What’s in Bloom Today – Under Glass

I PICKED A VERY NINETEENTH CENTURY COMPOSITION IN THE GREENHOUSE TODAY. THESE ARE  FLOWERS ONE WOULD HAVE FOUND SOLD ON A DECEMBER STREET CORNER IN LONDON OR IN NEW YORK DURING THE LATE 1800’s  – FRENCH SCENTED VIOLETS, CAMELLIAS, HOOP NARCISSUS, TROPICAL RED RHODODENDRONS ( VIYREYA)  FREESIAS, ALMOND-SCENTED OSMANTHUS AND WESTRINGIA ROSEMARIFOLIA ( THE PALE LAVENDER FLOWERS).

OSMANTHUS FRAGRANS – THE ALMOND SCENTED OSMANTHUS STARTS BLOOMING IN OCTOBER IN THE GREENHOUSE, AND CONTINUES UNTIL JANUARY. AT ONE TIME, EVERY PROPER WINTER WEDDING WOULD HAVE HAD THIS FLOWER IN THEIR BRIDAL BOUQUETS.

THE ALMOND SCENTED OSMANTHUS FRAGANS – SURE, THE CHINESE HAVE GROWN THIS PLANT FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS FOR TEA AND IN GARDENS, BUT THIS IS THE PRIMARY SOURCE OF WINTER FRAGRANCE IN OUR GREENHOUSE, SMELLING A BIT LIKE WILD CHERRY COUGH DROPS.

Narcissus romieuxii ssp. cantabricus, self seeded seedlings, blooming in pots around the greenhouse every December and January. They smell like gummy bears. Native to the Atlas mountains of Morocco, this rarity is an uncommon site outside of specialist collections.

 Lost are those days when every madame required a corsage constructed from a pure, white camellia for a visit to the opera, or a nosegay of violets for Saint Valentines day. These are the very reasons why I bother to keep a greenhouse, for they are not economical. But the joy they bring on days like this when it is cold out, that even on the shortest day of winter,there are flowers in bloom and citrus to pick, even here in the north, just outside of Boston. It’s a lost luxury few can experience, so we are grateful. This is a bit about maintaining a truly vintage experience, and the fact that there are only a few private greenhouses left in America that continue to grow rare collections of classic winter conservatory plants as well as rare plants found only in botanic gardens. In a way, it’s a living museum, and one that both teaches you and one which provides a sort of holistic treatment for the soul. Find your way into a greenhouse this winter, and find a not only a nice one, but an interesting one…. for if you have never walked into a winter glass house in full bloom in December and January when there is snow outside, you are missing a wonderful experience.

A WILD FREESIA, FREESIA ALBA, WHICH I STARTED FROM SEEDS COLLECTED IN SOUTH AFRICA, BLOOMS CLOSE TO THE GLASS. MOST SOUTH AFRICAN BULBS GROW WEAK LIKE THIS IN THE WINTER, BUT THE FLOWERS ARE FRAGRANT AND WORTH PICKING TO BRING INTO THE HOME ON SNOWY DAYS.