The Garden House is loaded with annuals and hanging baskets.I don't know how it happened, but two of my favorite greenhouses are in Wisconsin. Shortly after we moved to Minnesota, we heard about Winter Greenhouse in Winter, Wis. A few years ago, I learned about The Garden House in Solon Springs. Now Brian and I reserve a day each May to visit the two businesses.
Here's the routine: We're out of the house by 8:30 or 9 a.m. Stop at McDonald's in Superior for breakfast in the car. On to The Garden House, where I swoon over the colorful geraniums, annuals and fuchsia. I always seem to find something there that you don't find at most greenhouses. It's one of the few places that has cerinthe (also called honeywort) and night phlox 'midnight candy' (Zaluzianskya capensis). I grew the night phlox from seed several years ago (from the Select Seeds catalog) and was delighted to find it as a bedding plant last year at Garden House and again this year. The moniker 'midnight candy' is an apt description: the dainty purplish flowers are exceedingly fragrant in the evening.
We take our time in Solon Springs and continue on to Hayward and then Winter, stopping to let the silly dog stretch his legs and have a drink. At the greenhouse, we park at the far end of the lower parking lot where there is some shade. The silly dog stays in the truck and Brian and I hit the display gardens. The colors, the textures, the planting combinations -- the display gardens themselves are worth the drive, but we have plants to buy. It's worth taking a look at Winter's catalog before shopping; that helps keep the impulse buys to a minimum.
A path through the woodland display garden at Winter.
Part of the pond in Winter's sunny display garden.
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