Conservatory flowers

 Volunteer Park Conservatory

It has been a little more than two years since I visited the Conservatory at Volunteer Park.  Last time I went it was still one of the few free places to visit in the city.  Now, however, there is an entrance fee of $4.00 per adult, children $2.00.  At this time of year there are lots flowers in bloom and the admission fee was worth it.  Donations alone were no longer enough to take care of the plants, repairs, and upkeep.  Many of the flowers in the greenhouse will bloom outdoors here in gardens but not until probably April or perhaps May.  In addition to garden flowers the Conservatory is well known for showy displays of orchids.  Since I love orchids and have several plants of my own growing happily in the kitchen I was looking forward to seeing the ones here.  It was hard to limit the number of flower pictures but I took so many that not all of them could be included.  Here are a few of my favorites.

Just inside the door to the greenhouse was this grouping of Lady Slipper orchids.  This type of orchid usually only blooms once a year and has one stem per new plant so there were several plants in this display. 

Close up of another Lady Slipper orchid

 

The Lady Slippers came in a variety of colors and sizes.  Here are two yellow ones.  Note the support hook holding the stem straight.

I liked this delicate pale pink one with the tiny darker spots on the petals.

 

Here is another one with spots on the petals.  It is easy to see the shoe shape on this one. 

This huge display is of phalaenopsis or moth orchids the most common type grown in homes.

A closer view of one of the clusters of blooms

These are cymbidiums.  More difficult to grow at home they are thriving in this moist greenhouse environment.

Cyclamen 

 

Daffodils

 

 

 

 Blue and pink hydrangea

 

Begonias

 

 

 Azaleas

 

There were several different bromeliads including this bright red variety

This may be another bromeliad but I couldn’t find the nametag in all the foliage

Another bromeliad

Then there were some strange plants like this chenille 

 

This one is often called a peace flower and its red cousin below is an anthurium

 

Some plants were more notable for the leaves than the flowers

 

 

 Then there were the cactus plants including several different agaves

This one is just starting to bloom, see the strange brown sticker trees growing out of the soft puffy center?

Seedum

This strange plant catches small insects for food.

In the midst of all the flowers was this quiet pool with running water and ferns

An oasis of calm and quiet in center of the bustling city.

Evolution of an orchid bud

Here is the Lady Slipper orchid plant on the day it was purchased, April 6.

It took nearly three weeks but today it is fully in bloom.  This is a step-by-step view of the bud as it opens. 

The companions on the shelf rejoice . . .

Orchid show

Today one of the local nurseries hosted a show by the Northwest Orchid Society.  There were people there to answer questions, many orchids that were part of a judged show, and several plants for sale.  I have wanted to try growing a Lady Slipper (Paphiopedilum) for quite a long while now but was unsure if my home environment would be suitable.  In the past other orchids like the Cymbidium or Dendrobium have needed more light than I get so they have not done well.  It was very helpful to have someone from the Orchid Society there to answer questions, give some suggestions and advice.  The Lady Slipper is supposed to have needs similar to the Moth Orchid (Phalaenopsis) and that variety does very well in my kitchen window.  It will be a few more days before the Lady Slipper opens but for now it looks promising.  The tag identifies it as a Paph. Maluki 'Green'x Maudiae' Green.'  The leaves have a pretty mottling and the bud has green stripes and some white.  After it opens I'll post an update to show what it looks like.

 Lady Slipper Orchid -- Paphiopedilum

Here are some of the many, many beautiful orchids that were on display.