Sunday, March 1, 2015

Winter Vacation! Flowers on the Las Vegas Strip

For the last month, the Boston area has been pounded with blizzard after blizzard, shattering records for snow and cold.

Thankfully I escaped.

The snow mountain at a local grocery store
- after they trucked out a lot.
For a few days, I was delighted to join my husband while he was at a conference in nice, sunny Las Vegas!

Now where does a gardener go in Las Vegas (especially one who is not very lucky at slot machines)?  The largest garden on the Strip: the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens.


Set under the 55-foot tall glass ceiling of the Bellagio's Conservatory, the gardens change every season according to a theme that is designed, implemented, and cared for by an army of over 100 horticultural staff.

The theme at the time?  Chinese New Year
2015 is 'Year of the Goat'
As a gardener, I was a little disappointed to find out that it was less a botanical garden and more an extravagant floral art show, but it was still fun and impressive to see.  The theme while I was there was 'Chinese New Year', and flowers and plants were used to build beautiful Asian-themed vignettes.


Several Chinese children frolicked through the garden, their clothes entirely made of flowers.  Water constantly ran through the displays, and I wonder how often they had to change out the flowers.


All of the thousands of flowers and plants looked incredibly fresh and healthy.


Each of the plants on the ground level was in its own (well-hidden) pot, ready to be changed out as it faded or wilted.


According to their information online, more than 10,000 potted plants are switched out over the course of two weeks in the garden.  After their short life, the old plants are turned into mulch for the rest of the Bellagio grounds.


Bamboo and Juniper topiaries served as vertical accents.  Most of the flowers were different Bromeliads and Chrysanthemums, but there were also orchids and a few other flowers I did not recognize.


It was impressive to see such a site in the middle of the dessert.  


It is also impossible to capture the scope of how large the place was with my little camera phone.


Such a nice vacation!  I enjoyed the Conservatory, and I just enjoyed walking around Las Vegas without needing five layers of winter clothing and snow boots!

Ah, back to the Boston area...

me digging my heated birdbath out of the snow
Did you hear that after tomorrow's winter storm, we are supposed to break the 107.6" record for the most snow in a season ever?  Lucky us...

27 comments:

  1. What a fabulous get away after all your snow! Keeping a plant for only two weeks explains why they always look perfect. Here's hoping your snowy days are behind you. :o)

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    1. I know - I need a team of horticultural staff and a warehouse of extra plants for my garden :D Though I don't think I'd have the heart to throw away any plants, so really, I'd just settle for some horticultural staff...

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  2. Enjoyed this fun posting. Amazing amount of snow in Boston. Here in PA we don't have as much, but we do have the frigid temperatures which are breaking records for us. Try to stay warm! P. x

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    1. The last couple of winters have been so frigid! Stay warm there, too, Pam!

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  3. So nice to get away... I loved all the flowers! Poor Boston

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    1. So nice to get away! So ready to move back down South when I got back :D

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  4. Everything is so gorgeous and colourful!!! I love your photos. Thank you so much for sharing. :)

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    1. Thanks! I had so much fun wandering around (in the warmth!) and seeing the sites there.

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  5. Hey, if you're going to have a wicked winter, you might as well break some records! Congratulations! I'm glad you were able to escape the cold and snow a little bit, too. Great photos of the botanical show!

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    1. At first, the blizzards were rather exciting. I thought, well if it's going to snow, it might as well be exciting. Several blizzards later... not so much! :)

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  6. Well done on warming your bones, it's a pity you couldn't stay there until spring. Oh! It is spring. Any sign of the snow abating yet? Stay warm.... summer is on its way.

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    1. I know - I would have loved to stay there for a few more weeks until it warmed up a bit more here! It warmed up a little here. Last night we actually had sleet instead of snow, but the next couple days are going back to snow. Ack!

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  7. Now thats a lot of snow! I can see why you needed to get away for a few days.

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    1. I think everyone here is going a little stir-crazy from all the snow. I know I am, so it was so great to go away for a little bit!

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  8. I can't believe you've had so much snow....especially coming from North Carolina. I'm glad you got to visit the Bellagio, and your heated bird bath makes me happy!

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    1. I love my heated bird bath, too! I even have a Northern Flicker that likes to come to it!

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  9. I feel for you with all your snow! Last year it was our turn to have record snowfalls, just one huge blizzard after another. Good you were able to escape for a bit to take in some Vegas-style horticulture. Looks like fun!

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    1. I'm hoping that this terrible winter will mean that next winter will be a nice mild one. That makes sense, right? :)

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  10. What a lovely thing it is to escape snow and cold and gray, and suddenly find yourself among warmth and green plants! I'm so glad you were able to get away for a few days. Thanks for sharing! -Beth

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    1. One day there was a little chilly with the high in the 50's, but I was still quite happy! At least it was above freezing and nice and sunny!

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  11. So glad you were able to escape the cold and snow for awhile! I'm not a gambler, so going to Las Vegas has never appealed to me, but my daughter assures me there is more to do than just play the slots. You've added one more idea for something to do in Las Vegas--what a beautiful place! I wonder if they ever give away their "old" plants:)

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    1. I don't really gamble either (I lost $3 on the slot machines before realizing that it was incredibly boring), but I honestly barely even had time to gamble. I was too busy checking out the different gorgeous hotels and enjoying the weather. They have some great shows there, too, and what a place to people watch! I wonder if a perk of Bellagio staff is you get to take home what 'old' plants you like :)

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  12. Lucky, lucky, you. Even if it was a short respite from your winter, I'm sure it was very welcome. Looking at your photos, I could almost smell that humid, fragrant air of a conservatory. I've never been there so thanks for the photos.

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    1. It was so great to get a break from the winter up here. I feel very lucky indeed! (even if that doesn't apply to the slot machines, ha!)

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  13. How nice you got away for a while....but ugh coming back to more snow and cold. I hope you got a break...none here just more snow and 20 degrees below normal temps still.

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    1. It's been miserable here, though yesterday we finally got sunshine and it warmed up a little. I hope that continues!

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  14. bit disconcerting to mulch so many pot plants so often.
    Not a sustainable low cost option!

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