Conservatory of Flowers Info

Conservatory of Flowers Info

The Conservatory of Flowers is a Victorian era green house located in Golden Gate Park. It houses an eclectic collection of tropical plants which cannot normally grow (easily) in the cooler climate of San Francisco (San Francisco is technically a Mediterranean climate). During my brief tour of the interior of the Conservatory of Flowers, the plants reminded me quite a lot of my jaunt through the jungles of Sumatra.      The building that makes up The Conservatory of Flowers is an excellent example of Victorian architecture. It was designed not only for function, the well keeping of exotic plants, but to be the focal point of a garden. It is quite an attractive structure in itself. The Conservatory of Flowers just reopened after extensive repairs caused by storm in the early 1990s.      The structure was bought by San Franciscans to do the purpose that it does today. That purpose is to showcase exotic plants. It was constructed on a sand dune in what was slowly becoming Golden Gate Park. As for that sand dune today? IT is a beautiful, lawn with flowerbeds of seasonal flowers in front. I enjoy going just to lay out on the lawn and to read.      The idea of a "conservatory" dates back to the Victorian period. The industrial revolution created more "leisure" time (for the rich anyway). The Romantic Movement was also into full bloom. People wanted to explore or and to see nature. Conservatories were the natural cross breading of leisure time and wanting to see nature. The rich sponsored expeditions to bring back unique plants and animals for home galleries. They believed that in bringing exotic plants and animals home, that they were conserving nature. (In the process thousands if not millions of exotic plants died on the way back to Europe and America, some perhaps lost forever). The rich would then put the plants and animals into conservatories to show off to their friends and neighbors. Any comments, please sent to .

Click on a photo or thumbnail to view a larger version. Conservatory of Flower View from the road Flower Bed Left side To the "Left" Central Dome To the "Right" Tropical Scene Right Side Orchids Epiphytes Big Leaf More Epiphytes Dome Stained Glass Windows Flower Bed Untitled Lawn and Flowerbeds Clock Clock Flowerbed Clock from afar 1 last Epiphyte Thank you for viewing Other Golden Gate Park Photos A Castle??? Botanical Gardens Random Golden Gate Park Photos Viewing Options S.F. Travel FAQ S.F. Virtual Photo Tour S.F. Travel Books Guestbook U.S. Photos Photos for Sale