A Growing Passion

We tour groves of the region’s largest olive grower and olive oil producer. We discover olive varieties best for curing and eating, and others are best for gourmet oil. Viewers learn how to grow olive trees and how to deal with the dreaded olive fruit fly that can destroy entire crops. We see how olives are pressed for oil, olive oil tasting techniques, and the stunning array of olive dishes.

In this episode, we meet renowned plant explorer and succulent breeder Kelly Griffin. Griffin has searched for the rare and beautiful on nearly every continent, including our own. Wherever he explores, Griffin documents his finds and gathers just enough seeds or pollen (with permits of course) without threatening the survival of native populations.

In this episode, we learn all about the dragon fruit, research the best growing methods and how the plants are grown for commercial production and in backyards. We visit a specialty produce market and see how an expert chef incorporates dragon fruits in creative combinations for adventurous diners.

In this episode, we revisit growers featured in past episodes of A Growing Passion, and meet some new ones, all of whom have dramatically shifted their business models to survive, and perhaps thrive, during the pandemic.

In this first of a two-part series, we take viewers on a tour of the San Diego Botanic Garden, starting with the gorgeous collection of tropical plants in the stunning new conservatory. We then take in some of the many interesting collections from regions around the world: South Africa, Asia, Australia, and more.

In the second of our two-part series about the San Diego Botanic Garden, we focus on the Garden’s work with plants native to San Diego County and Southern California. The Garden’s onsite collections include three native plant displays: a landscape demonstration garden, a demonstration of plants important to the native Kumeyaay peoples, and chaparral preserve native to the site.