Tucked behind the large trees and changing autumn leaves just outside the Christy Woods Outdoor Teaching Laboratory's south gate lies Ball State University's own tropical treasure, curator Cheryl LeBlanc said.
Red and blue Central American poison dart frogs, terraced "mountains" and a waterfall await student groups and Muncie residents who step into the doors of this display of natural beauty, which was created for rainforest conservation education.
A hidden gem on campus for 27 years, the Wheeler Orchid Collection and Species Bank is comprised of approximately 1,200 plants in a mimicked tropical environment, LeBlanc said.
Besides natural resources and biology students, the greenhouse is popular among art students and Muncie residents looking for photo shoots and places to sketch and is open to all visitors, she said.
The orchid greenhouse serves as a repository for species orchids so they do not become extinct as a result of over-collection and removal from the wild.
"Our focus is species conservation, so I propagate things that are uncommon," LeBlanc said.
As curator of the greenhouse, LeBlanc gives guided tours, maintains the collection and grows and repots plants when necessary, she said.
"Not a lot of people know the vanilla plant is a type of orchid," she said. "Some orchids are smaller than the head of a pin and some are as big as a dinner plate."
As a break from an autumn bicycle ride on Monday afternoon, Muncie resident Larry Liby stepped inside to take a tour and shoot photographs of some of the poison dart frogs and flowers in bloom.
"Not a lot of people know about the greenhouse," he said. "I've never been before [Monday] even though I live a few blocks away. But I like what I see so far."
A few steps away from the orchid greenhouse along the Larkspur path in Christy Woods, the exotic scenery of the Teaching and Research Greenhouse includes more than 500 species that represent more than 100 different plant families.
More than 3,000 specimens are housed in the greenhouse on a permanent basis, Sharyl Grant, field coordinator for Christy Woods, said.
This greenhouse holds Ball State's plant "teaching collection" and grows the plant material for class labs, she said.
Biology professor Gary Dodson has used the Teaching and Research Greenhouse as part of his curriculum ever since it was constructed in 1992 when it replaced a small and outdated glass house used to grow bedding material for flower gardens.
"It's an oasis of sorts of plant life on campus," Dodson said.
Dodson's classes make two or three trips to the greenhouse specifically per semester, he said, and visit Christy Woods' field areas more often throughout the year.
"We examine and students are aware of qualities of particular plants and speculate why plants have certain traits," Dodson said. "[The greenhouse] provides excellent resources in special adaptations beyond Muncie's regular climate."
The building also provides greenery for campus events and gives space for professor and graduate research.
"We've provided live ferns for visiting operas and rented out peace lilies and weeping figs for stage shows," Grant said.
As one of two geneticists on campus, associate biology professor Ann Blakey uses the greenhouse on a continuous basis to maintain her tropical plants, which are some of her more valuable research materials, she said.
"My knowledge based on experimentation feeds directly back into my theoretical courses and therefore provides a platform for deeper discussions and instruction of my students," she said.
Orchid symbolismAncient Greece: suggested virilityVictorian England: symbol of luxuryAztecs: drank mixture of orchids and vanilla to give them strength and powerImperial China: thought to cure lung illnesses and coughs1600s England: thought to cure fever, swelling and soresAsia: symbolic of refinement, friendship, perfection, noblility and eleganceU.S., today: regarded as a symbol of rare and delicate beauty, wealth, love, exotic character and strength
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