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| Tom and Rob in a Greenhouse |
HUGE LEMONS - There was one plant where the lemons were as big as softballs! They reminded us of the giant lemons of the Italian town of Sorrento.
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| Huge Lemon |
BUTTERFLIES! The greenhouses had quite a number of butterflies, and one beautiful orange one posed for a close up photo.
FAST FACT - Baltimore City has a number of parks, like the one Rawlings is found in. Each of those parks once housed a similar conservatory, but they've all been torn down. Only Rawlings remains.
HISTORY OF THE CONSERVATORY:
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| Butterfly close up! |
In 1874, Baltimore City park commissioners designated sufficient ground and proposed to establish a botanical conservatory in Druid Hill Park. The committee also directed George A. Frederick, the park architect, to design and make plans for the new building. Mr. Abbott Kenny, a member of the committee for the conservatory, traveled to Europe to visit the famous Kew Gardens of London, a model for the new design.
The idea was abandoned but was revived in 1885. The plan called for a structure of iron and wood with a Palm House at its center. The building would be built using Baltimore workmen. The Conservatory opened Aug. 26, 1888, to a well-received audience of about 300 visitors.
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| An exotic plant! |
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| Mediterranean Room |
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| Tropical Room |
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| Sundial sits in the middle of the outdoor garden walk |
The Sundial in the Garden is an unusual,
multi-faceted sundial created by Peter Hamilton of Guilford and
Waltersville Granite Company and was presented to the City of Baltimore
around 1890. It was originally crafted out of granite but has since been
covered in bronze. The sundial records the times for Baltimore, Cape
Cod, Rio de Janeiro, San Francisco, Pitcairn Island, Sitka, Honolulu,
Jeddo (Tokyo), Calcutta, Cape Town, Jerusalem, Fernando Po, and London.
NOTE: The time recorded on the dial is not in
sync with today’s clocks. Before standard time was enacted in 1884,
people used solar time. This meant that noon on Cape Cod arrived earlier
than noon in Baltimore. Today, especially during daylight savings
time, the dial can be off by as much as an hour and 45 minutes. (That's exactly what I told Tom!)
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| Many sided sundial with cities around the world |
The Conservatory hosts a variety of
special activities year-round, including public programs, gardening and
art workshops, exhibits, lectures, events, and our famous seasonal
displays.
FOR THE EVENT CALENDAR: http://www.rawlingsconservatory.org/calendar/
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| Rawlings Conservatory from the front |
NEXT: HISTORIC FORT MC HENRY, HOME OF THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER
