Some Tropical Colour Inside Toronto's Allan Gardens Conservatory

Baby, It's Warm Inside

Outside, not so much as the struggle for higher spring temperatures is real here in Toronto. 


My previous post titled "The Allan Gardens Conservatory 2018 Spring Flower Show: Enough With the Winter Interest, Let's See Some Flowers!" gave you a ton of colour by showing some highlights from the 2018 Spring Flower Show: masses of hyacinths, tulips, daffodils, grape hyacinths, Salpiglossis (Painted Tongues) and Schizanthus. 

Here's a reminder:

Schizanthus and Pale blue grape hyacinths
 at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 
2018 Spring Flower Show 

If you ever visited the Conservatory with a camera, you'd know that are many other photo opportunities besides the seasonal displays. I couldn't help taking these pictures making up this post. The source of these flowers are from the Conservatory "permanent" collection of tropical plants which are not moved around during the seasonal Flower Shows.

As spring slowly arrives this year, these shots remind me of hot and humid days in July and August even though outside the glass panes now, it's anything but.

African Senna or Candelabra Tree flowers 
(Senna didymobotrya) at the 
Allan Gardens Conservatory

African Senna flowers Candelabra Tree 
(Senna didymobotrya) at the 
Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia) 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Bird of Paradise flower (Sterlitzia reginae) 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Brassocattleya maiki "Mayumi" orchid 
at Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Brassocattleya maiki "Mayumi" orchid 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Brazilian Tree Fern (Blechnum brasiliense) 
emerging fronds with white Bougainvillea 
petals at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Brugmansia (Angel's Trumpet) 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Calliandra haematocephala (Powderpuff) 
flower  at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Light purple Cattleya orchid hybrid 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Pachystachys lutea 
(Golden Shrimp Plant or Lollipop Plant) 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Rhyncholaeliocattleya George King 'Serendipity' 
orchid at Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Rhyncholaeliocattleya George King 'Serendipity' 
orchid at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Yesterday,Today,Tomorrow (Brunfelsia pauciflora) 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Tropical delights at Toronto's Centennial Park Conservatory

Moth orchids, tropical hibiscus and others on display in Etobicoke

Gardening in the dead of a Toronto winter? While others are busy winter sowing or greedily going through seed and bulb catalogues in preparation for spring's arrival, I'm doing a lot of reading and a bit of blogging. The genesis of this post was from a visit to a local Conservatory last winter. I forgot about these pictures and thought they would provide a nice diversion from the current polar conditions currently afflicting us here in zone 5 Toronto. And if you're fortunate and smart enough to live somewhere that's non-glacial at the moment, you can still enjoy these pretty flowers!

White Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Growing such beautiful orchids would be a tough task unless you provide the heat and humidity they love. For me, it's much nicer and practical to visit a place that allow these conditions: either warmer and more exotic locales (like Barbados' Orchid World) or a local greenhouse. Luckily, Centennial Park Conservatory can be reached via public transit and I find its orchid collection nicer than the one found at its sister Conservatory at Allan Gardens.


If you're an orchid collector, you'd be a little disappointed with the variety (mainly moth orchids or Phalaenopsis or "Phals") on display but for a winter weary visitor, the orchids and hibiscus and other tropical flowers and plants do lift the spirits. Well, until you have walk outside again and feel the Arctic blasts reminding you that spring here is still far away....

Pink Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory

Purple spotted white Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

White Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Pale pink Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) 
at the Centennial Park  Conservatory

Pale purple Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid)
at the Centennial Park Conservatory

Light purple Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Light red Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Yellow tropical hibiscus ( Hibiscus rosa sinensis ) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

"High Heaven" tropical hibiscus 
( Hibiscus rosa sinensis )
at the Centennial Park Conservatory

"High Heaven" double tropical hibiscus 
( Hibiscus rosa sinensis )
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

"Blushing Peach" tropical hibiscus 
( Hibiscus rosa sinensis )
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Orange Brugmansia (Angel's Trumpet) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Bromeliad flower (Aechmea fasciata) 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory

Centennial Park Conservatory's
 yellow cactus flowers