A conservatory is a building or room having glass or other transparent roofing and walls used as a
greenhouse
A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic conditions are grown.These ...
or a
sunroom. Usually it refers to a space attached to a conventional building such as a house, especially in the United Kingdom. Elsewhere, especially in America, it can often refer to a large free-standing glass-walled building in a
botanic garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
or park, sometimes also called a
palm house if tall enough for trees. Municipal conservatories became popular in the early 19th century.
Description
Many cities, especially those in cold climates and with large
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
an populations, have built municipal conservatories to display tropical plants and hold flower displays. This type of conservatory was popular in the early nineteenth century, and by the end of the century people were also giving them a social use (e.g., tea parties). Conservatory architecture varies from typical Victorian glasshouses to modern styles, such as geodesic domes. Many were large and impressive structures and are included in the list below.
In the
UK the legal definition of a conservatory is a building that has at least 50% of its side wall area glazed and at least 75% of its roof glazed with translucent materials, either polycarbonate sheeting or glass. Today, the terms sunroom, solarium and conservatory are used interchangeably by the public, but in general the term conservatory and particularly English conservatory evoke the image of an ornate structure, echoing the traditions of that Victorian era of conservatory building. Modern conservatories tend also to be graced with a traditional cresting and finial, along with single, double patio or even bi-folding doors.
These structures have been designed and built around the world, in private gardens, parks, and botanical institutions. Smaller ''garden conservatories'' have become popular, which may be dual-function, equally devoted to
horticulture
Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...
and
recreation
Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or plea ...
, or favor the latter, as a
solarium or sunroom.
History
Conservatories originated in the 16th century when wealthy landowners sought to cultivate citrus fruits such as lemons and oranges that began to appear on their dinner tables brought by traders from warmer regions of the
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
. Preservation of citrus and other tender plants started out as crudely as building a pergola over potted plants or beds or simply moving potted plants indoors for the cold season. Known in Italy as limonaia, these early structures employed wood panels or open galleries to protect from the cold.
Further north in Europe, the preservation of orange trees became the trend with special-purpose buildings built to protect the tasty, but delicate fruit.
Orangeries, as they came to be called were typically enclosed structures built with wood, brick or stone with tall vertical windows on the south walls. The citrus trees were typically in huge pots or tubs, and wheeled outside for the summer months, as at the
Gardens of Versailles
The Gardens of Versailles (french: Jardins du château de Versailles ) occupy part of what was once the ''Domaine royal de Versailles'', the royal demesne of the château of Versailles. Situated to the west of the palace, the gardens cover so ...
. Use of these rooms expanded socially and practically, being used to entertain and to host a wider variety of plants. The term greenhouse came to describe the rooms and conservatories for tender plants. In the 18th century a Dutch scientist pioneered the use of sloping glass to bring in more light for the plants than the tall, glass side walls of orangeries.
The 19th century was the golden age of conservatory building, primarily in England. English conservatories were the product of English love of gardening and new technology in glass and heating technology. Many of the magnificent public conservatories, built of iron and glass, are the result of this era. Kew Gardens in London is an example of a large
greenhouse
A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic conditions are grown.These ...
used for growing tender and rare plants, or, less often, for birds and rare animals – sometimes with the plants and animals living together. Other examples include the Great Palm House at Kew Gardens that was built in 1844, built by Decimus Burton and the
Crystal Palace, built for London's
Great Exhibition
The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary structure in which it was held), was an international exhibition which took pl ...
of 1851 by Sir Joseph Paxton.
The widespread construction of UK conservatories came to a halt with the onset of World War II. While the advent of insulated glass in the 1950s and 1960s saw the development of simple
sunroom structures, it was not until the 1970s that creative architects and builders began to recreate the Victorian styling of 19th-century English conservatories in smaller domestic versions using insulated glass. In contemporary construction, a conservatory differs from an orangery in having more than 75% of its roof surface made from glass. Frame and roof materials include aluminium, PVCu and timber. A conservatory by definition must have more than 50% of its wall surface glazed. Contemporary conservatories use a number of technologies to ensure glass is as energy efficient as possible, ensuring it lets in the maximum light possible while maintaining a steady temperature throughout summer and winter. Technologies include argon-impregnated glass, easy clean coatings, heat reflective film, thermal ribbons or thermal breaks – hollow sections of glass that intercept heat.
