Hope everyone had a filling, drama-free Thanksgiving! And now, if you’re not rolling around in a turkey-induced malaise, or elbowing your way through a mob of frantic shoppers, there’s all the opportunity in the world to scoot your way up to the Bronx and escape that post-holiday madness! The NYBG is open both today and throughout the weekend, with a full schedule of holiday programming and late fall explorations on deck–and not a sink full of dishes or shopping cart in sight. Quite the opposite, in fact.

With the Holiday Train Show now entering its second week, crowds are still small and the weather is perfect for a trip to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. Inside, our miniature city of familiar architecture and zippy model trains is growing by the year, with fresh New York landmarks added to the collection and a few stunning wonders of the world tucked into our expanded Artist’s Studio. Paul Busse has pieced together this meticulous world over the course of more than two decades, and his New York microcosm only continues to grow with his imagination.

Outside, the Garden is still a landscape painted with the occasional fall hue, especially in the Forest. So get out there and join our expert docents for a tour of the 50-acre woodland, the only old growth, native forest remaining in the five boroughs. You might even catch a few vibrant leaf displays before autumn doffs its hat. And even if much of the color is drifting off, not all of the season’s beauty is wrapped up in the trees: heads up for the many graceful, singsong, or just plain comical flyers to be seen cruising the branches during Debbie Becker’s weekly Bird Walk.
read more »

So the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory is buzzing. Really buzzing–with the sound of Paul Busse and his team hurrying about, setting the scene for this Saturday’s opening of the Holiday Train Show; the rush of miniature trains barreling along tiny tracks; and, now and then, the familiar noise of appreciation when an NYBG staffer sees a new model for the first time. After over 20 years as one of New York City’s most beloved holiday traditions, this exhibition still makes us a little giddy.

As it so happens, Ivo just walked in with a camera full of Holiday Train Show setup shots, and we see absolutely no sane reason to continue sitting on them–especially when giving you a sneak peek would be much more fun. So without further ado, have a look at some of our favorite miniatures, both classic and new, and see if you can put a name to the facades.
read more »

Here’s photographic evidence that–despite the calendar’s advance into the eleventh month of the year–the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden continues to bloom. The blooms may be fewer and more far between, but doesn’t that just make them all the sweeter for their rarity?

Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen

After October’s storm and the following clean-up period, we hopped right into November’s seasonal preparations with the Holiday Train Show. Our kiku bid a fond “adieu” as they made room in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory for New York’s most cherished winter tradition. And did I mention the leaves on the trees? Fall had arrived–loud, clear, and bursting with the warmest hues.

Paul Busse and his team at Applied Imagination are nothing if they’re not diligent (and brilliantly creative). Setting up the Holiday Train Show takes no small amount of time or ingenuity, and for the last 20 years they have continued to produce one of New York’s most delightful holiday experiences. This year, we set up a time-lapse camera in the Conservatory so our readers could get a better idea of just how the whole process goes down.

Changing Seasons in the Conservatory

read more »

It’s not often that we’re thankful for the rare sounds of industry in the Garden. We do love our peace, and if silence is golden, it’s an abundant commodity here in a place where car horns and creaking subway trains can be so readily forgotten. But since the storm left its mark over the Halloween weekend, the sound of work being completed is–at least for the moment–a comfort.

Arborists and the horticulture staff have leapt to the task of trimming away damaged tree branches, removing fallen boughs, and returning the Garden to its original splendor. And while we may have endured a bit of a jolt, we’re already back on our feet and moving forward with a weekend of events both exciting and memorable.
read more »