October 01, 2023
That is how completely happy you’re feeling exploring Longwood Gardens on the primary day of the Philadelphia Space Fling, an annual backyard tour held in a unique metropolis every year for backyard bloggers and Instagrammers and others publicly sharing about gardening on-line. Longwood’s conservatory supervisor, Karl Gercens, hosted the Fling this 12 months, and the three.5-day tour began there. Diana, Laura, Lori, and I hit the conservatory first.
Columns swagged with staghorn ferns and tillandsias instantly caught my eye.
So did an arbor supporting a tall, red-flowered abutilon. Combined in, and visual at high left, was Texas native Turk’s cap. What a sizzling and beautiful combo. All my abutilons died throughout this sizzling and dry summer time in Austin, however this evokes me to strive once more.
Indoor Youngsters’s Backyard
I am keen on the youngsters’s backyard inside Longwood’s conservatory. So typically, conservatories really feel like stuffy relics from the Victorian Period. However not right here. Children are invited in with playful fountains they’re inspired to splash in, tunnels to discover, and excessive locations to climb up into.
And vegetation aren’t skimped on both. Every play space is alive and inexperienced with lush plantings, which give the entire place a fairy-tale really feel.
Spouting animals are in all places you look.
A drooling dragon head occupies its personal curvy grotto — a spot to find with delight.
The small print are magical, like this dragon handrail with metallic irises. I imagine that could be a dwelling pot of iris alongside, bringing artwork to life.
No concept what these are, however so cool, like curled ribbons.
Gecko or salamander fountain
He’s on the head of this lengthy, carved-stone trough with little spouting lizards all alongside it.
Like this one — so cute!
A toddler-sized maze of low partitions spills over with mums and ferns. Within the brick arch, jets of water periodically arc from one facet to the opposite — shock!
I like this fowl’s-nest fountain on a mosaic of leaves.
A stained-glass window nook affords a quiet house to relaxation.
A child-sized seashell-mosaic tunnel…
…results in a spooky dungeon room with vipers on the ceiling and a smoky cauldron under.
Ibises sip from one other fountain.
And a pelican scoops up spitting fish at one other. Discover the fish mosaic under.
Conservatory shows
The big conservatories are wonderful only for the structure of glass and stone. However the plant showmanship that Longwood fills them with is fairly astonishing — much more so now that I’ve had a behind-the-scenes tour to learn the way a few of these shows are created (extra on that quickly).
I wandered round simply taking all of it in.
Chrysanthemum topiary spirals — whaaaat?
It’s a fantasyland of vegetation.
I used to be passionate about these dark-leaved peppers frilling out the bottom of a potted palm.
Pink and yellow peppers pop towards practically black leaves.
Pink-and-yellow dracaena appears like fireworks going off.
A good looking bouquet brightens the information desk.
This room is successfully a shallow pool, with a number of inches of water throughout the stone ground making a reflective floor.
Tree ferns create a leafy roof.
A little bit of fall shade seems alongside this stroll — a preview of Longwood’s Chrysanthemum Competition, which began this week?
Autumn — deliver it to Texas!
A river-like pond fills one part of the conservatory.
Queen sago (Cycas circinalis) — what a regal presence. She places our smaller sago palms in Austin to disgrace.
One other massive cycad with yellow shrimp plant
Snake plant and shrimp plant — all types of animals!
That is only a small sampling of all of the shows within the Longwood conservatories. Nevertheless it’s time to maneuver on…
Subsequent up: The gorgeous Italian Water Backyard and playful treehouses at Longwood. For a glance again at Half 1 of Longwood Gardens’ conservatories, together with the conservatory’s Orchid Home, Silver Backyard, and living-wall restrooms, click on right here.
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Come find out about backyard design from the specialists at Backyard Spark! I set up in-person talks by inspiring designers, panorama architects, and authors a number of occasions a 12 months in Austin. These are limited-attendance occasions that promote out rapidly, so be a part of the Backyard Spark electronic mail listing to be notified upfront; merely click on this hyperlink and ask to be added. The Season 7 lineup might be discovered right here.
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