Dec 19 2008
The Conservatory of Flowers
The Conservatory of Flowers located on JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park boasts over 1700 species of plants native to dozens of countries. There are potted plants, lowland tropics, highland tropics and aquatic plants. The lowland gallery features economic plants we use daily such as vanilla and cacao. The highland tropics hosts plants which are typically found in the 3,000 to 7,000 foot elevations. This conservatory is one of only four in the US which features highland tropics. The aquatic plants gallery features “Victoria Amazonica” which is the giant among water lilies. The potted plants are chosen for seasonal displays. The gallery also features containers from all over the world.
The conservatory is Eco friendly in that 2/3 of the redwood elements used in the original construction were reused. The rest came from old buckskin redwood logs. The building has 17,000 window panes made of redwood and douglas fir. The structure is whitewashed to reduce heat load and light intensity. It is the oldest wooden and glass conservatory in North America. As a part of their pest management system, the conservatory uses geckos to help control pests.
The main entrance as you can see in the above photo is decked out for the holidays with a wreath and also Christmas trees. As stated in earlier posts the Golden Gate Railway Express Exhibit will be displayed at the conservatory through April 19, 2009. There is also a small gift shop on site which sells t-shirts and gifts.
I will have more posts over the next few days which will include information with video and photos on various plant species. Visit the website at http://www.conservatoryofflowers.org
