Boysen Cactus Garden
Charles Rudolph “Rudy” Boysen was Anaheim Superintendent of Parks from 1921 to 1950. An avid horticulturist, Boysen was joined by fellow “cactus enthusiasts” Council member John Cook and Howard E. Gates on cactus collecting trips across Arizona, Southern California and Mexico. In about 1932, Boysen started construction of a cactus garden in Anaheim’s City Park (now Pearson Park). As late as 1946, new and rare specimens were added to the garden. The garden includes a cactus that had been growing by the Wohlgemuth House on North Olive. When the house was restored, the 4-ton cactus had to be lifted out by a crane and Lincoln Avenue was closed to transport it to the park where it has prospered. And just to address the berry in the room, yes, Rudy Boysen developed the hybrid strain of berry that Walter Knott eventually made famous.
Anaheim, Orange County
Photographer: Andrew Schmidt