winter in the fort worth botanic garden

Here is another picture-heavy post of pictures I took during my January challenge. In this case, I visited this garden specifically to take a daily picture, and I'm so glad I did. I'll be back soon with my lessons learned from this challenge.

Earlier in January, I spent some time in Fort Worth, Texas, and a combination of an earlier flight plus a good hotel location meant I got to see the Fort Worth Botanic Garden. This 109-acre garden is the oldest botanical garden in Texas, having been established in 1934. The garden has several parts, I started in the Conservatory, mostly because it was this beacon of green and warmth. On the inside, views like this greeted me:

Green and water vapor - two things I haven't seen a lot of

 There were all kinds of great-looking foliage and flowers growing, all very lush and topical.

Just some of the plants

 The lighting was pretty amazing - the combination late afternoon sun, humidity, glass and plants make even my photographs look pretty without any filters/editing:

back lit leaves

sunlight through a variegated palm leaf

water drops sparkling on big tropical leaves (technical term, I know)

 There was a waterfall near the front of the conservatory, which made for some pretty cool pictures, as I looked through it to the plants on the other side:

flowering Bougainvillea through water

Cyrtostachys lakka (I think) through the water

This picture was one of my favorites: Roxburgh Fig (Ficus auriculata), growing into the canopy of the conservatory.


Those leaves!

After getting  my tropical fill in the conservatory, I went back outside and walked though the Texas Native Forest Boardwalk to get to the rest of the gardens.  Most all the trees outside were bare of leaves, looking very structural:

The branches on these trees were so intricate!

Here and there, an evergreen tree stood out:

I couldn't find a tag to tell me about this tree - that board was about animals

The boardwalk leads to the rest of the gardens, which are a combination of natural and formal gardens. Visiting in the winter meant there was a lot of the structure (natural and man-made) on display:

Trees, bark and the formal rose gardens

There is also a Japanese garden, but I didn't visit it on this visit - maybe next time!

Japanese garden entrance

The formal gardens at the other end of the garden had several water features and a strong axis to draw you down to the ponds at the end:

Note to self: retake this picture in a few months!

Heading back to the car, this clump of grass was being lit by the now almost-setting sun:

Pretty

And along the boardwalk, I noticed this tree I missed during the way out - I'm sure those plants growing on it isn't great for the tree, but it makes a pretty picture:

I wonder what made it form that U shape at the top?

The last thing I noticed before heading back to the car was this great looking pine-tree (again no tags). I love the way it looks against the blue sky - and the tiny Texas flags in the background. Visiting this garden was a great idea - I can't wait to go back later in the year. If you happen to be in Fort Worth and have a few hours, I'd definitely recommend going here!

I wonder if it will stand out as much when the rest of the garden is in full leaf?