While winter's harsh winds rattle our doors and windows, many of us dream of spring. At Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pa., it has already arrived. "Welcome Spring," the
current garden display, maintains a constant parade of lovely spring blooms in the 18 indoor gardens from now through April 30.
A winding brick path leads visitors through exotic gardens filled with plants from around the world. The East Conservatory is filled with palm trees, lush ferns, sparkling waterfalls and clusters of colorful spring blooms. Take the Flower Garden Path and find a spot to stop and smell the flowers. Beyond the East Conservatory is the recently opened Mediterranean Garden with plants and flowers from Australia, California and South Africa. Also visit the Silver Garden, where foliage is in shades of silver, white and gray; the Cascade Garden, designed by famous landscape architects Roberto Burle Marx and Conrad Hamerman; the Rose House and Children's Garden.
Throughout the season there will be programs ranging from plant walks and lectures to concerts and cooking demonstrations. On selected Tuesdays, chefs at Longwood's Restaurant will offer demonstrations at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. in the lower level of the Terrace Restaurant. Topics include: "Cooking with Nuts" Feb. 7; "Cooking with Chocolate" Feb. 14; "Cooking with Mushrooms" Feb. 21; and "Cooking with Corn" Feb. 28. There will also be Discovery Stations, where talks or demonstrations on various horticultural topics will be given on designated dates.
All activities will be included in the reduced garden admission of $5 for adults; $3 for ages 16 to 20; $1 for ages 6 to 14; free for under 6. This winter, visitors will receive half-price admission through March 31 because of conservatory renovations.
Longwood Gardens is on U.S. Route 1, three miles northeast of Kennett Square. For information, call (800) 737-5500 or (610) 388-1000.
Three jazzy days
In Philadelphia, there'll be jazz around the clock for three whole days at the 1995 PECO Energy Jazz Festival on the weekend before Valentine's Day. Jazz lovers will hear Grammy-winning performers such as the Count Basie Orchestra with conductor Frank Foster and Eddie Palmieri and Herbie Mann with the Deep Pocket Reunion Band.
To launch the event there will be a free jazz jam with the Eddie Green Quartet Thursday at noon at the PECO Energy Headquarters, 23rd and Market streets. On Friday, attend "Jazz 'til Sunrise," a 10-hour jazz marathon, at the Afro-American Historical and Cultural Museum, Seventh and Arch streets, from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. More than 250 regional artists will keep the music going nonstop in the museum's heated and weatherproof tent, and guests can enjoy international food. Admission is $22.
The weekend continues with more than 80 jazz events, including concerts, workshops, jams, brunches and other events around the clock at various sites throughout Philadelphia. Other weekend highlights are the Jazz Dance Cabaret with the Count Basie Orchestra in the Grand Ballroom of the Pennsylvania Convention Center at 8 p.m. Saturday, followed by the Latin Jazz Dance Cabaret featuring the Eddie Palmieri Octet in the center's Ballroom 201 at 10 p.m. Tickets for the first event cost $25, and $20 for the second. Herbie Mann's Deep Pocket Reunion Band will present the festival's final concert Sunday at 7 p.m. in the new Philadelphia Marriott's Grand Ballroom, 12th and Market streets. Tickets cost $20.
Proceeds from the festival will benefit the Afro-American Historical and Cultural Museum. Call (215) 636-1666.
Antique valentines
The Historic Surratt House Museum in Clinton will hold an exhibit of antique valentines from Thursday through Feb. 12.
More than 75 antique cards dating from the 1840s through the turn of the century will be on display as a tribute to the golden age of valentines. Highlights of the show are reproduction box and mechanical valentines created by a Franciscan brother in the 1960s-'70s. This type of valentine was popular back in the 1880s. Some were as large as a foot high with all kinds of mechanisms and levers to pull.
Hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday and Friday; noon to 4 pm. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is $1.50 for adults; $1 for seniors; 50 cents for children ages 5 to 18. The fee includes tours of the Surratt House and Tavern, famous for its role in the Lincoln assassination conspiracy.
The museum is at 9118 Brandywine Road in Clinton. Call (301) 868-1121.
Fun on skis
Ski Liberty in Fairfield, Pa., will hold its Winter Carnival Saturday. It will be a day filled with ski competitions and fun for all ages, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The event serves as a fund-raiser for Ski Liberty's National Ski Patrol.
The schedule includes a mogul contest for skiers and snowboarders, fun races and events for children, couples and families, a bikini ski race, giant slalom race for skiers and snowboarders, and a team race for members of the ski patrol. There will be an outdoor barbecue and music on the deck throughout the afternoon, costumed characters and games for children. The day concludes with a torchlight parade down the mountain at 5:30 p.m.
Admission is free, but some races have a nominal entry fee. Call (717) 642-8282.
Presidential themes
During February Winterthur Museum in Winterthur, Del., offers a number of activities with a presidential theme.
On Mondays at 3 p.m., visitors are invited to have coffee with a museum curator or conservator who will lead an informal walk through the galleries and point out objects in the collection with presidential associations.
Terrific Tuesdays, from noon to 2:30 p.m., offer activities for pre-schoolers. They can try on clothes similar to those worn by George and Martha Washington, look in the galleries for items the presidents owned and make a finger-puppet president.
The film "Thomas Jefferson: The Pursuit of Liberty," will be shown at 2 p.m. daily. Free hot chocolate will be served in the Pavilion Cafeteria and visitors will receive a 10 percent discount on lunch with a tour ticket and children's gallery hunt pages.
Also of interest to children: OperaDelaware will present a free sneak-preview production of the children's classic book "The Phantom Tollbooth" at noon and 1 p.m. Saturday in Winterthur's Copeland Lecture Hall. A child's buffet lunch will be available from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
A series of children's craft workshops (ages 8 and up) also begins Saturday. Children can make tissue-paper flowers at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The workshops will continue on the second Saturday of every month throughout 1995. The program is free with any admission ticket. Admission is $4 for ages 5 to 11; $6 for seniors and students; $8 for adults. Winterthur is on Route 52, six miles northwest of Wilmington. Call (800) 448-3883 or (302) 888-4600.
Winter in Williamsburg
The Winter Discovery Series at Williamsburg, Va., offers information on a variety of 18th-century topics, from life on the frontier to Colonial fashions. The programs run Tuesday to Saturday each week through March 18. Information is presented through lectures, tours, performances and demonstrations.
The schedule includes: "Contact, Conflict & Trade: The Pre-Settlement Frontier 1700-1765," Feb. 14-18; "18th-Century Fashion at Colonial Williamsburg," Feb. 21-25; "Williamsburg after the Revolution," Feb. 28 to March 4; "Exploring Traditional Trades," March 7-11; and "According to the Ladies," March 14-18.
Lectures are held in Hennage Auditorium at the DeWitt Wallace Gallery. Participation in some programs may be limited. Admission is by Colonial Williamsburg admission ticket or Good Neighbor card. Call (800) HISTORY.