You!
Thank you for stopping by my blog! I hope you found this post useful, and I hope you have a wonderful day!
Pansy ❤️
Hi, I’m Pansy!
Hello, thanks for stopping by! I’m Pansy, California-based travel blogger, photographer and lover of ALL the pretty flowers! You may notice that most of my travels, photography & DIY center around flowers and nature! 🌸🌼🌿
I recently started a YouTube channel where I feature beautiful gardens, parks & flower fields! Make sure to follow me there if you love flowers & gardens! 😊
If you’d like to contact me, please send me an email or DM me on Instagram!
Pansy ❤️
