I’ve found my new happy place: Longwood Gardens outside of Wilmington, Delaware. We showed up for the afternoon dancing fountains performance last Saturday. I hadn’t really done my research and balked at the touristy vibe and $23 per person cost of admission – seemed pretty steep for a 12-minute show.
But after the fountains did their thing (pretty amazing engineering set to Fantasia-style music… a little corny but fun), we got to check out the rest of the gardens, starting with a mansion masquerading as a greenhouse.
Room after room was FILLED with every amazing plant you can think of, or have never heard of. There was one room filled with banana trees, one with a thousand tiny orchids, a desert wing, and a hallway filled with lush ferns. Even the bathrooms are amazing – private rooms lining a corridor with a floor-to-ceiling living wall.
The greenhouse (conservatory) was worth the cost of admission alone – but that was just the beginning. After that, we checked out the fountains up close, then wound through more and more interconnected gardens – flowers, vegetable gardens with 15-foot-tall sunflowers, a student exhibition garden, orchards, then a forest and a huge bee-filled meadow extending to the horizon. Every aspect of the landscape was designed in meticulous detail – highlighted by the wildness of nature filling in the spaces in between and overflowing the borders. I could see spending days here. Next time, I’ll bring my real camera – here’s what I took with my phone, in between moments spent ogling weird plants and marveling at scenic vistas.
Beautiful Janna! Looks like could be my happy place! If you enjoy visiting gardens you should check out American horticulture society. For very small fee you join and gives you access free to many gardens around the country! I think it is $35 for the year.
That sounds awesome, I will check it out! Thanks for the heads up!