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 

Happy Phalaentines!

The Love Affair with Moth Orchids

Valentine's Day 2018 is fast approaching and since I can't offer you, dear reader, a dozen roses and assorted chocolates, how about a dozen or so pictures of orchids?

Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory 
Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid 

It's a tough time for me as a gardener in Toronto as the middle of February offers no respite from snow, slush, horrible windchills and so on. I'm not the type to order and read seed catalogues by the fireplace; in fact, currently I'm reading books about many non-gardening topics like marketing, design and Japanese fiction. I just don't find spending hours reading about constructing compost bins, growing chickens in the city and maximizing your backyard vegetable yields particularly exciting or beautiful.

Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory 
Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid white hybrid 

What do I find beautiful at this time of the year? As you surely have ascertained at this point of the post, orchids!

Phalaenopsis "Harlequin" Moth Orchid 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

I'm not an orchid collector or grower but I can completely understand how and why many apparently rational and sane people lose their rationality and sanity buying, growing and showing off their babies as I was the same with hostas many years ago. 

(Erik Hansen wrote a very funny and yet at times sad book detailing the madness of some orchid growers titled "A Horticultural Tale of Love, Lust, and Lunacy" which I've read and reviewed here. You don't even have to like orchids to enjoy reading it as the themes cover any obsession we have!)

If our house wasn't so drafty and dry in the winter, I likely would keep an few orchids around but, to be honest, I much rather take pictures of orchids than actually growing them. And why not? Orchids are so photogenic and practically dare you not taking a picture of them when they're happy blooming away in warm and humid conditions.

Phalaenopsis "Harlequin" Moth Orchid hybrid 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory

"Warm and humid" growing conditions in Toronto right now are rare and likely to occur inside greenhouses and conservatories. Two local conservatories I visit regularly always have more than a few orchids blooming away so recently I carried my camera in the hope of capturing some pictures. Lucky for me, these orchids were happy to accommodate!

Phalaenopsis hybrid at the 
Centennial Park Conservatory

Most of today's pictures show the orchid you're most likely familiar with: the moth orchid or Phalaenopsis. You see these hybrids on sale almost anywhere: grocery stores, home improvement and warehouse shopping stores, your local floral shop and of course, garden centers. I'm amazed how plants so beautiful (in bloom of course) are so common and inexpensive to the point of being commodities. I realize, of course, these are due to the fact that Phalaenopsis can be commercially propagated easily by tissue culture.

(If you want to dive into the fascinating world of Phalaenopsis propagation, click on this PDF created for the American Orchid Society: "Growing the Best Phalaenopsis" by Runkle et al. I was surprised how quickly I recalled all those terms from my botany and horticulture classes from eons ago!)

Phalaenopsis hybrid at 
Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory 

Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid 
at Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory 

Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrids 
at the Centennial Park Conservatory 

Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid magenta hybrid 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory

Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid purple and white hybrid 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Purple and white Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid 
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Here's excellent information about keeping your Phalaenopsis happy at home by the American Orchid Society: Novice Phalaenopsis Culture Sheet

Wait, there's more!

If you're tired of looking at moth orchids at this point, I've included the following orchids which were begging to be photographed during the same visit to the Allan Gardens Conservatory.

 At the Allan Gardens Conservatory 
Cymbidium insigne "Sweetheart"

Cymbidium insigne "Sweetheart" at the 
Allan Gardens Conservatory

Cymbidium insigne "Sweetheart" at 
the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Angraecum spp. Orchid at 
the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

Allan Gardens Conservatory Spring Flower Show 2016: part 2

Spring in Toronto is in the air!

Inside anyway within the cozy confines of the Conservatory. Outside, it's a mess of discarded cigarette butts and dog excrement and one has to dodge many landmines walking the city streets once the snowbanks have melted. As an antidote to such ugliness, I'll show you pictures of a few more spring flowers down at the local Conservatory. In many "real" gardens throughout the city, snowdrops, crocuses, winter aconites and other early spring ephemerals have been blooming earlier than usual. (March so far has been on the warm side.)  Tulips, daffodils are also poking their heads intrepidly through the soil, knowing full well that another snowfall is more than likely. But let's ignore such trivialities and enjoy these spring (and other) flowers.

White and yellow trumpet daffodils
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

White and yellow trumpet daffodils
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

White and yellow trumpet daffodils
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

"Voltage Yellow" Osteospermum (African Daisy)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

White and yellow trumpet daffodils
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show

Iris reticulata (Purple Reticulated Iris)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

"Margarita White Spoon"
Osteospermum (African Daisy)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

"Margarita White Spoon"
African Daisy (Osteospermum)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Muscari azureum (Azure grape hyacinths)
 at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

"Pink Charm" narcissus/daffodils
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

"Pink Charm" narcissus/daffodils
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Red schizanthus and cyclamen
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Red tulips and dianthus
at Toronto's Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Red tulips and dianthus at the
Allan Gardens Conservatory
 2016 Spring Flower Show 

Blue and purple Iris reticulata (Reticulated Iris)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show

Iris reticulata (Blue Reticulated Iris)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Azure grape hyacinths (Muscari azureum)
 at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Azure grape hyacinths (Muscari azureum)
 at Toronto's Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Alright, you're asking what do moth orchids have to do with a Spring Flower Show? Nothing, except adding to the beauty of the moment. After all, this blog often is about beautiful flowers and how can you not describe ubiquitous Phalaenopsis as beautiful?

Moth Orchid (Phalaenopsis) hybrid
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
 2016 Spring Flower Show 

Moth Orchid (Phalaenopsis) hybrid
at Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show

Moth Orchid (Phalaenopsis) hybrid
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Moth Orchid (Phalaenopsis) hybrid at
Toronto's Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) hybrid
at Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) hybrid
at Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) hybrid
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show

Phalaenopsis (Moth Orchid) hybrid
at Toronto's Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

I couldn't resist taking these three pictures. The Strelitzia was accommodating and the Brazilian Tree Fern was just unfurling some fantastic fronds.

Strelitzia reginae (Bird of Paradise)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show

Brazilian Tree Fern (Blechnum brasiliense)
at the Allan Gardens Conservatory
2016 Spring Flower Show 

With fronds like these, who needs anemones?

Want to see more highlights of the Spring Flower Show from previous years? Here are some convenient links to some of my blog posts from past springs:

• Allan Gardens Conservatory Spring Flower Show 2015 (part three): Toronto's other Flower Show
• Allan Gardens Conservatory Spring Flower Show 2014: primulas, cinerarias, grape hyacinths: Toronto blooms (without the distracting home renovation booths)
• Allan Gardens Conservatory Spring Flower Show 2013: part two. More Toronto blooms under glass
• Allan Gardens Conservatory Spring Flower Show 2013, part 3. Toronto spring blooms to get you through until April