This Friday, February 13, Garden Glow makes its debut … and we can’t wait to welcome you. This enchanting evening experience, offered Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evenings through March 8, takes guests through our Conservatory and Main Fountain Garden Districts, aglow in new, spectacular ways. With Garden Glow, you’ll experience Seeking Light: Bonsai: Illuminated, a striking blacklight installation that reveals the fine details of bonsai with vivid intensity. Marvel at SPARK, a mesmerizing display of thousands of shimmering, biodegradable sparks floating gracefully skyward in our Main Fountain Garden. Discover a suspended dreamscape in our West Conservatory. Explore four extraordinary floral creations by Longwood artists in our Main and East Conservatories. It all opens soon, just for you … and, as we get ready for its debut this week, we’re delighted to share this behind-the-scenes look at the Main, East, and West Conservatories floral displays we’ve been preparing … with more behind-the-scenes looks into Seeking Light: Bonsai Illuminated and SPARK to come soon.
Our West Conservatory will soon feature a suspended floral and fabric installation by award-winning floral designer Jennifer Reed. Owner of Jennifer Designs (Mullica Hill, NJ) and recipient of the 2025 Pennsylvania Horticultural Society Philadelphia Flower Show Cup for Best in Show, Reed has transformed the West Conservatory’s central path into an immersive journey from winter’s stillness to spring’s awakening. “I really wanted to give the experience an immersive feel,” shares Reed. “You’re to feel as if you’re among it and not just looking at it. And what an amazing thing to share such an experience during the winter.”
Jennifer Reed creates the magic of the soon-to-come West Conservatory installation, to appear like a “suspended dreamscape”. Photo by Carol Gross.
Supported by Longwood Floristry Manager Steven Cox, the suspended florals and sheer fabrics weave overhead, flowing from quiet whites and creams into fresh green foliage and textures. A staggering 500 yards of voile fabric, draped by On Q Productions (Boothwyn, PA) stretch overhead and appear like a woven sky. Throughout the West Conservatory, theatrical lighting adds to the design, creating a sensory story. “The gorgeous West Conservatory inspired the scale, texture, and color palette,” shares Reed.
Longwood Floristry Manager Steven Cox works on the soon-to-come West Conservatory suspended installation. Photo by Carol Gross.
To Reed, the story is one of immersion and seasonal transition. “The suspended installation evokes an ethereal, vibrant dreamscape,” she shares. “The soft colors, suspended elements, and gentle movement create a space of weightlessness that makes the entire space feel lifted and serene. Guests are invited to feel the calm of winter, the energy of spring, and all the beauty that happens in between.”
Floral and foliage elements will dry and preserve in-place, and include textural Ming asparagus-fern, tree ferns, Spanish-moss, amaranth, yarrow, and much more. Photo by Carol Gross.
Steps away in our Main and East Conservatories, our horticulture and facilities experts have been busily creating four floral installations, each bathed in colors designed to bring warmth to the winter night.
Serene spheres float on on the Oval Basin in our East Conservatory, evoking a sense of calm. These 12 glass orbs, illuminated and adorned with preserved angle vine and eucalyptus, create an enchanting welcome, their gentle glow and natural textures inviting a moment of pause amid the lush tapestry of our East Conservatory.
Serene spheres will provide a warm welcome in the East Conservatory. Photo by Holden Barnes.
Near the Green Wall, also in our East Conservatory, you’ll find a vibrant scene with three artful arches, a dreamy floral cloud, and orbs glowing softly overhead. Here, a lively mix of fresh-cut, dried, and preserved flowers intertwined with living plants delights. To create this rich tapestry of textures—that’s positively stunning in shades of peach, butter yellow, and chartreuse—our experts have used dried blooms harvested from our Idea Garden, delicately preserved ferns and roses, and bold Aechmea lueddemanniana ‘Alvarez’ with its blushes of red. In a word, it’s absolutely inviting.
Longwood Horticulturist Faith Redcay works on the inviting scene soon to be unveiled near the Green Wall. Photo by Marleigh Flanagan.
Delicately preserved roses add pops of intrigue in our soon-to-come Green Wall floral display. Photo by Holden Barnes.
Venturing further into the East Conservatory, look up when you get to our Patio of Oranges and take in a luminous chandelier wreath overhead. Wrapped around a custom, in-house metal frame is a lush composition of preserved eucalyptus, caspia, myrtle, angle vine, and Spanish-moss. Nearly 150 crystal strands descend dramatically from the wreath, punctuated by the warm glow of vintage bulbs.
Longwood Senior Horticulturist Patrick Greenwald puts finishing touches on the chandelier wreath. Photo by Carol Gross.
Crystal strands cascade from the wreath. Photo by Holden Barnes.
Step into the Exhibition Hall in the Main Conservatory and experience floating blooms of radiant reverie. Here, dozens of bold live Anthurium baskets and dried floral baskets of burgundy and green salal, Spanish-moss, sculptural dried palms, and more elements wow in hues of soft pink, crisp white, and rich red. It’s a true celebration of color and texture, illuminated by a captivating interplay of light.
Dozens of bold live Anthurium baskets and dried floral baskets will soon make their Exhibition Hall appearance. Photo by Carol Gross.
The first of the Fern Floor baskets are put in place. Photo by Carol Gross
Garden Glow is nearly here, and we can’t wait to share this luminous new experience with you. From ethereal installations to glowing garden artistry, every moment has been crafted to enchant. Secure your Garden Glow tickets and be a part of this unforgettable experience.
