Oak Park Conservatory, Botanical garden at Garfield Street in Oak Park, Illinois.
Oak Park Conservatory is a botanical garden in Illinois containing three display rooms with more than 3000 plants spanning Mediterranean herbs, tropical species, and desert flora. The glass building lets visitors see these different plant communities side by side in one space.
The conservatory was built in 1929 to preserve exotic plants that residents of Oak Park had gathered and collected over time. The glass structure gained recognition on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.
The Mediterranean room grows herbs like lavender, rosemary, sage, and thyme that reflect how people in southern Europe have cultivated these plants for centuries. You can see how the environment here mirrors the conditions where these plants grow naturally.
The conservatory opens Tuesday through Sunday from 10 AM to 4 PM with no entrance fee required. Visitors are welcome to make voluntary contributions to support the upkeep of this historic space.
The Desert Room features agave plants that take 25 to 30 years before producing flower stalks extending beyond the greenhouse roof. This slow growth cycle means flowering is a rare event that few visitors ever witness.
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