Sunset magazine’s famed gardens rise again in Sonoma

Working with Homestead Design Collective, a Bay Area edible landscaping firm, the magazine’s staff has divided an 11,000-square-foot space into five themed garden “rooms” meant to inspire visitors and generate story ideas.

Adjoining the freshly landscaped site, which debuts at Sunset’s Celebration Weekend in May (see sidebar), is a new outdoor kitchen.

Amateur bar chefs can wander the Cocktail Garden, a showcase of container-grown herbs and specialty citrus used in botanically inspired beverages.

The Farm area houses raised beds for vegetable trials, a custom trellis for climbing vegetables and a Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired greenhouse.

The Gathering Space celebrates the California penchant for outdoor living, with a table shaded by olive trees and borders dedicated to plants from the magazine’s Western Garden Collection.

A Backyard Orchard highlights dwarf fruit trees that provide a harvest from spring to fall, paired with plants that attract bees and butterflies.

An app-based walking tour offers a more detailed view of the garden rooms, with linked how-to videos.

Sunset’s annual Celebration Weekend, May 14 and 15, features celebrity chef demos, wine and beer pairing seminars, and presentations by garden, decorating and travel experts.