Chicago Garden

Welcome, to all the new followers of the MrBrownThumb garden blog. And "hello" to all the followers who have been reading for a while. If you live or garden in Chicago, or know someone who does, make sure to read the end of this post. Heck, even if you have no connection to Chicago make sure to read the end of this post.

Raise your hand if you've been watching the Life After People special on the History Channel. I love it! I could spend days watching this thing and never get tired of it. One of the things in particular that really interests me about the special is watching how plants will one day grow over everything that people have built. One of the episodes focuses heavily on Chicago and it has a few segments on how Wrigley Field will look once grounds keepers aren't around to maintain it.

Pictures I took of the television while watching the show.

Lincoln Park Conservatory

The Lincoln Park Conservatory is located right next to Lincoln Park Zoo and is an oasis in the middle of the city. It was constructed in stages between 1890 and 1895 to showcase exotic plants and to grow plants that were needed for the park. Jospeh L. Silsbee
in collaboration with architect M.E Bell built the Conservatory at a time when
people were fascinated with plants, insects and their classification.

Take a walk in either of the four houses; The Palm House, Fern Room, Orchid House and Show House and be transported to another time when
these plants were not easily available to the public in retail. To really appreciate the setting and plants put yourself in the shoes of someone from the era as you walk through and wonder about the exotic locales the plants originate from.

The Lincoln Park Conservatory's lush interior is one of my favorite places in the city to take a break from our winters. Admission to the Conservatory is free and it's open from 9am-5pm. In the summer it may be busy because of it's
proximity to the Lincoln Park Zoo but it's never so busy that your enjoyment
of it will be an issue. My favorite times as early in the morning or early afternoon when most of the people you'll encounter will be the occasional nanny pushing a stroller.

It's easily accessible by CTA if you ride the #151 or #156 bus. If you take the #22 or #36 it's a short walk east of Clark and it's near North Michigan Avenue's popular spots like the Water Tower Mall.

Lincoln Park Conservatory
2391 N. Stockton Dr
Chicago, IL 60614
Phone: 312-742-7736