Saturday, December 29, 2007

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

The Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Peacock, December 27, 2007

Late Thursday afternoon Bill and I drove over to Richmond to one of my favorite places to see holiday lights .... Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. It's really one of my favorite places to visit at any time of year. But at Christmas it becomes more than about the plants and trees ... it becomes an expression of the joy of the holidays and this beautiful garden spot all rolled up into one.


We arrived at dusk ... that lovely time in the evening when the sun has just rolled over the edge but its light is still giving the sky a lovely glow. It was a warm evening ... no hats, gloves, scarves needed and I almost wanted to take off my coat.

Inside the 11,000 square foot Conservatory, trees glistened, a toy train chugged around a layout made completely of dried and live plant material and the orchids were in full bloom.





This little owl perched in one of the trees is made of all sorts of plant matter as is the little house below.

Who do you suppose lives there??












We haven't
been to the garden for a couple of years. Each year the light show changes as do all of the decorations. The last time we were there the big tree inside the Conservatory was dressed with beautiful glass ornaments from all over the world.



This year, lacey Angel Trumpet blooms and seed pods hung from the boughs.

After wandering through the garden we had a lovely dinner with a friend and reminised about past times.

I'll visit the garden again in the spring when all of the bulbs are in bloom.



3 comments:

paris parfait said...

Such gorgeous sights! Thank you for sharing these beautiful photos. Sounds like a fun time. Wishing you and yours a healthy, happy and peaceful new year! xo

Anonymous said...

Beautiful sights! Reminds me of our last New Year's Eve visit to see the lights in the famous Butchart Gardens near Victoria on Vancouver Island! Enjoy these continuing twelve days of Christmas and A Happy New Year too! Thank you so much for your ever faithful visits and comments on my blog, Joan.

Becca said...

What a magical place! A perfect way to "enlighten" the holiday spirit.