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Inside The New York Botanical Garden

Archive: January 2012

The Conservatory Rainforest: Chocolate Lovers’ Lane

Posted in Adult Education, Around the Garden, The Edible Garden on January 19 2012, by Joyce Newman

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, sign up for “The Temptation of Chocolate” with NYBG expert Jessica Bohn, Saturday, February 11 at the Midtown Education Center.

Cocoa podDid you know the main ingredient in chocolate comes from the fruit of the cacao tree? Perhaps you read our earlier article on “cauliflory” in trees like this one. Lucky for us there are cacao trees (Theobroma cacao) thriving in The New York Botanical Garden’s tropical rainforest, a part of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. In fact, two of our cacao trees now have cocoa bean pods growing on them, each one about six inches long and dark brown.

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Morning Eye Candy: Three Stooges

Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on January 19 2012, by Matt Newman

“Larry, Moe, and Curly.” It’s the first thing that came to mind when I stumbled across this picture. And a lot of you are probably thinking a guy would have to spend a long, loooong time around plants to see a slapstick comedy trio in a stand of conifers. You’d be right.

Conifers at the NYBG

Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen

This Winter Break, Send the Kids Into the Field

Posted in Around the Garden, Learning Experiences, Programs and Events on January 18 2012, by Education at NYBG

Winter Science CampThe mid-winter break is coming up on the calendar for local school kids, leaving us just a bit excited here at The New York Botanical Garden. Not that we’re taking any vacations for ourselves, mind you. For the first time, we’re throwing open our gates as one of the world’s premier centers for botanical science, welcoming curious young minds as we turn the Garden into a 250-acre classroom, laboratory, and learning playground.

Winter Science Camp offers children a “behind the scenes” learning experience under the guidance of the NYBG’s world-renowned plant educators. Kids will investigate plants in the Herbarium unseen by the public, enjoy early-morning exploration in the Forest, and experience a curriculum you just won’t find in the local elementary school schedule. Where else can they try their hand at planting vegetables, or pressing their own botanical specimens?

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A Winter Oasis is On Its Way!

Posted in Exhibitions on January 17 2012, by Matt Newman

Caribbean GardenEach year, as winter charges through, every commercial break on television chimes in with the daydream of a tropical paradise–swimsuits, warmth, and salsa music. Suddenly a car horn blares and the vision fades, leaving a woman with a headcold shivering at an icy New York bus stop. It’s as predictable as the sun rising. But while we can’t just let you hop through the visitor gates in your neon two-piece, The New York Botanical Garden brings more than a mirage to the table; the daydream becomes reality this month. Starting January 21, the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory brings the tropics to the city with Caribbean Garden.

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Winter Injury

Posted in Gardening Tips, Learning Experiences on January 17 2012, by Sonia Uyterhoeven

NYBGFor the past few weeks we have reflected on the strange weather that we experienced last year, discussing the physical damage to the Garden during the October storm and the identifying characteristics that signal future issues. The erratic behavior of the weather from September onwards reminded me of a time several years ago when an Indian summer lasted well into December. The temperatures crashed in the following January and we experienced winter almost overnight.

Some of you may remember that year. For the broad-leaved evergreens at the Garden, this was the year for winter injury, and there are several reasons why a plant experiences this.

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