TOLEDO, Ohio — It's feeling like spring right now, so why not add some beautiful flowers to the mix?
The ProMedica Museum of Natural History at the Toledo Zoo is once again filled with vibrant colors and exotic shapes.
This year the zoo brought 1,800 individual plants in dozens of orchid varieties from Hawaii and Florida for this year's Toledo Zoo Orchid Show.
Ryan Walsh is the Toledo Zoo's director of plant conservation and actually did his PhD dissertation on the orchid, and knew the flower would be a big draw for this annual event.
"They're the largest plant family on Earth. So, there's the most species of orchids than any other plant family," Walsh said. "It doesn't look like a rose, you know it's an orchid even though there are so many flower forms. And for a biologist like myself, the flower forms are what are interesting because that shows the co-evolution with their pollinators."
The exhibit began when zoo leaders were looking for an event to offer a chance for visitors to come to the zoo during the off-season.
Now every weekend in February, the zoo will be fully open to visitors while showcasing these beautiful flowers, along with multiple events tied to the floral displays.
"We've got a wine tasting, we have a coffee tasting event. We've got workshops and classes happening, so there's something for everybody." Jen Brassil, director of PR and communication events at the Toledo Zoo said.
Along with the orchids on display being available for purchase once this exhibit wraps up at the end of the month, there are also some rare orchids spread throughout that you will be able to enter an auction for as well.
"Saturday after the show ends, you buy pretty much everything that you see in the show," Walsh said. "Only, there's a few orchids that are a part of our collection that they're marked, you can't buy."
The Toledo Zoo Orchid Show opens Friday at 10 a.m. and runs every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday until Feb. 25.