Centennial Park Conservatory Spring Flower Show 2015

More spring blooms in Etobicoke (under glass)

Toronto is not experiencing higher temperatures (say, above 60 degrees F. or 10 degrees C.) yet. Even tulips and daffodils are reluctant to emerge, although I did see a few winter aconites flower nearby. Most local gardeners, I suspect, are winter-weary, just aching to see some colour outside.

Several posts ago I showed some highlights from my recent visit to a local Conservatory to catch its Spring Flower Show ( you can click here: Centennial Park Conservatory 2015 Spring Flower Show ). I'll finish up with the remaining photos from that visit in this post.

I feel it's going to be one of those springs in Toronto in which the temperatures will zoom from about 5 to 20 degrees Celsius overnight. If that's the case, we should be seeing flowers and foliage exploding all over the city soon. 

Come on spring! Don't be coy!

Blue pink hyacinths at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show
 Tulipa "Green Wave" Parrot tulips 

Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show
white freesia 

Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show
white freesias

Centennial Park Conservatory
 2015 Spring Flower Show
 yellow daffodil 

"Fancy Frills" fringed tulip at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Fritillaria imperialis (Crown Imperial) at the
  Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Grape hyacinths (Muscari "Peppermint")
at the Centennial Park Conservatory
 2015 Spring Flower Show

"Green Wave" Parrot tulip
at theCentennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

"Green Wave" Parrot tulips at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Pale blue freesia a the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show
 

Red freesia and kumquat at the
 Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Red Kaufman tulips at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Red, white and pink tulips
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Red and yellow tulips at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Salpiglossis sinuata at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Tulipa "Gavota" Triumph tulips at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
 2015 Spring Flower Show

Yellow Clivia minuata at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Yellow freesia at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Centennial Park Conservatory
 2015 Spring Flower Show
red freesia 

Yellow hyacinths and red tulips at the
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Centennial Park Conservatory 2015 Spring Flower Show

Spring blooms in Etobicoke (under glass)

"What am I going to do with the kids during March break this year?" was a question that many parents in Toronto had to grapple with.  After a couple days of  being couch zombies staring at their devices, enough was enough.  So, off to another Flower Show!

Tulipa "Green Wave" Parrot tulips 
Centennial Park Conservatory 
2015 Spring Flower Show 

We, Torontonians, are spoiled with having two Conservatories that:

• offer seasonal flower shows
• charge no admission fee
• accessible by public transit

I've written many times about my visits to the Allan Gardens Conservatory which is very close to home but there is another "sister" Conservatory in the west side of Toronto called the Centennial Park Conservatory which also holds similar seasonal flower shows. (Here's my post from the Centennial Park Conservatory's 2014 Spring Flower Show ). 

It's a bit of a trek to get out there by subway and bus but the kids and I did it anyway. It was quid pro quo: I got to take some nice pictures of spring blooms and the kids got to eat at their favourite restaurant. Kind of a win-win-win:

• I experienced more wonderful blooms without having to run through a gauntlet of vendors shilling this and that
• my kids received some visual stimulation that didn't originate from a screen
• you take in some more pictures of pretty flowers (I just wish you were able to smell the hyacinths and freesias. Absolutely divine!)

Isn't spring wonderful?

"Fancy Frills" fringed tulip
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Pale blue freesias
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Pale yellow narcissus (daffodil)
 Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Pale yellow narcissus (daffodils)
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Pink freesia
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Purple tulips
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Red freesia
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Red tulips
Centennial Park Conservatory
 2015 Spring Flower Show 

Red and white tulips (a kumquat tree tucked behind)
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Tulipa "Fancy Frills" fringed tulip
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Tulipa "Gavota" Triumph tulips
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Tulipa "Green Wave" Parrot tulip
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

Tulipa "Green Wave" Parrot tulips
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

"Voltage" yellow Osteospermum (African daisy)
 Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

White freesia
 Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

White freesias
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

White and red freesias
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show 

White tulips
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015 Spring Flower Show

Crown Imperial (Fritillaria imperialis)
Centennial Park Conservatory
2015  Spring Flower Show 

Spring blooms at James Gardens, Etobicoke, Toronto

Tulips, redbud, fritillaria spring blooms at James Gardens, Etobicoke.

Whenever I visit my client Dale to tidy up her gardens, I try to spend time at James Gardens nearby. It's a public (municipal) park with small gardens and beds throughout which I've profiled in past posts titled "Lovers of bedding plants: get thee to James Gardens!" and "Toronto's James Gardens, in Technicolor".  While I knew tulips and narcissus were likely on display now, I was really more interested in capturing some pictures of the blooming redbuds. 

And I wasn't disappointed!

I hope you're enjoying a wonderful spring, especially after the dreadful winter we had.

Red yellow tulips
at James Gardens, Etobicoke 

Tulipa "Monsella"
at James Gardens, Etobicoke

Pale yellow double tulip
 at James Gardens,  Etobicoke 

Fritillaria imperialis (Crown Imperial)
at James Gardens, Etobicoke 

Pulmonaria (lungwort) and  pale yellow narcissus
at James Gardens,  Etobicoke 

Blue violas (pansies) and white narcissus
at James Gardens, Etobicoke

Cercis canadensis (Eastern redbud)
at James Gardens,  Etobicoke 

Cercis canadensis (Eastern redbud)  flowers
at James Gardens, Etobicoke

Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis) flowers
at James Gardens, Etobicoke 

Viburnum carlesii (Koreanspice viburnum)
at James Gardens, Etobicoke

Prunus triloba "Multiplex" (Flowering Almond)
at James Gardens, Etobicoke 

Spring blooms at James Gardens, Etobicoke, Toronto Tulips, redbud, fritillaria spring blooms at James Gardens, Etobicoke

Written by Paul Jung on May 22, 2014

Whenever I visit my client Dale to tidy up her gardens, I try to spend time at James Gardens nearby. It's a public (municipal) park with small gardens and beds throughout which I've profiled in past posts titled "Lovers of bedding plants: get thee to James Gardens!" and "Toronto's James Gardens, in Technicolor". While I knew tulips and narcissus were likely on display now, I was really more interested in capturing some pictures of the blooming redbuds. And I wasn't disappointed! I hope you're enjoying a wonderful spring, especially after the dreadful winter we had.