Descanso Gardens

Have you ever looked closely at something and thought you saw the shape of a face or an animal? Take a good look at the photo below. Obviously it's a flower, but look at it again and use your imagination. Does something about it remind you of an animal's face? Would it help you to know that it is called the monkey flower? This is one of many types of monkey flowers, so named because the funnel-shaped, two-lipped blossom reminds some people of a grinning monkey's face.

EVENTS Culinary Workshop: Biblical Lands Explore the vibrant cultural and culinary tradition of the eastern Mediterranean in a workshop that complements the Getty Villa's current exhibition, "In Search of Biblical Lands: From Jerusalem to Jordan in Nineteenth-century Photography. " Prepare a meal combining Old and New World ingredients and then share it as it may have been enjoyed by 19th century explorers in the Holy Land. Open to 16 participants. Getty Villa, 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has approved a proposal to remodel and expand facilities at Descanso Gardens in La Canada Flintridge. The project will be funded with $200,000 raised by the nonprofit Descanso Gardens Guild Inc., which runs the county facility. Plans call for enlarging Descanso's gift shop and moving its library and administrative offices into remodeled quarters, said Roy Eto, assistant director of the county Department of Arboreta and Botanic Gardens.

Blooming cherry blossoms are celebrated all over the world as harbingers of spring, especially in Japan, where the delicate flowers symbolize the fleeting nature of life. Descanso Gardens welcomes spring and the sakura with a Japanese-themed Cherry Blossom Festival featuring traditional tea ceremonies, cooking demonstrations, horticultural lectures, nature walks, cherry tree sales and bento box lunches. Descanso Gardens, 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

Did you know that greater Los Angeles is part of a bird migratory route called "The Pacific Flyway"? Many birds fly great distances, from South America along the Pacific coast. Some shorebirds even fly as far as the North Pole! These birds fly through in spring and again in fall. Along the way, they stop at various places in Southern California to eat, drink and build up their energy before taking wing again. One place to see a lot of birds is at Descanso Gardens in La Canada Flintridge.

MOVIES Brian May and Elena Vidal 3-D movies seem to be Hollywood's new obsession, so it's easy to forget that the underlying technology is more than 150 years old. The authors of "A Village Lost and Found" will remind viewers with a 3-D presentation of the new picture book, which explores a series of stereoscopic photographs taken in a small English village in the 1850s. Downtown Independent , 251 S. Main St., L.A. 7 p.m. $20. (213) 617-1033. www.downtownindependent.

It's magical to walk among the century-old oak trees and the thousands of camellias that take shelter under them in Descanso Gardens, a chance even now, when the flowers are not in bloom, to gaze wide-eyed at the glories of the planet. But however pleasing, it turns out to be one lousy pairing for the trees and the flowers. Descanso has decided it's time for a breakup, based on irreconcilable differences. Many of the cherished camellias will be relocated as part of a new 237-page long-range plan that makes Descanso a model for sustainability and guides decisions for years to come about what to plant and where to plant it. Camellias, which need water year round, will be moved away from dry-dependent oaks, but that's just a start.

No matter how dutiful a son or daughter you are, you probably won't be able to secure 3,000 varieties of roses to give to Mom on Mother's Day. Unless, that is, you take her Descanso Gardens, where a panopoly of flora will be in full bloom and Patina will cater a special brunch for you and Mom, who really wishes you'd call more often. Descanso Gardens, 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada-Flintridge. 9 and 10:30 a.m., noon and 1:30 p.m. Sat.-Sun. $50. http://www.descansogardens.org .

There's nothing shy about spring in Descanso Gardens, that unexpected Eden tucked into the stony foothills of La Cañada Flintridge. Visit now and every inch of its 150 acres appears to be in bloom. From the small, spare flowers of the strawberry plants that hug the ground in the edible garden, to the showy swaths of azaleas and crab apples and camellias, the place is ablaze with color. Oaks and sycamores tower over the paths, a leafy canopy filled with birds. Bees hum. Dragonflies hover.

Much ado is made over roses in Pasadena, home to the world-famous Rose Queen and court. But, the winter-blooming camellia, currently at its seasonal peak, bears its own royal history in the area. The flower's regal tradition dates back more than 50 years to La Cañada Flintridge's Descanso Gardens, which boasts North America's largest camellia collection. Founder E. Manchester Boddy planted the first camellias in 1935 and built the collection throughout the 1940s by acquiring camellias locally and overseas.

Valentine's Day -- that hulking Cupid of a holiday -- is just around the corner. And as it lurches toward your person toting its painful little arrows, you suddenly realize one of two things: You are either uncomfortably single, or you are blissfully attached but wholly unprepared to satiate the monolithic desires of your loved one when it comes to the expectations of the ultimate Hallmark holiday. Well, relax. Taking your date out to eat is always a fine plan. And fortunately for you, Los Angeles' restaurants are dolled up and ready for your Sunday arrival.

TODAY Native plants: Horticulturist Lili Singer will lecture on "The ABCs of Native Plant Gardening," a class sponsored by Nopalito Native Plant Nursery. 1 p.m. Preregistration is $10; admission at the door is $15. Calvary Christian Fellowship Church, 4221 E. Main St., Ventura. (805) 844-7449; www.nopalitonursery.com. Composting workshop: Gardening consultant Marta Teegan leads this workshop on composting at home using a two-bin method or worms. 1 to 2 p.m. $30. All classes are held in a rooftop kitchen garden in downtown L.A. To register, send an e-mail with the name and date of the class to marta@homegrownlosangeles.