Como Park Conservatory Hosting Spring Flower Show Online

This time of year is a magical one. The snow is gone (if you're not in Rochester), things are turning green, and flowers will be blooming soon. Spring gets a head start at Como Park Zoo and Conservatory in St. Paul.

The Marjorie McNeely Conservatory has two acres under glass with a number of different wings dedicated to a variety of plant life including bonsai trees, ferns, orchids and seasonal flowers. The Marjorie McNeely Conservatory also features many outdoor gardens.

This time every year, the staff works to turn the indoor sunken garden into a colorful blooming wonderland for the Spring Flower Show. Usually people flock to the park to take in those first sights of the season.

Everything in the conservatory's sunken garden for the show was grown in the conservatory greenhouses, some plants for about 9 months. All the bulbs for the plants came in back in October of 2019, and the staff has been growing and tending to them so they would be ready for the Spring Flower Show.

The show itself runs about 5 weeks, but some flowers don't last that long. About 10,000 bulbs will make their way through the show. Horticulturists replace wilting flowers as they need to. Most plants that are part of the show will turn over anywhere from 3-5 times.

Since we are all staying home to flatten the curve on COVID-19, the Spring Flower Show can be taken in from the comfort of your own living room. They broadcasted it on Facebook last week. It also makes a great educational break for the kids to learn a little bit about gardening.