Brown University's Conservatory, Providence

Brown University’s Conservatory occupies a glass-roofed space on the fourth floor of the Building for Environmental Research and Teaching. The present facility opened in early 2014, replacing an older ground-level greenhouse during a major renovation designed by Toshiko Mori Architect. It forms part of the Plant Environmental Center, which also includes six computer-controlled research greenhouses used for teaching and scientific experiments.

The 1,800-square-foot conservatory contains several hundred plants from tropical and subtropical regions. Its collections include cycads, orchids, aroids and Amazonian species, together with plants valued for medicinal, ceremonial or agricultural purposes. Bananas, sugar cane, passion fruit and strawberry guava grow alongside begonias and carnivorous species such as Venus flytraps and pitcher plants. A climate-control and fogging system maintains the warm, humid conditions needed by the collection.

Visitors can follow narrow paths among large leaves, climbing vines and flowering plants, with benches providing places to pause and observe the collection. The conservatory is open to the general public on weekdays without advance arrangements. Access is available by taking the elevator to the fourth floor, although temporary closures may occur because of university activities or maintenance.