The Talcott Greenhouse at Mt. Holyoke College has been a campus fixture with the two oldest sections of the greenhouse dating to 1896 (a fire earlier that year destroyed the previous greenhouse). Several additions to the greenhouse have been constructed over the years. Today, the greenhouse extends to over 6,000 square feet of space and contains a collection of warm, temperate, tropical and subtropical plants such as orchids, cacti and succulents, ferns, begonias, bromeliads, aquatic plants and more.
One of the more impressive specimens is a “Corpse Flower” (Amorphophallus titanum) which only blooms every 2-10 years and is an endangered species with only 1,000 specimens known to exist in the wild. Mt. Holyoke’s specimen bloomed in May of 2023.
Since 1971, Mt. Holyoke has given a plant to all incoming freshmen students that would like one. According to the tradition, students will only graduate if the plant survives its 4 years of care. Mt. Holyoke students are apparently all pretty decent gardeners judging by the college’s graduation rate.
These photos were taken while visiting my oldest daughter. Unfortunately, I did not have my macro lens with me and was forced to make do with my 70-200mm f/2.8 telephoto; not the best option, but I think these shots turned out reasonably well considering…