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![a close up of a pink orchid with a yellow and red orchid in the background](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/567214_new-orchid-house_davis_-harold-_hank_-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_image.jpg?h=7d0de453&itok=z6kNWq-9)
Navigating Our New Orchid House
Our Orchid House has been completely restored in the same way our founder Pierre S. du Pont would have done it himself—with excellence.
![a Copper Beech tree on a rainy day with dark clouds in the sky](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/561196_copper-beech-slated-for-replacement_hill_-william-_bill_-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_image.jpg?h=4355065d&itok=hK0o_p7E)
A Goodbye, A Beginning
Here at Longwood, our trees are like family. They’re the reason Longwood exists—the backbone of our Gardens.
![a person crouched and tying equipment onto a tree that is in a cemetery](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/563351_picus-sonic-tomograph-device_altenburger_-tyler-image.jpg?h=4af88d1f&itok=mAES3uAB)
Using Sound Technology to Make Sound Decisions
In the last year, we have started to use a PiCUS Sonic Tomograph, a device that uses sound wave technology to advance tree care and the accuracy of tree risk assessments by allowing arborists to get a look at the inside of the tree when assessing its structural integrity.
![a Weeping Beech with a bright blue sky and fluffy white clouds in the background](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/496824_winter-landscape_hare_-sue-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_agg.jpg?itok=2jK_zxbG)
Longwood’s Weeping Beeches: Their Origins and Significance
Longwood is the proud home of two specimens on view that represent a strikingly impressive form of Fagus sylvatica, and whose beautifully undulating lines are perhaps best appreciated during the winter months after their leaves have fallen.
![a gloved hand presses a flower bulb into bare soil](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/545928_bulb-planting_gross_-carol-image.jpg?h=e825b8ba&itok=RbzzNx6L)
Now is the Time for Fall Bulb Planting
Now is the time to plant those bulbs—just as the Longwood intern class did in late October—in preparation for next year’s spring display.
![a chrysanthemum bonsai on a wooden platform](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/536189_bonsai-chrysanthemum-install_gross_-carol_image.jpg?h=416be5ce&itok=URzdHCke)
New Forms, New Displays, New Fun
This imaginative display serves as the largest and oldest of its kind in North America, and it’s a spectacular time of year in which we stretch our horticultural limits to put on a colorful show for our guests.
![a stone farmhouse with red shutters and a large tree behind it](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/141593_meadow_markey_-sam-_sam-markey-photography_image.jpg?h=ae1cf876&itok=6uRdcaZT)
A Farmhouse, A Story
The Webb Farmhouse’s history spans a long time before Longwood Gardens existed, and the evolution of the land helps tell its story.
![close up of a bonsai tree getting trimmed and wired](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/519894_bonsai-trimming-and-wiring_gross_-carol-image.jpg?h=3a69fcf0&itok=knx2mYJz)
New Potential for Our Azalea Bonsai
It’s been more than two years since we embarked on the process of training an azalea standard into a bonsai. It’s now time to share what our old friend has been up to in the last year.
![water lily display in the pond with surrounding plants](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/2022-03/523511_Waterlily-Display_Davis-Harold-Hank.jpeg?h=178176ae&itok=QmNInH01)
Floating Ideas on Our Floating Islands
As the gardener responsible for the Waterlily Display, I can say firsthand just how much we delight in sharing the beauty and the display possibilities of our aquatics collection with our guests.
![outdoor garden walkway path with bench at Longwood Gardens](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/513377_hillside-garden_hummel_-scott-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_image.jpg?h=7a623046&itok=SuH6dmH1)
Made in the Shade Garden
While sun gardens are places in which every flower color under the sun can be showcased, shade gardens are more subtle and elegant … and definitely a way to enjoy your outdoor space while taking refuge from the midsummer heat.
![a black pool with large water lily pads and white flowers](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/526091_victoria-_longwood-hybrid_hill_-william-_bill_-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_image.jpg?h=5cf2dbd0&itok=Ruu5IcGG)
Going the Distance
![inside of a greenhouse filled with tropical green plants](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/514650_wood_s-cycad_deguiseppi_-carol-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_image.jpg?h=a24be253&itok=YLENFaKM)
New Homes for Old Friends
We are the steward of one of the most important collections of gardens and glasshouses, and one perfect example of that commitment lies in the 55 plants we’ve moved from their previous West Conservatory locations to new permanent homes in our Main and East Conservatory display spaces.
![a collection of bonsai trees displayed on elevated platforms](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/514688_east-conservatory_deguiseppi_-carol-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_image.jpg?h=23d5793b&itok=rKx_7YJv)
Rediscover Our Bonsai
Our guests now have the chance to interact and engage with our bonsai … including the 10 stunning azalea bonsai trees with cloud-like, vibrant flowers we’ve just now put on display in our East Conservatory, as part of a new rotating bonsai display.
![view from atop a tree from an arborist](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/lightening-image.jpg?itok=WFVhxuSA)
Weathering the Storm
Among Longwood’s many methods of caring for our trees and helping facilitate their longevity is our lightning protection plan. Journey along with me as I walk you through the field of lightning protection.
![a wooden walking path zig-zags through a bed of greenery](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/511818_student-exhibition-gardens_hill_-william-_bill_-_longwood-volunteer-photographer_image.jpg?h=c743eabb&itok=8jVekB6R)
A Lesson in Signature and Identity
After not being able to have a Student Exhibition Garden in 2020 because of the onset of COVID-19, we are incredibly excited to once again proudly showcase our students’ beautiful visions, hard work, and utmost care in the form of the three distinct gardens that reflect this year’s Student Exhibition Garden theme—signature and identity.
![landscape image of a garden bed with two foxglove plants that are half in bloom](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/2022-03/508923_Spring-Blooms-Foxglove_DeGuiseppi-Carol.jpeg?itok=LEdbX_Px)
The Height of Care
These late spring flowers have just recently made their debut along Flower Garden Walk, but we’ve been carefully planning and coaxing their arrival since last summer, using a growing technique rooted in precision and care.
![a zoomed in photograph of a vibrant purple orchid bloom](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/orchid-image_0.jpg?h=0b80f9f8&itok=G3fAPzsW)
Specimens of Beauty
Our frequently-changing display of specimen orchids gives our guests the chance to see some of the most spectacular and unusual selections from our collection of approximately 5,500 orchids.
![wide view of a conservatory](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/conserv-image.jpg?itok=9sl2o_s6)
March is a Month of Icons
With iconic, impactful, and simply gorgeous plants gracing nearly every corner of our Main and East Conservatory display, March is the time that many of our most signature plants are on view in full spectacular bloom.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/wreath-image.jpg?itok=u9bTNpAP)
How We Make Our Living Succulent Wreaths
As a Longwood Senior Horticulturist, I’ve had the pleasure of creating dozens of living wreaths and many succulent creations throughout my time here, but this year’s Silver Garden wreath is especially poignant and beautiful to me.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_masonry_sm/public/blog_post_images/pointsettia-image.jpg?itok=YUU74OA0)
The Poinsettia: An Evolving Tradition
The poinsettia is an iconic holiday plant with an interesting history that, despite being notoriously difficult to grow, we’ve woven into many facets of this year’s Christmas display, grown in shapes and sizes found nowhere else on Earth.