The primary winter destination for the residents of the Pittsburgh metro area that feels the need for green, is without a doubt the Phipps Conservatory.
Located on the edge of Schenley Park, one of the cities major outdoor green spaces. The conservatory has been through some major expansion in the last few years; provide new conservatory areas as well as production and a very nice café adjacent to the entrance.
The main entrance to the conservatory is now below grade; Ticketing, lockers and the café are on this level as well as the gift shop. As you climb the stair in the circular entrance foyer you ascend around a giant glass installation, obtained from the Chihuly exhibit that let there just recently.
The glass dome, which covers the foyer, allows light to pour through the piece even on the grayest of days, and is internally lit at night.
As we traveled through the display houses, smaller pieces of Chihuly’s work were incorporated into the installations.
As a result of the new expansion of conservatory space, this is a nice mix of old style greenhouse and conservatory feel. Worn brick, ferns nestled in crevices, wet paths caused by leaky pains of glass, all in the most romantic of old greenhouse ways.
As you proceed through the older original portion you are introduced into the new high tech glasshouse. Thailand is the current exhibit installed here. Educational and interactive exhibits are stationed on the path to engage the young, to provide a bit of understanding regarding this foreign land.
The vaulting ceiling, allowed by modern construction techniques allows for the use of plants with dramatic height. Flowing water seems to be every where, with a wonderful thick lexan curved wall, a clear dam to about waist high that provides not a glimpse but an excellent view into the pool below a canopy walk and overlook.
I had the opportunity to visit the Conservatory as one of the speakers at the Western Pennsylvania Landscaping and garden Symposium, co sponsored by Phipps Conservatory, Chatham University and Penn State Cooperative Extension.
Other speakers at the event were Dan Heims of Terranova Nursery,
Peter Del Tredici of the Arnold Arboretum, Dr. Richard Bitner of conifer fame and Bruce Fraedrich of the Bartlett Tree Company.
Dan had arrived at nearly the same time as I did into the Pittsburgh airport, so we had the opportunity to the Phipps facility together with our hosts, Nancy Knauss and Mike Masiuk, I offer this as partial explanation of why only Dan was pictured in this post, not playing favorites!
The conservatory was in a buzz of work. The quarterly display or flower show was being changed out and the new beds were being worked and installed. Not just one glasshouse but I saw at least five full display houses being dismantled, and re-mantled with wonderful plants and enthusiasm. Well done!
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