The annual garden tour sponsored by the Pacific Palisades Garden Club will take place, rain or shine, from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday, April 25. The tour is self-guided and gardens may be visited in any sequence. One of the highlights of the tour is a plant market at 14820 Pampas Ricas Blvd., where refreshments will be served. The market offers a variety of interesting and unusual plants, many grown by members. Tickets are $15 (children 12 and under are free) and can be purchased in advance at The Outdoor Room, 17311 Sunset, or at any of the featured homes on the day of the tour. Proceeds from ticket sales are used to beautify the community and to provide horticultural scholarships at Cal Poly Pomona. The Bountiful Garden 15468 Albright Street What is found at the heart of this garden? Edibles! One owner’s joy is gourmet cooking, and south-facing terraces supply organic produce planted according to the season. Tomatoes are a favorite, as is basil, which she uses along with other classic cooking herbs including rosemary, sage, parsley and thyme. The other owner’s specialty is gourmet baking, and for his tarts he uses the variety of fruits growing here. Peach, plum, and a Beverly Hills apple grow in the undulating bed. A beautifully shaped navel orange flourishes by the brick steps. Other citrus, on dwarfing root stock, grow in pots. Flowers for the table mingle with the vegetables. Unusual plants in the undulating bed are Patersonia glabrata from Australia, and Pieris. Roses (above), including climbers, miniatures, shrubs, standards and hybrid tea, are found throughout the garden. The front garden is planed for year-round leaf color, as in the deep reds of Heuchera ‘Crimson Curl’ and Loropetalum. Westringia forms a see-through hedge along the steep drop to the drive; there a diamond patterned espalier of Trachelospermum delights the nose and eye. Carol Plotkin and Janice Hoskins, landscape designers, created this bountiful garden. A Mediterranean Garden With Sculptural Pottery 1310 Napoli Drive One of the five oldest houses in the Palisades, this 1923 Spanish-style structure is approached up steps that follow curving terracing walls, providing privacy and planting space (above). A loose symmetry in the color and placement of plants in beds is a practical technique: an unbalanced pair is not a calamity. Melaleuca quinquenervia is found here and throughout, unifying the whole design. A small formal area features box parterres planted with Meyer lemons. Beyond the fountain are huge Vietnamese pickle pots. A white gate hides the dog run, a fun-loving spoof of an English country garden. The rear garden is made exuberant by the large scale of space and furnishings. Three large Chinese pots are planted with fragrant lemon and lavender. Up the brick steps is a large pot planted with papyrus to grace the pool beyond. Credit goes to the owner for the artistic selection and placement of these extraordinary pots. Between a pair of orange trees is the remaining half of a sport court, now the dance floor, the perfect completion to an expansive garden for pleasure and delight. The garden was designed and installed by Wendy Katz of Ruby Begonia. A Tropical Vacation 449 Ocampo Drive The owners of this 1931 early California Spanish-style house knew what they wanted’a tropical vacation’and now they have that right at home in a lush but low-maintenance garden. The entry courtyard is enlivened by a splashing fountain and edged by the ‘coffee porch’ where the sun shines on cheering pots of succulents, Fiesta impatiens and trailing variegated Vinca minor ‘Illumina-tion.’ The back garden is a blue-walled room anchored by a California pepper tree, a fireplace seating area and a tall Queen palm. Also featured is a palapa sheltering a dining table and chairs and a mosaic-tiled spa. Fed by a waterfall (right), the spa is presided over by two curved Queen palms and is half-hidden by a multi-trunk palm. A red trumpet vine clambers across the house. Timber bamboo ( Bambusa oldhamii) screens for privacy. Variegated Bambusa multiplex ‘Alphonse karr’ mingles with papyrus and elephant’s ear to create a luxuriant border. Past a work area, a brick path leads to a sunroom garden, with wisteria, orange clock vine (Thunbergia gregorii) and roses gracing walls and beds. The owners collaborated with garden designer Heidi Sanschi. The Garden with an Orange Accent 1028 Chautauqua Boulevard This garden’s motif’restrained geometry punctuated by exciting orange accents’is first stated in the motor court. Behind a bamboo hedge are two Canary Island pines, two orange chairs, a green grass rectangle and orange plumed bird of paradise. Through the gate is the surprise glimpse of a dominating pool. The pool, inherited by the owners and once bemoaned as a serious eyesore, has been transformed into a prime asset. A cantilevered sunning deck breaks up the egg shape. Accenting the pool’s deep green pond-like color is the bronzy orange of two sedges and Libertia peregrinans. Near the front door is the outstanding Abutilon hybrid ‘Big Orange”well named! Beyond the graveled dog run, the hillside, with banks blue with Senecio and orange accents of flowering aloe, was planned to create space for gardening and a quiet retreat. Terraces hold roses, herbs and vegetables. On the upper terrace, large cement pots exhibit a fine collection of succulents. Rob Steiner, landscape architect, worked carefully with the owners to create this handsome garden. A Garden of Grays and Greens 710 Napoli Drive Within the Pittosporum crassifolium hedge, a flagstone terrace and its broad steps welcome guests and meander to the front door. This garden design is subtle, with every plant selected for its contribution to the whole. Grays and greens from plants and stones predominate and harmonize with the Shaker-style house. Deep reds, blues, whites and other colors are subordinate to the grays and greens. Two magnificent Eucalyptus globulus, one with gray green Helichrysum massed at its base, buttress the garden’s edge. Rusty gears (see left), once a dumbwaiter, now a sculpture, echo the color of the house. A trough is now a quiet fountain. The leafy screening to the east, an example of the harmonious yet variety of different hedging styles that surround the property, includes a cow itch tree (Lagunaria patersonii) and the yellow trumpet flowers of Brugmansia ‘Charles Grimaldi.’ Three giant Eucalyptus sideroxylon, distinguished by striking rusty black bark, contribute to the impression that this garden, designed by Chris Rosmini, has been here forever. A Woodland Garden for A Craftsman House 14410 Villa Woods Place This four-year-old beautifully detailed Craftsman-style house begged for a wooded setting, and that is what its owners designed for it. Trees beautify all, bringing serenity and a calming presence. A majestic sycamore towering near the garage, a jacaranda abutting the curb, an elegant oak shadowing the swings, and a fast-growing redwood all are fine anchors to the front garden design. One enters the main garden under the branches of a grove of unusually large Japanese maples (above). On the fence is a collection of birdhouses, some made by the owner. Many handsome river rocks, remnants of the former Japanese-style garden, provide a subtle underlying stability. A path edged by two kinds of bamboo leads to a trellised bench from which there is a fine view of house and garden. Under a commanding Aleppo pine is a gate to a side yard, where there is an unusual collection of carefully tended species. Here find the genus Porschius, species convertibilis, variety 1960, and two members of genus Corvettius, varieties 1960 and 1966. These are perennial, appearing mostly in spring and summer.

Modern kids Rowan and Nina Popplewell are forced to spend a summer in an old-fashioned town, Owatannauk, Maine, and stay with their old-fashioned great-aunts. They meet a pair of twins who befriend them, show them an old possibly ‘haunted’ resort hotel. There they visit an even more old-fashioned era when they discover a time-travel machine in Maiya Williams’ first novel, ‘The Golden Hour.’ The novel, published by Amulet, was released April 1 to outstanding reviews, prompting the publisher to contract with Williams for two more books in the series. The Palisadian author will read from her book aimed at fourth through seventh graders and answer questions on Friday, April 23, at Village Books, 1049 Swarthmore at 7 p.m. Williams read a great deal in her youth and loved authors such as Roald Dahl. ‘I love quirky characters, oddball things and humor,’ she says. ‘I think humor is important in a book.’ ‘Everything I like is in the book’time travel, old resort hotels, Maine and history,’ Williams says. ‘The book has magical elements, and it takes place in the farthest corner of the U.S. I could think of. ‘I’ve always loved books; it never occurred to me I could be a writer. Now that it has come to fruition, I’m very happy and pleased.’ Williams was born in Corvallis, Oregon, and grew up in New Haven, Connecticut, and Berkeley, California. She traces her love of history to a high school teacher. ‘He would describe things down to the details of what it was like to be there back in time, the smells and sensations, wearing the clothes, toilet habits, everything people are curious about.’ Williams wanted to pass on this love of history to young readers. Not only do the young characters have an adventure, they go through honest emotions as well. The Popplewell children have recently lost their mother, and Rowan is working on a list: ‘Top Ten Reasons My Life Stinks.’ ‘It’s meant to be something kids can relate to,’ Williams says. ‘A lot of kid books in the middle grades avoid emotions or have very simplistic emotions. I imagine kids can handle a little bit more. I wanted it to be honest about what kids are thinking and feeling.’ Williams studied history and literature at Harvard. She served as editor on the Harvard Lampoon humor magazine and was elected vice-president for one year while Conan O’Brien was president. ‘Conan was a goofy guy who would get a lot of attention,’ Williams recalls. ‘He was really funny and talented. He always wanted to have the David Letterman job. He was a nice person and still is.’ Like many Harvard Lampoon alumni, Williams moved to Hollywood and found work as an assistant in comedy development at Columbia Pictures Television. The job involved reading lots of scripts and led her to write her own. Williams has since worked as a writer and producer on ‘Amen,’ ‘Roc,’ ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,’ ‘Rugrats’ and her current job on ‘MAD-TV.’ At the Lampoon, she met her husband Patric M. Verrone, whom she married in 1989. Patric, also a television writer-producer, is the Secretary Treasurer of the Writers Guild of America, West. The couple moved to the Marquez area in 1996. Their children Patric, 9, and Marianne, 6, attend Corpus Christi. Teddy, 3, is a student at Lyc’e Fran’ais preschool. Williams wrote her book about four years ago, while pregnant with Teddy. She spent about four or five months doing research, and nine months writing the book. Because of her TV writing work, Williams says she is good about sitting down and starting to write, without having to wait for inspiration. ‘I also leave off at an exciting point, so I can start right in the next day.’ She has spoken about the book at Corpus Christi. As gratified as she is about the reviews, she is most excited about feedback from her young readers. ‘I like writing for that age group’books really become a part of the person reading them.’