The latest glass technologies involve self-tinting glass that darkens as heat builds up during a summer's day and then lightens as the surface temperature of the glass cools later in the day.
Gallery
Image:Syon House Conservatory, London.JPG, Syon House Grand Conservatory, Brentford, London
File:Muttart Conservatories Edmonton Alberta Canada 11A.jpg, Dawn at the Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
File:Pearson Conservatory PE-002.jpg, Pearson Conservatory, Port Elizabeth, South Africa
File:Tollcross Winter Gardens - geograph.org.uk - 1279172.jpg, The Tollcross Winter Gardens in 2008.
File:Tollcross Park - inside the Winter Gardens - geograph.org.uk - 946233.jpg, Inside the Tollcross Winter Gardens in 2008.
List of prominent conservatories
Australia
*
Ballarat Botanical Gardens
*
Bicentennial Conservatory at
Adelaide's Botanic Gardens
*
Fitzroy Gardens, Melbourne
Austria
*
Palmenhaus Schönbrunn
Belgium
*
Royal Greenhouses of Laeken
Canada
*
Muttart Conservatory (
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...
,
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...
)
*
Bloedel Floral Conservatory (
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. ...
,
B.C.)
*
Allan Gardens (
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
)
*
Centennial Park Conservatory (
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
)
*
Assiniboine Park Conservatory (
Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...
,
Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
)
China
*
Beijing Botanical Garden (
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
)
*
Shanghai Botanical Garden (
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...
)
*
South China Botanical Garden
The South China National Botanical Garden () of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (formerly Institute of Agriculture and Forestry) is a large botanical garden in Tianhe District, Guangzhou, Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized ...
(
Qingyang
Qingyang () is a prefecture-level city in eastern Gansu province, China.
Geography and climate
Qingyang is the easternmost prefecture-level division of Gansu and is thus sometimes referred to as "Longdong" (). It forms an administrative penin ...
,
Guangzhou
Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...
)
Denmark
*
Copenhagen Botanical Gardens
Germany
*
Botanical Gardens and Botanical Museum, Berlin
United Kingdom
England
*
Kew Gardens (southwest London)
*
Chatsworth House
Chatsworth House is a stately home in the Derbyshire Dales, north-east of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield, England. The seat of the Duke of Devonshire, it has belonged to the Cavendish family since 1549. It stands on the east bank of the ...
(Derbyshire)
*
Eden Project
The Eden Project ( kw, Edenva) is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England, UK. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay pit, located from the town of St Blazey and from the larger town of St Austell.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS ...
(Cornwall)
*
Syon House
Syon House is the west London residence of the Duke of Northumberland. A Grade I listed building, it lies within the 200-acre (80 hectare) Syon Park, in the London Borough of Hounslow.
The family's traditional central London residence h ...
(west London)
*
Barbican Conservatory (central London)
*
Anthaeum, Hove: built in 1830 with the world's largest dome, it collapsed on its opening day in 1833.
Northern Ireland
*
Belfast Botanic Gardens
Botanic Gardens is a public garden in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Occupying of south Belfast, the gardens are popular with office workers, students and tourists. They are located on Stranmillis Road in Queen's Quarter, with Queen's Univers ...
Scotland
*
Royal Botanic Garden,
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
*
Kibble Palace
*
The Tollcross Winter Gardens, Glasgow
*
Springburn Winter Gardens
The Springburn Winter Gardens is a former large winter garden located at Springburn Park in the Springburn district of the Scottish city of Glasgow, constructed in 1900. The building was damaged in a storm and fell out of use in 1983 but was s ...
South Africa
*
Pearson Conservatory,
Port Elizabeth
Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, So ...
*
The Botanical Society Conservatory,
Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden
Kirstenbosch is an important botanical garden nestled at the eastern foot of Table Mountain in Cape Town. The garden is one of 10 National Botanical Gardens covering five of South Africa's six different biomes and administered by the South A ...
,
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
Spain
*
Palacio de Cristal del Retiro
The Palacio de Cristal ("Glass Palace") is a conservatory located in the Buen Retiro Park in Madrid, Spain.
The Palacio de Cristal, in the shape of a Greek cross, is made almost entirely of glass set in an iron framework on a brick base, which ...
United States
*
Amazon Spheres (
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region o ...
,
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
)
*
Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory (
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...
