Sunday, March 8, 2009

Road Trip

This is the week of the Chicago Flower and Garden Show, and I had been planning all winter to go and bring back fabulous photos to show you. But alas, our much-delayed kitchen remodel has finally become a reality, and I’m stuck here babysitting the work crew. If I’m not around, questions tend to get answered the wrong way, if you know what I mean.

Instead, you get some photos of a recent trip the Suburban Sprouts and I made to the Friendship Park Conservatory, in nearby Des Plaines, here in Chicago’s northwest suburbs. The Sprouts (ages 11 and 13) were on the last day of a four-day weekend and were a little stir-crazy, so I posed the idea and surprisingly they were up for it.

I had read about the conservatory in a number of local publications and had wanted to check it out. I knew it would be no Garfield Conservatory, but the website had a couple of nice photos.

All in all, it was okay. It was a 30-minute drive for us, and I wouldn’t recommend going out of your way to see it if you live further than that. It’s one not-so-large room, with one loop around, which my kids toured in about one minute flat. Then we went back and took a closer look. Most of the greenery seemed like larger versions of plants I have in my own house—nothing terribly exotic.
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They did have several varieties of orchid, but most were looking a little tired, and all were identically labeled “#84, orchid.” Here are the only two that still looked half-way decent.
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They did have some enormous begonias—I think. Many of the plants were unlabeled.
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When labels were in view, they kind of messed up a good photo op.
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The trunk of this tree philodendron was interesting, with its “owl-eye” pattern of leaf stem scars…
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… and its aerial roots wrapped around the base, looking a little too snake-like for my comfort.
PhotobucketThe Sprouts enjoyed the koi pond next to the bridge at the “high” end of the room…
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But I’m sure their favorite part was romping in the nearby playground afterwards…
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Or, on second thought, the stop at Dairy Queen on the way back home.

It was no Flower and Garden Show, but it was a pleasant afternoon. I noticed a lot of perennial beds outside, so I may sneak back in the summer to take a peek at those. The outdoor pond circled by an electric train (plus the playground…and the DQ) may be enough to lure my kids back too.

In the meantime, I hope somebody else posts a lot of photos of the show, so I don’t feel like I totally missed out. (Mr. BrownThumb and Mr. McGregor’s Daughter, I’m counting on you!)

15 comments:

  1. Don't feel bad I didn't make it out to the show either. If you ever really want to see the greatest Orchids and lots of them visit Hausermann's Orchids in Addison, they have about
    5 greenhouses all connecting together.

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  2. I think seeing the different varieties of the tropical plants is fun. I love your name for your kids :) Funny how the lure of DQ can often convince my girls to go somewhere they aren't all that excited about. The nice thing about the weather changing is that the outdoor gardens are a great place for the kids to get fresh air and we can look at plants!

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  3. Hi, Cathy--Wow! Five greenhouses. Sounds like heaven! Thanks for the tip. I'll have to check them out next time I'm down that way. Sorry you didn't make it to the show, either. Guess there's always next year (I hope!).

    Hi, Catherine--Yes, I have no pangs of guilt whatsoever about bribing my kids with DQ or whatever else it takes! I do try not to take advantage of their patience and longsuffering however. :) You are right about the fresh air and the gardens. Any time now! Yay!

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  4. Well, I'd rather go to a flower show than have a kitchen remodel any day ;-> Just survived one (kitchen remodel) last year... well, it turned out great but it's painful. Great photos! SF Flower & Garden coming up in a few weeks, I hope Country Mouse will make some photos...

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  5. I haven't been to Friendship Park in a very long time. I'm glad it is still a good place to visit when you don't want to go too far. My kids are still a bit too young to really enjoy this kind of thing, yet too old to really enjoy this kind of thing, if you know what I mean. It's so good for them to see plants, even if they may not be that into to it right now.

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  6. Hi, Town Mouse--Glad your kitchen turned out well and that you survived the makeover. That gives me hope! I'll look forward to the SF show photos.

    Hi, Mr. McGregor's Daughter--It does get tricky with kids, doesn't it? Mine don't mind a little exposure--poking a few seeds in a pot and watching them sprout, that sort of thing--but so far neither one of them is showing a serious interest in gardening. It will be interesting to see if either one develops that as they get older.

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  7. Hi Donna, your 'sprouts' are my son's age...he's 12! I guess I should say, 'my son is in-between your sprouts'!! Ahh, tweens. Aren't they fun?! These are some very amazing years of CHANGE. It's quite scary, actually--but fun, too. I just hope I survive it--my daughter made it through (she's 20 now, and thriving!).
    I enjoyed your photo tour of the conservatory...sorry you didn't get to the garden show, but this show looked lovely to me--actually, more intriguing than lovely. The philodendrun 'owls eyes' are amazing! and the roots...wow. never seen anything like 'em before!! I love the rose shade of the orchid, and those begonias really were giant sized!! All in all, sounds like a nice daytrip. Not sure my 'sprout' would want to accompany me on one of those!!!

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  8. Hi, Jan--Sorry you had so much trouble with your comment! I think it should be there now. How fun that you have a "tweener" too. It is a challenging age, isn't it? And what a spread you have from 13 to 20. That has to present some challenges of its own. Glad you enjoyed the photos. It was a nice little trip.

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  9. Although that didn't really work out for you, at least you went to the show and got to see for yourself how it was. Now you know ... There'll be other flower show around.Blossom Blooms

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  10. Ahh, wish it would have been a bit more stimulating for you. But it sounds like the outing overall was good fun. That owl eye plant is awesome, though, I must say. Good luck on the kitchen remodel. We did that two years ago. It wasn't too bad, we had our little guy nine months later. HA!

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  11. Hi, lili11--You're right, there will be other shows, and spring open houses, and garden walks...Bring it on! I can't wait. Thanks for stopping by!

    Hi, Gardeness--Yes, it was a pleasant afternoon with the kiddos. It won't be long before they're "too old" to tag along with Mom. Glad to hear your kitchen remodel went well--although I personally can do without the bonus "little person" thrown into the bargain at this stage of my life. :) (It's quite obvious you're enjoying YOUR little guy, though. He's a cutie.)

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  12. It may not be that big but it is pretty nice. I like the roots wrapped around the pot. I bet I could convince my nephew they're worms and he'd love it.

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  13. Hi, MrBrownThumb--Take your nephew on a warm day when he can enjoy the outside too, and he'll probably have a great time. Thanks for the great reviews of the Garden Show!

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  14. "Little sprouts" love that! Kids and DQ LOL. The red color of the orchid is outstanding. :)

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  15. Hi, Grace--Kids and SUGAR--a never-fail enticement. :) Glad you liked the orchid. Thanks for stopping by!

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Thanks for stopping by the Suburban Sanctum! I hope you've enjoyed your visit and will come again soon. I'd love to hear any comments you have before you go, and promise to respond as soon as I can. Thanks!