The Flower Garden Walk is another visitor favorite. Longwood's display of seasonal flowers is stunning. Study how they have used the flowers and combined the colors along the 1⁄8-mile-long walk. One fantastic combination is the lily-flowered ‘Ballerina' tulip underplanted with ‘Penny Orange' pansies. Another tip we learned was to buy extra plants for accents when planting your flower beds. Three of our favorite containers (pictured at left) at Longwood were planted with flowers left over from the borders. Not only did the containers look great, but they also tied back into the colors of the adjacent walk.

Next, wander over to the Idea Garden. This area inspires and informs the home gardener with more home-scaled planting beds. You'll find new plants that are coming into the marketplace as well as beds filled with plants that fall into a specific theme.

left: One of the neatest things about visiting Longwood as a home gardener is that you still have time to re-create many of the looks you see inside the Conservatory in your own garden this spring.