Still Waiting for Spring - Back to the Greenhouses

Not surprisingly, we had rain and snow yesterday, so spring has been delayed again. Instead of going out and about, I looked back over our visit to the greenhouses of the Niagara Parks Commission and found some more plants I liked.

The first is one of the junction points where greenhouse sections link.

The second is an orchid but in a desert area. The branches seemed more like those of a rubber tree plant than what I expected of orchids.

The third is a Bird of Paradise flower.

The fourth was labeled as some type of "Pea" plant, albeit not unlike any I am familiar with.

The last one is simply a view into a cluster of large, tropical leaves.

Enjoy, while we wait for nice weather.

Spring Has Finally Arrived - Sort Of!- Eranthis In Bloom

Yesterday, on Easter Sunday, the first sign of spring made its appearance in our garden. The first flower to pop out of the ground is Eranthis, sometimes called Winter Aconite (although it is not related to aconites and is not poisonous). This is actually a late arrival this year. Most winters we have a week-long thaw in the third week of February and it is then the Eranthis appears. This year the heavy, unbroken snowfall and cold weather has delayed the usual early blooming of these flowers.

The bright, buttercup yellow flowers are about 2 cm (3/4 inch for our American friends) across and will force themselves out through frozen soil and light snow (yes that is snow in the images) in sheltered areas. That is the case with the ones shown here. They are growing in a well sheltered southern exposure and are located in the first place they appear in the garden. Over the next two weeks the entire area will bloom and we will have a carpet of yellow in patches over the entire yard.

Eranthis are the first to bloom and also the first to disappear. By mid to late May there will be no sign of them as they will have gone to seed, dried up and disappeared again, until next year.

Our Eranthis were started from clumps in my parents yard in Niagara-on-the Lake. I remember these flowers well from my childhood there as they appeared in many of the older, established gardens there.

Orchids At The Niagara Parks Commission Greenhouses

Today, a few more flower shots. All of these are various types of orchids growing, as the title says, at the Niagara Parks Commission greenhouses in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

The one I found particularly intriguing is the fourth one. It is almost spider-like.

One thing I find difficult to understand is why so few people visit the greenhouses, or are even aware of them. The are only a pleasant walk up from the Falls and access is free with only a small parking fee if you bring your car. This weekend the Easter display starts a three week run and should be very good. After that, a series of themed exhibits runs there each running several weeks so repeat visits would be worthwhile. And the best time to visit, I find, is in a snow storm. The contrast between the cold outside and the heat and humidity inside is incredible.

Jumping About 2,000 km Northeast – Red Flowers

With a sunny Sunday at our disposal, and being tired of winter (only half the monster snowfall has melted) we decided to bask in as close to the tropics as we could. Therefore a visit to the Niagara Parks Commission greenhouses at Niagara Falls, Ontario was made. Warm, colourful, quiet (especially for a Sunday), what more could you what without involving airfares.

The displays are almost set up for the three-week Easter display and it gave us a real break from the snow and cold.

I pulled out some images of red/pink flowers from the bunch I took. The fourth and fifth ones are very small. Each of these flowers is less than 1 cm (about 3/8 inch for our American friends) across and has a tiny drop of water at the centre. These extreme closeups were done using a specialized closeup lense (Raynox DCR 250) on the FZ30.

Sorry about the lack of names. Enjoy.