The Lotusland Dragon Tree
Montecito
Approximate location.
You need a ticket to see this treePaid, guided tours by advance reservation only (residential neighbourhood; public tours typically mid-February to mid-November, Wednesday to Saturday; the 2026 season shows as sold out, so book early). Not walk-in.
Lotusland was a nursery before it was a garden. In the 1890s Kinton Stevens ran one on this ground in Montecito, and the oldest dragon tree in the garden's Dracaena Circle goes back to his time, by Lotusland's own account. That makes it roughly 130 years old, and in a species this slow it shows. A thick trunk and a crown of many branches come only with great age, and Lotusland reckons a dragon tree's years at about ten for every two rounds of branching. It stands in the Dracaena Circle among younger dragon trees, and it is the one with the thickest trunk and the most branched crown. The age is the garden's statement and the only source we have for it, so treat it as theirs. Lotusland is not a walk-in garden. It sits in a residential neighbourhood, visits are by guided tour booked in advance, mostly from mid-February to mid-November on Wednesdays to Saturdays, and dates sell out, so book early. There is no street parking, and you check in for your tour. From downtown Santa Barbara it is about half an hour by bus and a walk, or a short drive, so it is a separate trip from the downtown trees.
From people who stood here
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Getting there
Lotusland, 695 Ashley Rd, Montecito, CA 93108
The oldest dragon tree in the Dracaena Circle, with the thickest trunk and a crown of many branches.
Montecito; about 25 to 30 min by MTD bus from downtown Santa Barbara plus a walk, or drive; no parking on the street, tour check-in required
Sources
Where the facts on this page come from. The story was written with AI from these sources, and readers who know the tree correct it.
