The Living Rainforest

It might be wintry here in the UK, but the temperatures are always tropical at the Living Rainforest, a tourist attraction near Newbury (Berkshire).

Tropical flowers

If you’re a fan of tropical plants, then this is definitely a good place for you to visit. There’s a lovely collection of anthuriums in different colours and some stunning bromeliads.

Bromeliad

The Living Rainforest has had a lot of building work this year and has a new visitor center, which is primarily aimed at school groups and children. A lot of the educational materials dotted around the greenhouses focus on the environment, and the role that plants play in our lives.

Pitcher plants

There’s something here for every sort of plant enthusiast. I’m a big fan of carnivorous plants, although I can’t hope to grow them on this scale! But my big love is for edible plants, and there’s plenty of those around too, including this lovely vanilla orchid (the only orchid with edible fruit):

Vanilla orchid

Toucan

Although the plants are stunning, the main attraction for children is probably the animals and other wildlife that lives in the greenhouses. Many of these creatures are behind glass and difficult to photograph, but you can get a good view in person. They have some lovely little monkeys who are always on the move, a dwarf crocodile and lots of turtles. The toucan in the picture above adds considerably to the atmosphere, by squawking loudly whenever people pass by. When he saw me with a camera he came right up to the glass to pose for the photo!

If you’re looking for somewhere warm to spend a couple of hours, with or without the kids, then this is a great place. There’s plenty to see and there’s a cafe for refreshments. The only disappointment is the gift shop, which essentially just had toys and locally made preserves when we went.

They have more refurbishment plans for 2008, including an third greenhouse, so they’ll be even more to see soon!

Check out the rest of my Living Rainforest photos on Flickr.

© Copyright Emma Cooper, 2007. All rights reserved.

Posted 18 December 2007, 18:44.
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