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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.

Friday, January 25, 2013

A January Drive to the Tropics.

We've had a couple of weeks of sub zero temperatures (really only sub freezing but sub zero celsius- thanks for catching that Danger.) and about a week of morning fog which only moves a little and keeps the sky gray all day.  On such a dreary day, let's take a little winter journey.


We'll take some time to appreciate the view along the roadside.





 Where can we go to escape this oppressive and cold, albeit kind of lovely,  blanket of fog?



Still more of this frosty stuff along the way.

Here's a clue for you:  We have arrived at our destination.  If you've been here, you may recognize this scene.


Turn around, open the door and magically...

The camera lens fogs.

No, what I meant was, magically we're transported to the tropics. (Yes, I realize that these yuccas grow outside here but they sort of fit with the theme.)

The magic is that of Flower World, a great nursery in Maltby, WA where they grow their own stock. You may remember posts about our late summer visit.  If not, you can find them here.
 Flower world's three acres of covered plant area is more fun than a botanical garden because here, you can take home anything that grabs your attention.

The campus of this place is so large that the maps, posted at various locations are highly recommended.

Ctenanthe oppenheimiana 'Tricolor' likes low - medium light conditions.  The foliage looks good enough to eat!

The gorgeous flowers are an added bonus.

It feels like summer.  I feel the winter doldrums taking flight and begin walking with more of a spring in my step.




 There are even a few of these prickly things.


 This Staghorn fern looks even bigger from the other side. The Tom is included for scale.
 An added bonus to shopping here is that you can eat at the  nearby Maltby Cafe which was just voted western Washington's best place to eat breakfast.

A variegated hybiscus. 

 I always thought that crotons were the little toast cubes that one finds in caesar salad and floating on soup.

This almost came home with me again (did I mention that there's a 30% sale going on?) but it was so cold outside and I'd have to find an indoor place for it for the rest of the winter.
Now for some gratuitious screaming color..




There is a lot more to discover at Flower World!   I'm very much looking forward to visiting again in the spring! The remainder of the nursery's  15 acres  are devoted to hardy plants.  On Monday, we'll see some of what's going on in the rest of the nursery.

22 comments:

  1. That's such a large and beautiful place, I enjoy all your posts from there. Gorgeous and warm on a cold day. I used to do the same thing when we lived in Boston. Now we enjoy the cold days and hide from the heat.

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    1. It's a treat to go there any time of the year! Interesting that you hide from the heat. In the hottest part of last summer we had maybe a couple of days that reached 90 but most days were between 70 - mid 80's.

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  2. Orchids are beautiful, and big fern and cactus! Thank you for sharing your trip to 'tropics'. I see this Conservatory is large.

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    1. You got some lovely orchids for your birthday Nadezda! This conservatory is large and full of wonderful plants.

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  3. Ahhhh, I can smell the humidity through your lush photographs! Nice mini-vacation :)

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    1. It was really swell, especially because of the size of the place, it really felt like being in a summer garden. I want to live there!

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  4. Oh My! You have no idea how immensely I enjoyed this post. I almost cried. Isn't the Maltby Cafe the best? I've been tempted to check out the little shops around it, have you ever? I had forgotten how extensive Flower World's indoor greenhouses were. I think I need this fix for reals.

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    1. It was absolutely perfect for that long stretch of cold foggy days! It'd be equally nice for cold rainy days! Every time we've tried to eat at the Maltby Cafe, the wait was so long that we skipped it in favor of hitting more nurseries but I've heard only stellar things about it. I love the look of the shops and the fact that this is all housed in an old school/gym, is fun but have never visited the shops because if you time the day right, you can hit Flower World, Molbak's, and Well's Medina and still have time to hit Bedrock and maybe another nursery in Seattle.

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  5. Oh I understand the need to converge on a beautiful nursery to escape the winter doldrums. I do it all the time. And for that moment you are transported just like you speak of. That place looks superb. They certainly have the art of tropicals down.

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    1. The other areas are equally impressive. I loved the huge size of the heated area because I really felt like I was outside.

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  6. "a spring in my step" that was very good! I really need to check this place out someday. Why is there never enough time to see it all?!

    (oh and you don't really mean sub-zero temperatures do you? I hope not! Maybe just below freezing?)

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    1. There is a lot to see! Every time you post about another cool nursery in your area, I swear that next time I'm there, I'll definitely find it but once the highway 30 trifecta is visited and the car is stuffed with plants, it's difficult to think of visiting another place just to look at plants. However, next time you're in Seattle, you might enjoy flower world a lot. Although, there were no agaves and only a few cacti in the tropical section.

      Nope. Sub freezing. Thanks for catching that D.G.

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  7. You have great nurseries over there! I still love those palms!

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    1. Me too! They are beautiful and the large ones, Trachycarpus fortunei, are hardy outside here.

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  8. Ah, I feel like I've taken in big lungfuls of humid oxygen. This reminds me I need to go visit one of our local conservatories.

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    1. Because of our air stagnation and constant fog, the air outside was not as lovely as usual so stepping in this place was wonderful. Go, visit, breathe!

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  9. I hope that spring in your step will keep you going until you can step into spring.

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    1. Very clever Ricki! I hope so too but if not, I can always go back for a recharge.

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  10. Great close ups of the freezing fog on foliage! Enjoyed your post, it's been a few years but I remember taking a trip up north for good old Flower World! Fun place to visit! Cheers, Jenni

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    1. Thanks Jenni. Flower World is always full of fun stuff! Glad you came along!

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  11. Oooh, I love that Little and Lewisesque cast leaf fountain!

    Being able to get swoon worthy food in nurseries an unexpected treat when I was out there last July. We had delicious lunches at Swansons and Bainbridge Gardens. Even in the best nurseries around here you'd be hard pressed to find a bottle of water.

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    1. The fountain is made by Dario's Statuary and Fountins in Seattle. Check out their website - http://www.dariosstatuary.com/index.html They make lots of cool stuff that is available in nurseries all over these parts.

      It is nice that some of the larger nurseries here have food but when I do a multi nursery field trip, I like to hit as many nurseries as possible so we eat while driving from place to place. Serious business, the plant hunt!

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Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I love to hear your thoughts.