Who says a picturesque evening under twinkling lights is the stuff of romantic comedies? For that matter, why let It’s a Wonderful Life horde all the holiday magic? This is New York! There are countless opportunities to hit the town this season, all of them at your fingertips, and Bar Car Nights are easily among the best of the lot. In fact, last year’s evenings were such a smash with our visitors that we’re stepping up our game this time around.

Saturday evenings throughout December, you’ll have the chance to experience the Holiday Train Show in a slightly different light: one without the kids tugging at your coat. Trust me, that’s a huge change of atmosphere for this holiday classic. While we’ll be the first to tell you that this event is a picture-perfect family affair, we’re also sensitive to the fact that most of you see the season as a new source of stress–through shopping lists, in-laws, and more than a few family feasts to plan out. Consider Bar Car Nights the antidote to what ails you.
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Travis Beck is the NYBG’s Landscape and Garden Projects Manager, overseeing large landscape design and construction projects here at the Garden. His current undertakings include the redesign of the Native Plant Garden and trail restorations taking place in the Thain Family Forest.

The Thain Family Forest at The New York Botanical Garden is a remnant of the deciduous forest that once covered most of the region. Unlike many of the remaining forests, the Thain Family Forest was never cleared for timber or agriculture, and includes numerous grand trees. Today, many of these are well over a century old.

Superstorm Sandy reminds us, however, that humans are not the only ones to fell trees. Her strong winds uprooted or snapped the trunks of over one hundred trees in the Forest. Where these trees fell, gaps now exist in the canopy, creating opportunities for the next generation of trees to grow. Our records show that Sandy was the most damaging storm in the Garden’s history to impact the Forest, but hurricanes, nor’easters, and thunderstorms are part of the natural disturbance regime for northeastern forests. Such storms open gaps in the canopy and allow for new growth to fill the space.
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There are still so many picturesque elements to the Home Gardening Center after the last fall flowers have faded. Not pictured: the hundreds of bulbs being planted here for spring’s explosion of florescence.

Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen