Sunken Garden Summer Show

This week the Sunken Garden has been closed to remove the Spring Show and install the Summer Show. The Summer Show opens May 2nd and runs thorough to October 4th. This year's Summer Show will be mostly shades of pink and peach. The pictures above show some of the plants that will be in this show. The top picture has 'Escargot' Rex Begonias, Dianthus, and Pentas. The second from the top shows Geraniums, Gerbera Daisies and Stargazer lilies. The third picture is a Hibiscus and the fourth picture shows our Horticulture Staff bringing down the Starlights for their bi-annual cleaning! This our longest running Sunken Garden show, but it continually changes throughout the summer with different plant material.

Spring Clean Up

The outdoor Gardeners have been very busy preparing the outdoor planters and beds through out the Zoo and Conservatory grounds.The planters outside the Historic entrance are planted with Pansies which thrive in the cooler spring temperatures. The Gardeners have been raking, removing and composting plant debris from the Perennial beds and preparing them for planting in early May. Pine bark mulch is being added to some areas for weed control, moisture conservation and aesthetics

More challenging vent maintenance!!

The Hortuculture staff had another vent to be fixed, this time it was in Tropical Encounters! Tropical Encounters has screened in vents in the ceiling to allow for hot air to escape and fresh air to come in. Some of the vent components had to be fixed, but the point in the ceiling where the vents are located is 25 feet up. We didn't have a lift or a ladder that would reach that high up, so we had to get an articulated lift in that would reach. It was a challenging job for the Horticulture staff and the Trades workers because Tropical Encounters has free roaming birds in its exhibit. The pictures at top are of the Tradesman lifted up to the vent to fix it. The other picture is of the lift coming in through the door which had to be covered with plastic so that the birds didn't escape. Tropical Encounters has been partially closed due the vent maintenance, but the work should be finished by the end of this week.

North Garden Pool Cleaning

One project this week is the annual cleaning and maintenance of the North Garden Pool. The pool was drained Sunday night and cleaned Monday. The cracks were repaired (some caused by pressure from plant roots). The edges of the pool were sealed and the sides painted black. The fish are temporarily being kept in large tanks in our garage. The pool will be refilled on Saturday morning and the koi returned to their home when the water is suitable.

Plugs and Seedlings galore!!

This week the Horticulture staff and volunteers are busy with planting lots of plugs and seedlings. The plants are grown for the outdoor gardens and the summer Sunken Garden show. Some of the plants we grow from seed at the conservatory, others are ordered as plugs. Plugs are already established plants in a very small cell of soil. We order more plugs than we grow seedlings. We have limited space and not enough labor for growing plants from seed. The picture above are some of the plugs that we have already potted up to a 4 inch pot. As of April 1st the Como Zoo and Conservatory will be open 10 am to 6 pm!!!

Spring Flower Show Started

We opened the spring flower show last Saturday March 21st. This year we chose a color theme of yellows, reds, peach, salmon and white. The show features many spring bulbs and cool season flowering plants, including Tulips, Daffodils, Ranunculus, Hyacinth, Freesias, Snapdragons, Pansies, Primula and Crocus. We will be replacing the spring bulbs two times during the show. After about 12 days a new group is planted to keep the show fresh. The spring show runs through April 26.

Spring has Sprung

Sunken Garden Show Change

Spring is almost here! This week we are in working in the Sunken Garden installing the Spring Show. Besides removing the flowers from the old show and installing the Spring flowers, there are many other maintenance activities that we try to squeeze in that week. The pictures show two of the projects the Horticulture Staff and some of the Tradesmen are working on. We clean the reflecting pool out twice a year. The Tradesmen are replacing a bad motor that controls the opening and closing of the vents. Other routine maintenance that we do during the show change includes pruning the Italian Cypress, cleaning the decorative star lights, and occasionally replacing all of the soil with new soil.

Vanilla Orchid

We are excited to see our Vanilla Orchid has started blooming in the North Garden. There are 5 buds in this flower cluster and 3 have opened so far. Vanilla is a vining orchid which needs to be mature and at least 30 ft. long to bloom. Ours has reached ~ 35 ft. in length and these are the first flowers we have had in many years . The staff has attempted to hand pollinate the flowers and we hope to see pods in a few months.

The beginnings of Victoria Water Platters

The horticulture staff has planted the Victoria Water Platter seeds. Once the seeds have been planted they are put into a tub of temperature controlled water. The temperature is kept at an average of 80 degrees. It takes several weeks for the Victoria seeds to germinate. It's hard to believe that those tiny seeds produce such a large plant. The Victoria pads can span 6 feet in diameter! You can see the Victoria Water Platters at the Visitor Center pools starting in June!