We got to Longwood Gardens a little after 9AM under cloudy skies but where not deterred as the forecast was for clear skies later in the day. As you will see from the pictures even before you get inside there are flowers (by the end of the day these will all be gone as they are about to plant the spring bulbs soon). As soon as we got into the gardens there were trees in full color so we were not disappointed. We started out going down Flower Garden Walk and the color was wonderful. As we worked our way down the walk at the far end there was a small work crew pulling out all the beautiful mums. Even though the mums had not finished they have to come out so that all the spring bulbs could be planted. They put in thousands upon thousands of bulbs so I can understand why they have to keep to their schedule. We walked (I walked, Barbara had an electric cart to ride) past the workers and into Peirce’s Woods and over toward one of the tree houses. It was a little chilly so we decided to go to the conservatory. We then worked our way down a lane we had not gone down in quite awhile and on the way to the conservatory saw some things we have missed in the past. We went into the conservatory by way of the new east entrance and saw the brand new plaza that will be opened for people to walk on next spring, looks like it will be a lot of fun with the grass steps. Once inside we went to see the brand new Green Wall, that opened just 2 weeks ago. These green walls are very popular in office buildings and other places where a little green goes a long way. Well along with the green wall they installed 17 restrooms, about 6 family restrooms and the rest individual restrooms (We think they are going to have a problem with teens using them for other than their intended purpose). As we were walking through the conservatory the sun came out so we decided to leave the building and go and see the trains. On the way to the trains we came across some pumpkins and gourds. The train setup is put up each year by a local model train club and they do a great job each year. It is always great fun to see the trains and watch the kids looking at the trains. After the trains Barbara and I went to the cafeteria to have lunch which was, as always, just great. We went back into the conservatory and walked around. On our way back to the green wall for a talk we went into the ballroom and behind the pipe organ racks and saw (for the first time) all the pipes for the pipe organ. The one picture is of the Great Division this set of pipes provide the foundation tone for the organ. The picture of the man hammering at a stick is in fact tuning the organ. On the end of the handle just to the left of the stick he is hamming at is a block of wood with cloth on the sides to make an air tight fit with the inside of the wood pipe. And he is getting it set inside the pipe to get the correct tone for that pipe. The last picture of the pipes is of the lowest notes. The dimensions for the pipe in the far corner are 32” x 28” x 32’ (yes 32 feet), it is made from 3” thick sugar pine, weights 1100 pounds and produces a tone of earthquake like sensation at just 16 hertz. At 1:00 P.M. we went back over to the green wall to hear a talk about how it was made and how it all works (the watering and feeding and such). In the picture she is holding one of the steel boxes that are hung on the wall to hold the plants, it is really quite ingenious. After that we went around to the lower hall where there was a display of photographs from local photographers, I am not the only talented photographer in the world. We sat outside for a few minutes and saw this little girl experimenting with a new way of getting from point A to point B, she just tumbled by (I just had to take some pictures of that). Then it was time to leave and come home. Once again enjoy the pictures, I enjoy sharing them with you.