)
*
Biosphere 2
Biosphere 2 is an American Earth system science research facility located in Oracle, Arizona. Its mission is to serve as a center for research, outreach, teaching, and lifelong learning about Earth, its living systems, and its place in the univer ...
(
Oracle, Arizona)
*
Birmingham Botanical Gardens (
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% f ...
)
*
Bolz Conservatory (
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th ...
)
*
Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens
The Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens are botanical gardens located within South Park in Buffalo, New York, United States. These gardens are the product of landscaping architect Frederick Law Olmsted, glass-house architects Lord & Burnha ...
(
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...
)
*
Cecil B. Day Butterfly Center
The Cecil B. Day Butterfly Center is located at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia. It is North America's largest glass-enclosed tropical conservatory.
History
The center opened to the public on September 25, 1988 (Pine Mountain, Georgia)
*
Climatron (St. Louis)
*
Conservatory of Flowers (San Francisco, California)
*
Desert Garden Conservatory (San Marino, California)
*
Denver Botanic Gardens (
Denver, Colorado
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
)
*
Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse (Cleveland, OH)
*
Enid Haupt Conservatory at New York Botanical Garden (New York)
*
Foellinger-Freimann Botanical Conservatory (
Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Cens ...
)
*
Fort Worth Botanic Garden (Fort Worth, Texas)
*
Franklin Park Conservatory
Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens is a botanical garden and conservatory located in Columbus, Ohio. It is open daily and an admission fee is charged. Today, it is a horticultural and educational institution showcasing exotic plant ...
(Columbus, Ohio)
*
Garfield Park Conservatory
Garfield Park Conservatory, located in Garfield Park in Chicago, is one of the largest greenhouse conservatories in the United States. Often referred to as "landscape art under glass", the Garfield Park Conservatory occupies approximately insi ...
(Chicago, Illinois)
*
Garfield Park Conservatory and Sunken Gardens
Garfield Park is a regional city park in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. Established in the late 19th century, it is the oldest city park in Indianapolis and is on the National Register of Historic Places. The park is located at the co ...
(Indianapolis)
*
Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden (Des Moines)
*
(Baltimore)
*
Krohn Conservatory (Cincinnati)
*
Lamberton Conservatory at Highland Park (Rochester, New York)
*
Lena Meijer Conservatory at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
*
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Conservatory (Richmond, Virginia)
*
Lincoln Park Conservatory
The Lincoln Park Conservatory (1.2 ha / 3 acres) is a conservatory and botanical garden in Lincoln Park in Chicago, Illinois. The conservatory is located at 2391 North Stockton Drive just south of Fullerton Avenue, west of Lake Shore Drive, and ...
(Chicago)
*
Longwood Gardens (Kennett Square, Pennsylvania)
*
Marjorie McNeely Conservatory (St. Paul)
*
Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory
Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory (Mitchell Park Domes or The Domes) is a conservatory located at Mitchell Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It is owned and operated by the Milwaukee County Park System, and replaced the origin ...
(Milwaukee)
*
Moody Gardens (Galveston)
*
Myriad Botanical Gardens and Crystal Bridge Conservatory (Oklahoma City)
*
Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens (Pittsburgh)
*
Steinhardt Conservatory (
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
)
*
Reiman Gardens
Reiman Gardens (pronounced Rye-Men) is a university-owned public garden located immediately south of Jack Trice Stadium on the Iowa State University (ISU) campus in Ames, Iowa. Reiman Gardens is a year-round garden with events, programs, lect ...
(Ames, Iowa)
*
United States Botanic Garden (Washington, D.C.)
*
Volunteer Park Conservatory (Seattle, Washington)
*
W. W. Seymour Botanical Conservatory
Wright Park is a arboretum and public park located in Tacoma, Washington, that is managed by Metro Parks Tacoma. The park was designed by Bavarian landscape architect Edward Otto Schwagerl. The park was named in honor of Charles Barstow Wrigh ...
(Tacoma, Washington)
India
*
Lalbagh Botanical Garden (Bengaluru, India)
See also
*
Roof lantern
*
Tessellated roof
Tessellated roof is a frame and a self-supporting structural system in architecture. A simple ridged roof may inside be a tessellated system. The interlinking shapes are replicated across the moulded surface using curvilinear coordinates, a sp ...
References
*
*
External links
{{Authority control
Biorepositories
Greenhouses
Glass architecture
Rooms