Las Vegas Weekly

March 15, 2010 · 8:21 AM

Photos: Spring has arrived at Bellagio’s Botanical Gardens

By Robin Leach

Spring 2010 is in bloom at the Bellagio.

Photo: Tom Donoghue/www.donoghuephotography.com

Now that the clocks have moved forward, the casino resort pools are open and the temperatures will be in the 70s all week long, it really feels like spring is here -- even though the calendar calls for it to be officially recognized this Sunday. The incredible horticultural staff and artists at Bellagio, though, prove that spring has arrived as far as we’re concerned.

In celebration of spring, the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens unveiled a spectacular floral exhibition this weekend of bountiful blooms, along with a one-of-a-kind series of seven large-scale bronze ant sculptures by artist Susan Cochran. The industrial creature’s colony is set in no less than four enchanted gardens with lush landscapes to best show the intricately detailed insects.

The queen ant is large enough for guests to climb on her back for their own unique photo op! It weighs 8,500 pounds and proves the ideal vantage point to see the snails, bumblebees and all the fabulous flowers. There are two towering jonquils, brightly colored tulips, poppies, daisies, mums and daffodils as you can see in our fabulous photo gallery brilliantly shot by contributing photographer Tom Donoghue.

Three 10-foot-long ants prepare for warmer weather at a 15-foot-tall flowerpot, with an early butterfly resting at the top with a 28-foot-tall spade alongside. The French garden is a fantasy wonderland with a large anthill flanked by two water spheres. A 3-foot-long ant peeks out from a tunnel for the golden sunlight as another ant shows its industrious nature of cooperation and teamwork in the colony.

A rare collection of 10-potted olive trees, all more than 100 years old, has been sculptured into an oversized bonsai presentation, and for the first time ever, the Bellagio created five giant mushrooms as tall as 15 feet to provide a natural canopy for the remaining 6-foot-tall ants.

The public is welcome to view the display as of today, and admission is free right through May 9, when the extravagant exhibit magically transforms into the next summer display! Congratulations to everybody at Bellagio! This is truly a spectacular masterpiece showing Mother Nature at her finest.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter at Twitter.com/vegasdeluxe.

Follow VDLX Editor Don Chareunsy on Twitter at Twitter.com/VDLXEditorDon.

Share This