‘Wildflower’ Wednesday: Always Something New Blooming at The Land Pavilion at Epcot

With full support from Jackie Ogden, whose area of responsibility includes agricultural sciences at The Land Pavilion at Epcot as well as animals and the environment, we’re switching from wildlife to wildflowers for this Wednesday’s post – and my first on the Disney Parks Blog.

When people ask me what I like best about leading the science team at The Land Pavilion, my answer is simple: with fruits, vegetables and flowers as part of the show, every day brings new wonders. This also is what our guests tell us they like best.

For example, our guests recently had a chance to see our first-ever lotus plant bloom in our Tropics Greenhouse. We added the plant to our water garden this spring to showcase edible plants that naturally grow in water. The lotus plant was identified by Les Frey, our Horticultural Manager, as one of more than 20 aquatic plants that would be suitable to grow at The Land Pavilion, the majority of which had never been grown here before.

At The Land Pavilion, we grow more than 100 different food crops from around the world. The Tropics Greenhouse alone has about 50 different food crops, including dragon fruit, fluted pumpkin, jackfruit, miracle fruit, pineapple, and our new fruit tree patio, which has an ever-changing display. In addition to the lotus plant, the water garden contains water lilies, water chestnut, cattail, water hawthorne, bamboo and many other species.

Guests can get an even closer look when they take the Behind the Seeds tour, an hour-long indoor walking tour of greenhouses seen on the Living with the Land attraction.