Flowers from the Biltmore House

I started this post back in July, the month very little was accomplished.  Our out-of-town company wanted to visit the Biltmore House, built by George W. Vanderbilt back in 1895 as a summer house.   More info on the Biltmore can be found here http://www.biltmore.com/.  The house itself was interesting and worth the visit, though the lighting was low and I didn't take many inside photos.

My favorite room was the winter garden, illuminated by a glass roof.  There's a fountain in the center, and tree ferns and other tropical plants.  I wouldn't mind having a winter garden in the house above Heck Creek.
  

It was decorated for the summer with paper lanterns. 

There were lovely floral arrangements throughout the house.  One of the most impressive was in the equally impressive banquet hall.

Look at that moss ball!

The Biltmore Estate includes several greenhouses filled with orchids, bromeliads, ferns, begonias and many other tropicals.  I was in my element there and my camera was kept quite busy snapping photos of the orchids. 

 

 And a pitcher plant.

And here are the kids at the entrance to the house.