Longwood Gardens has so much to offer in the way of trees. Thanks to Pierre du Pont, we have this beautiful garden and its amazing old trees. Pierre bought the land for exactly that reason: to save a group of trees. The trees that he saved are incredible specimens, but I am here to tell you about the giants living among us.

“The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes. If you foolishly ignore beauty, you will soon find yourself without it. Your life will be impoverished. But if you invest in beauty, it will remain with you all the days of your life.” (Franklin Lloyd Wright)

I am excited to introduce to you a completely new type of Fireworks at Longwood Gardens—Clivia miniata ‘Longwood Fireworks’!

We are thrilled to welcome Liz Marden & her daughter Kat Marden from Liz Marden Bakery & Cafe in Kennett Square, PA as guest bloggers for Behind-the-Plants! Liz and Kat created more than 8,000 gingerbread cookies--as well as two stunning gingerbread models of the Conservatory and the Peirce-du Pont House--that are used throughout this year's Christmas display. They share their "construction grade" gingerbread recipe below!

The tall, single stemmed chrysanthemums you see in the Conservatory here at Longwood Gardens are quite different than the mounded shrubs loaded with small flowers that you find at your local garden center. These are a specialty florist type, the product of hundreds of years of breeding to reach those stately heights and flower size and are not winter hardy for us in Southeast Pennsylvania.

Do you hear the word chrysanthemum and picture those simple household flowers from the local garden shop? At Longwood Gardens, we take the ordinary mum and make it extraordinary, turning it into a work of art—the Thousand Bloom Chrysanthemum!

Historically, the students in Longwood's Professional Gardener Program were given plots to design and maintain at their residences, so that they could be responsible for every aspect of garden design--from concept through to implementation. But since last summer, the students have been creating new, unique gardens near the Idea Garden for Longwood's visitors to enjoy.

Every year, Christmas comes early at Longwood Gardens as we prepare for our largest annual display!

Summertime is full of sunshine, blue skies, and the EXTREME temperatures that veggies love!

Today marked an important milestone at Longwood Gardens.

In January 2010, we posted a blog about our “King of the Conservatory,” Encephalartos woodii. The Encephalartos is the most prized plant in Longwood’s Conservatory since it is extinct in its native environment of South Africa.

The first Himalayan blue-poppies (Meconopis ‘Lingholm’) of the season went on display at Longwood Gardens just before the opening of the Philadelphia Flower Show. Unlike last year when some plants went to Philadelphia, this time the blue-poppies can be seen only here at Longwood.

After 35 years of clivia breeding, Longwood Gardens is releasing its first named clivia when the North American Clivia Society holds its International Symposium and Show at Longwood Gardens March 19 and 20, 2011.

Christmas at Longwood Gardens: What a wonderful time of year!

One of the most frequently asked questions on growing clivia is “how do I get my clivia to bloom?” Recently I visited with the Director of the North American Clivia Society and Executive Director of the Delaware Nature Society, Mike Riska, to get his expert advice on clivias. Mike has grown clivia for many years, and has won numerous awards for his plants—both from the Philadelphia Flower Show and from Longwood Gardens. In this video, he shares some pointers on how to get a clivia to bloom, and gave advice on growing and grooming your plants for competitions.

Starting Saturday, October 9, 2010, you will be able to experience an exciting, new area of the Gardens: The East Conservatory Plaza! The East Conservatory Plaza has been in the making for over 3 years. From the beginning, we worked with the renowned, British landscape architect Kim Wilkie.

Longwood often hunts the globe for new or extraordinary plants to conserve and showcase in the Gardens. Recently, I went on a different sort of expedition—to inspect the plants for Longwood’s new East Conservatory Plaza green wall. My mission was to identify any potential pests or diseases that could threaten the new display.

Biocontainers offer an exciting opportunity for plant producers and home gardeners to become more earth friendly. Currently the majority of ornamental crops are produced in petroleum-based plastic containers. The extensive use of plastic results in a significant waste disposal problem and the plastic ends up in a landfill or hopefully gets recycled.

If you haven't visited the Student Exhibition Garden, time is running out! The gardens will be dismantled in October to make way for the PG class of 2011's gardens next spring. To find out more about the Student Exhibition Gardens, visit Longwood's website at www.longwoodgardens.org.

Cascade chrysanthemums have long been at the heart of Longwood Gardens' annual Chrysanthemum Festival. Longwood grows specialty mums (Chrysanthemum x moriflorum) that originated in China and Japan and are selected for their ability to create beautiful and lasting forms. Over the years, Longwood's amazing show of form and color has been continually modified and refined. Guests marvel at the captivating shapes and often ask us how we create these wonderful pieces of horticulture. The following is meant to highlight a little behind-the-scenes action and hint at some of the spectacular forms you will see this November in our Conservatory.