Toronto's iconic Palm House at Allan Gardens reopens after restoration

CBC

14-05-2025

The iconic Palm House at Allan Gardens Conservatory in Toronto reopened to the public on Wednesday after closing for vital restoration work to preserve the structure's architectural heritage.
Construction began in October 2022 on the historic conservatory building, one of Toronto's oldest attractions. The Palm House, designed by City of Toronto architect Robert McCallum, opened in 1910 and is the third horticultural pavilion on site.
The Palm House features a wide array of palms, banana plants and other tall specimens. It showcases a variety of palm trees and other tropical plants like cycads, gingers, hibiscus and seasonal exotics.
Its 12-metre-high, 16-sided central dome is an iconic feature of the building, earning it the nickname "The Dome" — large enough to showcase some of the building's tallest plants.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow attended the ribbon-cutting, saying in addition to its long and important history in Toronto, along with its diverse types of plants, "it's also a place for social change where we come together and learn not just about our past, [but also] to shape our future." She noted that it was a place where many activists met throughout the 20th century.
The building houses tropical plants inside five climate controlled greenhouses, with the Palm House being the oldest of the greenhouses at Allan Gardens. The Palm House was destroyed by a fire in 1902 but reopened and expanded twice since then.
Construction on the Palm House included window glazing, glass cladding replacement and modernizing the ventilation and air quality systems and controls.
The facility is free and open to visitors daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., according to the City of Toronto.