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Inside The New York Botanical Garden

NYBG in the News — 7/17/08

Posted in NYBG in the News on July 7 2008, by Plant Talk

Blooming in the Bronx

kniphofia_flamenco_IV_5In the summer of 1977 the Bronx was literally burning. In the midst of a devastating blackout, New Yorkers were faced with looting, bankruptcy, municipal layoffs and the very real threat of the Son of Sam killer.

You’d have to be Rip Van Winkle to not notice that much has changed in the 31 years that have followed, but to some the rugged, urban stigma of the Bronx remains. No longer, says Associated Press Travel Editor Beth Harpaz. In her article, “The Bronx Is Blooming,” she celebrates the more than 7,000 acres of park land, and in particular, The New York Botanical Garden. As one of the many luscious “green spaces” in the borough, Harpaz credits the Garden and others as instrumental in revitalizing tourism in the Bronx.

The article is generating a lot of buzz and has been picked up by major outlets such as USAToday.com, CNN.com, AOL.com, NYPost.com, AMNY.com, Newsday.com, CBSNews.com, the Poughkeepsie Journal.com, and more.

Also in the News, Michael J. Balick, Vice President for Botanical Science at the Garden was quoted in a New York Times article about picking your own berries this summer. He doesn’t exactly give a ringing endorsement to the flora found along the Bronx River Parkway, but you can learn more about what not to eat in a book he co-authored, “Handbook of Poisonous and Injurious Plants.” And, if you want to pick some of your own berries this summer, here are a few tips to get you started.