The site where the conservatory stands today once housed 2 buildings; a Cactus House and a Chrysanthemum House.
In 1905 a collection of 500 cactus plants was donated to the park as a gift from a Mrs Watson of Whitchurch. A Cactus House was constructed as a ‘show house’ for the collection and opened to visitors in May 1905.
A 30m long glasshouse was built beside the cactus house in 1907. That winter, a Chrysanthemum display in the glasshouse attracted around 12,000 visitors. This became a popular annual event and the new glasshouse soon became known as the Chrysanthemum House.
Chrysanthemums were still displayed up to the 1960s, with other plants such as Primula, Begonia and Poinsettia shown when Chrysanthemums were not in their flowering season. At the time, Roath Park had its own nursery that maintained and supplied the plants for these displays. The last Chrysanthemum display took place around 1968.
In the early 1970s, the Parks Committee allocated around £20,000 for the building of a conservatory on the site of the Cactus and Chrysanthemum houses. The conservatory is thought to have been opened in 1975, with an entry charge of 5p for the public.
The conservatory, also known as the ‘Tropical House’ was designed as a temperate glasshouse, with overnight winter temperatures maintained at 12 degrees Celsius. It was fully landscaped, with a large pond and a waterfall. Exotic plants provided by the Castle Nursery were planted throughout to create a lush landscape.
In 1988, much of the conservatory’s original glass was replaced with polycarbonate (plastic). This was considered much safer than glass and was expected to reduce the cost of heating the building.The re-glazing took 5 weeks to complete and cost around £53,000.
The conservatory was a hub for park events throughout the 1980s, with activities for the public including concerts, rose demonstrations and story-telling.
Today, the conservatory is a focal point for the Botanic Garden and continues to fulfil an educational role. It houses an interesting and varied collection of plants and trees. There is also a large pond that is home to carp and terrapins as well as a pair of Whistling Ducks.
