Belmont, North Carolina
Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden
Splendor Under Glass. The new Orchid Conservatory at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 19, 2008. The conservatory – 8,000 square feet under five stories – features one of the largest indoor displays of bromeliads in the eastern U.S. and a 16-foot Tropical Canvas full of epiphytes. The conservatory also showcases succulents, ornamental tropical fruits, delicate miniature orchids, aquatics and rare orchids. Named one of the “10 Great” fall gardens by USA Today, DSBG was begun by Daniel J. Stowe, a retired Belmont textile executive, who donated 450 acres of meadows, woodlands and lakefront property to develop a world-class botanical garden. Today there’s more than 110 acres of themed gardens, fountains and an outdoor amphitheater. [ info ]