With the mild and dry winter months of early 1999, rehabilitation of the Rose Garden and Arbor at historic Wattles Mansion moved forward at a steady rate. The "keys" to Hollywood’s secret garden are symbolized by the dedication and energy of those enthusiastic Tinseltown Rose Society volunteers who made tremendous improvements in their second year of winter season pruning-and-tending visits to the historic Rose Garden at the Wattles Mansion.
There are approximately 300 old garden roses, hybrid teas, and other species of roses growing in the 4 large, sunny terraced plots on this Hollywood hillside. Down the center of the rose garden is a spectacular 75 year old arched arbor of Madame Cecile Brunner roses that is 75 feet long and 15 feet high.
When the Wattles
family resided here (as recently as 40 years ago), the rose garden had regular
daily care and was deservedly known as a showpiece. The intervening years had
not been kind to the garden. The effects of neglect, weather, and vandalism
had all made the garden an overgrown and messy spot.
In the past few years, Tinseltown volunteers such as Anne and Roy Atherton, Pam Bunning, Ashkhen Evrard, Jasmin Rahmin, Kathy DuPree, Dorothy McQuiston, Kay Molitoris, Paul Zimmerman, and other shave worked Saturday mornings assisting Wattles Manager Steve Sylvester in pruning, planing, fertilizing, pegging canes, restoring the irrigation system, and pruning the arbor so that the beauty of the garden would be restored.
The hard work of many hands has paid off. The bloom this year was more widespread than in recent years according to Steve Sylvester. Bur more remains to be accomplished. Coyotes have invaded the garden and, in places, chewed through the tubing of the newly installed irrigation system, making watering the roses a labor intensive chore once more. Therefore the irrigation system must be buried below the surface. Plants not appropriate to the overall garden Master Plan need to be replaced, and the ongoing tasks of fertilizing, and dead-heading are always necessary.
There is no more peaceful or relaxing place in our city than Wattles Mansion and Garden. From the top step, one can look out and see West Los Angeles, Baldwin Hills, and the ocean. Hawks soar on thermal updrafts above the peaceful canyon. The rustle of breezes through the palms and chaparral in the adjacent public park muffle the sounds of the city so close-by, down the hill.
Members of both Tinseltown Rose Society and Hollywood Heritage, Inc. are deservedly proud of how the garden appears now. Once again, as everyone involved agrees, the Rose Garden at Wattles Mansion will become the focus of this gracious facility—so hidden away in the midst of our city.
If you are interested in supporting the effort to restore or volunteering to help groom and maintain the Wattles Rose Garden, please get in touch with Anne Epstein, Hollywood Heritage Recording Secretary at (818) 766-3686.