{"id":7680,"date":"2012-03-11T04:58:00","date_gmt":"2012-03-11T08:58:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2020-08-13T18:20:39","modified_gmt":"2020-08-13T22:20:39","slug":"smith-college-bulb-show-living-legend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gardern.co.za\/2012\/03\/smith-college-bulb-show-living-legend\/","title":{"rendered":"The Smith College Bulb Show – A Living Legend"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n\n
\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n
THE 2012 SPRING BULB SHOW AT THE SMITH COLLEGE LYMAN CONSERVATORY – A WOW EXPERIENCE THAT SURPRISED BOTH OF US. <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
\nIn many ways this is a sad, sad excuse for a spring flower show.<\/p>\n
NO lawn tractors on display. No interlocking concrete bricks.<\/p>\n
It’s missing that omnipresent scent of spring flower shows – the scent (stank) of pine bark mulch.<\/p>\n
And if you are expecting to see caged peacocks and waterfowl, with black plastic ponds complete with coins and koi – forget about it.<\/p>\n
There weren’t even any over-priced hot dogs or stale pizza.<\/p>\n
This, my friends is 100 percent flower show circa 1899, and I completely immersed myself in its glorious floriferousness.<\/p>\n
There was a time, where horticultural perfection reigned, were educated and experienced gardeners toiled over every detail of botanical selection, culture and display of a plant, and the Smith College Bulb Show proves that this attention to detail can still be compelling in a world where orchids sell for $9.99 and most any plant is considered a disposable decoration. If you find yourself in New England over these next two weeks, I urge you to make an effort to visit the show. If you love plants on display in the late winter, thoughtfully real clay pots, rare orchids, real wooden plant labels and displays with natural lighting ( um…it’s called the sun), then you must attend. If you can imagine this entire spectacle arranged and presented in (of all things) – a nineteenth century glass and wood conservatory? Sit down and read more.<\/p>\n
\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
\n\n
\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n
EACH DISPLAY HOUSE AT THE LYMAN CONSERVATORY HELD THOUGHTFULLY CURATED DISPLAYS OF FORCED, FRAGRANT SPRING BULBS. CHECK OUT THESE VELTHIEMIA BRACTEATA – THEY SEEM LIKE A DIFFERENT STRAIN THAN MINE.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
MIXED COLORS OF DUTCH BULBS ALL ‘WORK’ TOGETHER WITHOUT BEING A JUMBLE.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
\n I have to admit here at Smith College, I think I liked the mixed displays better than the carefully curated ones (although, they were very nice and maybe more relevant from a style perspective – I think the color palette particularly the one with burgundy, plum, violet and purples will be recreated by most every attendee to this show. I too was struck by the aspect of this exhibition – a modern spring flower show is usually held in a convention center, and here, one strolls through a nineteenth century wood and glass conservatory. The lighting is natural – the sun. No theatrics, no wood mulch, no waterfalls and recorded bird song. Also, there are not ropes to keep you away from the plant. Instead, you are invited into each display – you are not a visitor, instead, this is an installation and one is fully engaged with the installation. The experience was practically therapeutic.<\/p>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nWhile watching a young dad carry his son on his shoulders, the boy kept poking at some tulips and shoving his nose into passing daffodils – two little girls squealed as they wove in and around through the crowd with petals that they had picked up off of the floor. No one yelled, or said ‘no, “don’t do that.” beyond their parents. No harm was really being done, and I was too busy leaning over and taking a whiff myself. The flowers are inches from ones nose! I felt as if I was in my own greenhouse.<\/p>\n
\n\n
\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n
LACHENALIA ALOIDES SSP.QUADRICOLOR, THE CAPE HYACINTH<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nI expected the normal fare to be on display, but I have to admit that even with my snooty deisgner mind, it wasn’t ugly, and to be honest, I needed a good dose of “Tulips, Narcissus, Hyacinths and the lesser bulbs” right now. I was surprised by many other plants in the display – as well as being impressed. Each plant is labeled perfectly, which is a difficult task, and one rarely accomplished well. I was delighted that many displays included more unusual bulbs and plants – The Velthiemia bracteata were particularly tall and nice, and there were at least three strains. Then, I spotted my favorites – the Cape Hyacinths, or Lachenalia aloides var. quadricolor and a few other sub-species of L.aloides, which were very well grown, and in such abundance that I felt a tiny bit envious. I too was blown away by the other plant collections, and after spying a few Vireya’s, a Rhododendron fragrantissimum or a R. maddennii cross, as well as a sweet collection of ferns and Lycopodium – I decided that a visit on a slower day would be in order.<\/p>\n
THE 2012 SPRING BULB SHOW AT THE SMITH COLLEGE LYMAN CONSERVATORY – A WOW EXPERIENCE THAT SURPRISED BOTH OF US. In many ways this…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
The Smith College Bulb Show - A Living Legend - Growing With Plants<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n