What’s in Bloom

Native to rainforests in Brazil, Schlumbergera, grow as epiphytes, mainly on trees or shrubs but sometimes in shady places among rocks.  They do not have true leaves, but flattened, succulent stems.  Schlumbergera flowers bloom directly from the stems at the nodules, and come in a variety of colors.  The hybrid ‘Thor Carmen’ is a tough houseplant that has showy flowers that bloom in the late fall, usually around Thanksgiving, hence the common name Thanksgiving cactus.  Sometimes confused with the true Christmas cactus, Schlumbergera x buckleyi, you can tell them apart because the Thanksgiving cactus has claw-like appendages on its stems that resemble crab claws, hence another common name, crab cactus.

These bulbs produce clusters of white, fragrant flowers that can be forced to bloom indoors in winter.  Easy to grow in containers, paperwhite narcissus are a wonderful accent to the home.

Japanese camellias have glossy evergreen leaves and rose-like flowers in various shades of pink, red, and white that bloom at Longwood throughout the winter.  These beautiful flowering shrubs were one of Pierre S. du Pont’s favorite flowers and one of the first species planted in the Conservatory upon its completion in 1921.

A row of mature purple-leaved European beeches welcome our visitors enroute to the conservatory.
Pierre S. du Pont directed the creation of  the beech allee in 1951, when copper beeches were chosen to replace sugar maples along the original driveway to the farmhouse. The grandeur of the beeches reflected the shift from a farm to a more formal public garden. The archival picture shows these trees were already huge specimens, transplanted by manpower in action with minimal damage to root structures. Some of the trees were already on the property and moved from Oak Knoll and the former nursery that was located in the current picnic area. Others were moved from an estate on the Main Line outside Philadelphia. Originally a single row of copper beeches was planted on the south side of the drive, but eventually Mr. du Pont wanted a double row for a true allee.
 

Dawn redwood, Metasequoia glyptostroboides, similar in appearance to bald-cypress, is a living fossil, having existed as long as 50,000,000 years ago. Fossil records show its presence on both the North American and Asian landmasses, and it was thought to be extinct until the early 1940s when a Chinese official found an unidentified cypress-like tree in a remote village in central China. The opposite leaves are deciduous, a rare feature among conifers. They emerge bright green in spring, mature to deep green in summer, and turn a foxy, red-brown in fall. The excellent foliage colors, ornamental bark, and straight trunks have made them popular ornamental plants in gardens.

Our succulent tree is made from 1,800 Sempervivum, Hens-and-chicks hybrids, in a mixture of small and large sizes.  These succulents are cold hardy, and their colors will become more vibrant and redder as the air gets colder.  They were placed into sphagnum moss on a tree frame, a process which took five days to complete.