For 20 years, Alan Mesher has been working with clients as an energy healer and spiritual counselor. In his latest book, ‘Just Who Do You Think You Are?: The Power of Personal Evolution’ (Sirius Creations, $19.95), he outlines his program for clearing negativity, finding true purpose, and heading towards self-discovery. His process helps people develop a strong center and find inner stability. Mesher will speak about his book at Village Books, 1049 Swarthmore, at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 29. This is Mesher’s fifth book, which he wrote at his ‘office’ at Starbucks. ‘Most people don’t have a clue who they are,’ Mesher says. ‘They define self by their roles’mother or husband, etc.’ His book is written to help people accelerate the process of self-disovery. At Village Books, he will speak about the principles he has developed for this process: how to clear emotional toxicity, how to remove inner roadblocks to personal success and fulfillment, how to become the person you were meant to be, and how to develop and increase your personal power. A native of Boston, Mesher graduated from Hobart College and thought he would go to law school or return to school for a Ph.D. But his path was altered when he met a New Hampshire woman named Eleanor Moore, who had a well-known gift for healing. ‘I had heard that she changed lives,’ Mesher recalls. ‘A friend introduced me to her. She started to tell me things about my life that were dead-on right. She said, ‘What I do, you’re going to do. You can go be a lawyer but it’s not your destiny.’ She put my hands between her hands and a hot, electrical energy went up my spine and made a popping sound in the center of my forehead. I saw a golden light. It was remarkable, ecstatic.’ Mesher ended up studying with her for three years. He performed his first healing, a year later, on a poodle he was taking care of for a friend. A St. Bernard had bitten the poodle in the diaphragm. Mesher took the dog to the vet, but worried, ‘How can I help this poor animal?’ He meditated. With his hands two feet apart, he called the dog’s spirit to come to him. ‘I felt something come between my hands, the space filled with tremendous energy, then it stopped. This was at 10:10 p.m.’ The next morning the vet said the dog was fine and I could pick him up. ‘He said that the wound had sealed up in front of his eyes at 10:10 p.m.,’ Mesher says. ‘I realized this is real, I have a gift.’ Another example of his healing work involves a woman who came to him with a sharp pain in her stomach, after traditional and alternative practitioners couldn’t help. She lay on a table and Mesher put energy into her by lightly laying his hands on the area where the pain was. ‘An emotional blockage came to the surface, and memories started coming up,’ he says. She started crying and thrashing around, remembering being abused at 9 months old. After 45 minutes of this, she became peaceful and felt as if she was floating in golden light. Her stomach was healed after the burden she had been carrying around was released. In Mesher’s three zones of personal evolution, the first step is clearing toxic emotion. ‘If you can’t do that, you can’t grow,’ he says. ‘You need to face the pain.’ He outlines a simple process for this in his book, although he also urges people to get professional help from a healer or therapist. ‘If we don’t deal with the toxicity, it’s never put to rest.’ This can include toxicity from past lives. This toxicity can also lead to health problems. In addition to his healing work, Mesher has hosted radio programs in San Francisco and Austin, and has been a regular guest on the Art Bell radio show. He is also a former publisher of the Yoga Journal, and has his own publishing company, Sirius Creations. His book not only refers to inner work, but also discusses history and politics, and how small numbers of people can bring about changes in social consciousness and behavior. He also discusses how to integrate psychology, social change and Eastern philosophy. Mesher and his son Matthew, a Malibu High School junior, have lived in the Highlands for three years. ‘Mesher can be contacted at 459-9007.