Rhododendron ‘Hinomayo’ (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)

The new Azalea Garden is about so much more than azaleas. The garden is a sun-dappled Eden; the perfect place to sit and enjoy the warmth of summer.

In the Azalea Garden (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)

These colors are entirely real.

Rhododendron ‘Hinomayo’ in the Azalea Garden (photos by Ivo M. Vermeulen)

There are many things we cannot predict in life, chief amongst them: The weather. And while the forecast for this weekend is looking a little gray, maybe we can all just use the drizzly weather as opportunity to tell mom, “You are my sunshine!” (come on, you know she sang that to you when you were little), while feting her over a delicious picnic amid the insanely gorgeous new Azalea Garden.

Call us hopeless optimists, but the weatherman does seem to be wrong more often than right. So don’t let the threat of a little rain scare you away. This weekend’s Garden Parties will go on, rain or shine. Picnics will be under the Picnic Pavilions. Activities will take place under a tent in the Children’s Adventure Garden. And the soft, gray tones will just make the unbelievable colors of the new Azalea Garden that much more spectacular! So come celebrate with us, and let your mother be the one who shines!

Mothers. Where would we be without them? They bring us into this world, they raise us, teach us, feed us, clothe us, and then hopefully, they send us off to be a good person, and perhaps (at least for 51% of the population) to replay the same role as a mother, too. It’s a wonder that mothers only get one day dedicated solely to them! So, to thank mom for all she has done for you, why not do something nice for her?

At the Garden, we’re throwing a garden party over Mother’s Day weekend in conjunction with the grand opening of our amazing new Azalea Garden. The Opening Weekend Celebration–May 7 – 8; 12-6 p.m–is a day full of picnic lunches, lawn games, Azalea Garden tours, music, kites, the opportunity for kids to make a bouquet, just for mom, and much more. Picnic lunches must be ordered online, in advance. Once at the Garden, pick up your lunch and then enjoy your day amid the sun-dappled, kaleidoscope of colors in this incredible new garden. Other food and beverages will be available for purchase on site.

If your mom prefers to spend the day in her own garden (or maybe you can’t make it to New York), we’ve got you covered, too. The Shop in the Garden features an extensive collection of beautiful (and functional) garden tools, including these rainbow-hued watering tools from Dramm, these beauties featuring a Celia Birtwell print, these cheerful pots made exclusively for NYBG, the wonderful Sustainable Rose Garden–edited by Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden curator, Peter Kukielski–and these super functional and stylish paper braid visors.

Maybe your mom prefers to keep her couture out of the garden? Then she’ll love this exclusive silk scarf created to celebrate the Garden’s 120th anniversary. These sculptural wooden bracelets are a big hit with fashionable moms amongst the Garden staff, as are these classic umbrellas and fashionable, yet functional market tote bags.

If you come to the Garden for Mother’s Day weekend, snap some pictures and share them with us on Twitter (@nybg), Facebook, or in our Flickr Group Pool. If we get enough pictures, we’ll post some of them here on the blog! For Mom!

It is beautiful here today. Just in case you can’t make it out of your office to hop a train and come up to the Bronx, I thought I’d take a walk and snap some pictures for you. It’s more than just beautiful out, too. According to one birder I met today, it’s also prime warbler migrating time. As he put it, the next two weeks will be “warbler heaven.” So whether you’re a birder, photographer, gardener, or walker, now is the time to come and visit the Garden!

It is prime time for taking flower pictures at the Garden. So grab your camera and come visit!

Magnolia Way: just a few more days, and all this gorgeousness will be gone.

The "beach" house is set amid a sea of muscari in the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden.

So much more below including cherry blossoms, incredible tulips, and the amazing Rock Garden.