A Message from Superintendent Diane Sipos: Our SPOT and the Library at VRG

The 3rd annual Evening of Elegance and Empowerment dinner for the girls in Our SPOT took place at The Virginia Robinson Gardens on April 25th, 2026. Our SPOT is a free after-school program at LA County Parks providing a fun, safe and supportive place where teens ages 12-18 can go, Monday through Friday all year long. Programming engages youth from under-represented communities to explore their unique and collective lived experiences through various recreational programs, visual arts sessions, social action activities, and educational field trips. The Virginia Robinson Gardens is a popular destination for Our SPOT field trips, but the Evening … Read More

A Message from Superintendent Diane Sipos

Our mission - to preserve and interpret the first estate of Beverly Hills for the education and enjoyment of current and future generations – is an important compass that guides us as stewards of this historic and beloved property. To this end, the restoration and preservation of the buildings, collections and gardens are a big part of what we do. The Friends are a vital partner in this work. The County provides infrastructure, staffing and services to operate the gardens and relies on the Friends of Robinson Gardens to raise funds for restoration and garden beautification projects.

Message from Superintendent Diane Sipos

What better way to disengage from the stresses in our environment by spending time in this garden oasis nestled in the foothills of Beverly Hills. This is especially important for children who live in dense urban areas with limited green spaces. The Virginia Robinson Gardens hosted weekly field trips for ESTEAM summer camps this summer. ESTEAM (Environment, Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) is a free program through the LA County Department of Parks and Recreation that provides an opportunity for children in low-income communities to connect with the outdoors and explore ESTEAM topics through group games, arts and culture, technology, field trips, guest speakers, and project-based learning. 

Superintendent Diane Sipos’ Message: Restoration Projects and BHMN

The Virginia Robinson Gardens is an exceptional public garden and historic estate dating from 1911, and with this comes much maintenance and care. The County of Los Angeles has operated and maintained this unique estate for almost fifty years and is very fortunate to have a strong partner in the Friends to help steward this beloved property. The Friends of Robinson Gardens was established as a non-profit in 1982 specifically to partner with the County to preserve, program and protect this public jewel thus fulfilling Mrs. Robinson’s legacy. 

A Walk in the Garden with Superintendent Diane Sipos

I’m pleased The Virginia Robinson Gardens will be hosting a special art installation in October featuring the work of Max Hooper Schneider. This installation is part of Southern California's landmark arts event, the Getty’s Pacific Standard Time initiative, which brings together more than sixty cultural institutions to stage installations throughout the region exploring the intersection of art and science. Mr. Hooper Schneider’s artwork is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, the Hammer Museum, and many other institutions throughout the world.

Superintendent Diane Sipos’ Message: The Virginia Robinson Gardens Tour led by Clarke Young, Former Butler to Mrs. Robinson

Clarke Young

In June, the docents participated in a special tour led by former butler Clarke Young. Clarke shared numerous stories of his time at The Virginia Robinson Gardens and offered a rare glimpse into Mrs. Robinson’s life. The participants enjoyed this unique opportunity to hear what life was like for this young butler. Clarke came upon this job one day when he was driving on Sunset Boulevard and noticed a building at the corner of Colby Avenue and Sunset. Out of curiosity, he went inside the building and learned it was a hiring agency. Even though he wasn’t looking … Read More

A Walk in the Garden with Superintendent Diane Sipos

New feathered friends have moved in!  Thanks to the generosity of Nicole Antoine Finton and her family, a brood of four chickens have moved into the hen house, joining the two other ladies (the last remaining from the original five).  This breed of chickens - Silver Laced Wyandotte - is distinguished from the other two hens, with their beautiful golden feathers outlined with blue-grey tips and full feathered heads reminiscent of big, swooping hairstyles from the 1980s. Their full body plumage give them a regal air as they strut about in their new home.  I extend a big thank you to Josh Johnston for coordinating their move to their new habitat.  To ensure a smooth transition as each brood became acquainted, Josh separated the hens with a partition, creating two separate dwellings.  Over a period of several weeks, he slowly introduced the hens to each other, and eventually removed the divider.  The flocks now coexist peacefully, and the new group has happily settled into their new home.  School children have delighted in seeing the chickens on recent field trips, and we look forward to more visitors getting to know them.

A Walk in the Garden with Superintendent Diane Sipos

As visitors walk through the upper Palm Forest, the joyful chirping of birds greets them.  The historic Aviary, home to parakeets and a male cockatiel, now has a new addition: a female cockatiel.  The lone cockatiel had always captured my attention.  With bright yellow feathers, orange Crayola-like circles on either side of his beak, and tufts of feathers protruding like a Trojan helmet from the top of his head, the cockatiel would often be perched in front of his bird-size mirror, staring at his reflection as if looking for his mate.  Cockatiels are naturally social birds who cannot survive alone in the wild, so it was clear he needed a partner

A Walk in the Garden with Superintendent Diane Sipos

While spring is traditionally seen as the best time to visit the Gardens, there is something magical here in the dark of winter.  The leaves on the palm fronds glisten with early morning dew.  Walking through the Palm Forest on a grey, cloudy day, one feels enveloped in this tropical haven, underneath its natural “roof” of palm trees. There is a sense of being enclosed.  A sea of dormant Kaffir lilies blanket the ground, with scatterings of their bright red berries starting to show.  On a rainy day, the sound of the rain echoes in the Palm Forest. From the top of the Italian Terrace Garden, showers not only bring much-needed water, but open up the sky with magnificent views of the Pacific and Catalina Island.   On a clear day after it showers, these views remind us why Virginia and Harry Robinson fell in love with this site when they first came upon it

A Walk in the Garden with Superintendent Diane Sipos

The garden is showing subtle signs that autumn is in the air.  The seeds of the great Ginkgo tree in the Italian Terrace Garden are beginning to drop, its foliage slowly turning a deep saffron yellow. Despite the dry, hot summer, the garden continues to thrive, thanks in large part to the hard work of our gardeners.  They have been tirelessly weeding and mulching, among other things, to maximize water efficiency during the drought and extreme hot weather.  We installed a water savings drip irrigation system in the Italian Terrace Garden on the Neptune, Citrus and Lion Terraces, and along the front wall on Elden Way.  I am grateful for the Friends’ extraordinary dedication and hard work to fund projects such as this, enabling this historic living collection to flourish
1 2

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST TO STAY IN THE KNOW!

SUBSCRIBE