FUN FACTS about Conservatories

An orangery is designed to shelter orange trees during the winter. Early designs were practical and plain, but wealthy families began to improve upon the aesthetics as well. None was grander and more opulent than the orangery designed for the Sun King, Louis XIV at Versailles.

Stove houses were designed to accommodate the growing conditions of the pineapple. Christopher Columbus discovered the pineapple in South America and brought the plant back to Spain. Pineapples needed a long period of constant heat to mature, so the stove house was designed with heating elements integrated into the walls.

Not all conservatories focus solely on the plants. With employee health in mind, Amazon created a conservatory to house their corporate headquarters in Seattle. They believe that increasing contact with nature enhances health, sense of well-being and creativity. Forty thousand plants from 50 countries are housed within the complex, as well as a “living wall” of 25,000 plants.