Lyman Conservatory Visit

As soon as school was out, I knew the first thing I wanted to do (besides wait for the plumber to come fix our leaky tub). I wanted to visit Webs Yarn in Northampton. I'd heard great things about their deals in the back room from other knitters and had some birthday money that I could spend. When I mentioned to a colleague that I was headed that way, she recommended a visit to the Lyman Conservatory at Smith College. So I made a day of it. I drove down to Webs and found some great deals on yarn. I got enough for two sweaters and three pairs of socks. Then I drove to Smith, found a parking space and walked to the conservatory. I wandered through amazed at the diversity of plant life. I wasn't a careful student of the labels, so in most cases I'm not sure what I photographed, but here is a sampling of the best.

From the outside, the size of the Conservatory was amazing. Inside it was labyrinth-like, with room after room of different growing conditions.
The larger rooms were filled with plants from around the world. I couldn't believe the height of the trees.There was small room filled with ferns with this cute mini-greenhouse in the center.The colors and textures of the foliage were amazing.

In most rooms there were only a few blossoms if that.

My favorite room was the orchid room. It was a lush, humid place. There was a pool in the middle with gold fish. All around the room hung baskets with orchids.

I also enjoyed the semi-arid room with the succulents.
There were these strange plants called Living Stones or Lithops. They almost look like rocks.
There were more flowers in the gardens outside, including these poppies which held their color despite the rain. They also had a rock garden where I found these interesting flowers. I wish I had more time to look around outside, but my stomach was clamoring for lunch so I took a quick walk through and then left to find something to eat. I'll definitely be returning to the Conservatory another time. I hear it's a great place to go mid-winter when you need to see something growing and green.