We geek out pretty regularly over the photos snapped in the Home Gardening Center, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve overheard visitors asking “What’s that?” as they pass by this humble (or not-so-humble, depending on what’s in bloom) corner of the NYBG. For those not in the know, this is where we show off our practical chops–where the home horticulturist can come for some back yard inspiration.
Not only does the HGC house the Pauline Gillespie Gossett Plant Trials Garden and a composting demonstration area, but it’s also where we host our weekend gardening demonstrations. So if you’re here on a Saturday or Sunday, get a glance at the schedule before you hoof it into the Garden. “Free” and “super helpful” are usually the best ways to describe our learning sessions, meaning they’re worth making time for.
Not all home gardens are focused on the artful arrangement of their perennial plantings, or the ways in which the borders complement the patio furniture. Instead, it’s sometimes best to let form follow function. And I’m not just talking about the Gordian knot of cucumber vines in your vegetable garden! Of all the green conceits you can put to work in your yard, one of the most casual and native gardens you can grow is the one that will draw the greatest attention from your neighbors–though admittedly neighbors of a feathered variety.
Attracting hummingbirds to your plot is more than a game of luck; now and then you need to be proactive. And when it comes to inviting wildlife to your garden, it can’t hurt to start with a proven lure.
There’s a fireworks show taking place in the NYBG‘s Azalea Garden this month, thanks to a single native plant known as Lobelia cardinalis, or the “cardinal flower.” This colorful perennial is native and common throughout much of North America, springing up in wetlands from Texas east to Florida, and north to New Brunswick in Canada. So if you live on the east coast, you’ve already checked off one important box on the list of the lobelia’s growing requirements. Easy, right? In the northeast in particular, having a collection of lobelias in your burgeoning hummingbird garden is a sure step to attracting the Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris)–the only North American hummingbird to nest east of the Mississippi.
Don’t fold up your handkerchief just yet! You’re going to need something to keep your hands dry this Wednesday, because August may still be National Peach Month, but the fuzzy fruit’s friends–the juiciest plums and pears–are sliding right into their summer harvests. That means Bartletts, Seckels, and more Italian plums than you can stuff in your reusable bag, all waiting to make the trip from this week’s Greenmarket stalls to your own personal dining room still life. You do have a fruit bowl at home, right?
Whether it’s that first, tangy-sweet bite of a plum you’re craving, or an afternoon spent snacking on pear slices in the last of the hammock weather, you’ll find ripe fruits, vegetables, baked goods and more stacked high for Wednesday’s NYBG Greenmarket. It runs 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and as always, one-hour parking at the Mosholu Gate entrance and Garden grounds admission are completely free. As with many of the greenmarkets around NYC, attending growers also accept EBT, WIC, FNMP and NYC Health Bucks.
No such thing as a free lunch? Maybe not! But free fun is another story altogether. Thanks to a collaboration with The Cultural Landscape Foundation, The New York Botanical Garden is joining organizations across New York City for a weekend of exploring the most iconic landscape architecture our metropolis has to offer, and in our case, a special focus on the important design contributions women have made to the Garden’s 120-year history.
It’s called “What’s Out There Weekend,” and it’s likely the largest tour event you’re going to see this year. Just think of it as a giant field trip through the world’s greatest city, where you get to pick and choose your destinations as you go. On October 6 and 7–following the Central Park Woodlands conference on Friday the 5th–the Garden becomes one of 25 organizations across the five boroughs to open their gates, offering expert-led tours to registrants at no cost (unless you count a couple of MetroCard swipes to zip around town).
Not everyone has the patience–or the real estate–for large-scale gardening, some people just have enough for burnaby condos for sale and even with a smaller garden. Honestly, it’s probably not even on the radar for someone who can’t keep a pot of English ivy alive on an office desk. But if you happen to have a knack for beautifying nature through your lens, rather than your trowel, the garden can still prove itself a source of spirited inspiration! That’s why the International Garden Photographer of the Year competition takes place annually. With the prizes just announced for this year’s competition, now is the time to pack up your tripod and do some fieldwork.
With nearly $8000 in cash being awarded to the top winner of this year’s competition, and thousands of dollars up for the taking in the many individual categories of the contest, IGPOTY’s prestige among nature photographers is well-earned. And there’s an added perk for friends of the Garden: as the exclusive U.S. partner of the IGPOTY competition, The New York Botanical Garden is offering an additional purse of $1000 as part of the lead-up to our 2013 summer exhibition exploring the healthful benefits of the plant kingdom. Winning photos in the Wellness category will not only take home some of that cash, but also the opportunity to see their photographs hung in the Ross Gallery as a part of the long-running exhibition. Think of it as your stepping stone toward IGPOTY glory.
Don’t think of these weekly reminders as my concentrated effort to tease your appetite, but as a motivation to eat healthier and arrange your food in more colorful combinations. The Greenmarket is, as always, this Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
It’s been sort of a green-filtered past few days on Morning Eye Candy. I suppose I’m trying to heap as much appreciation as possible on the themes of summer before the trees transition for autumn. That and this picture from Ivo makes me want to swim, Scrooge McDuck style, through the Forest.
So I was sitting out here the other day, guessing at the rainclouds and mulling the notion that I should be up on my feet, exploring the Rock Garden and snapping pictures for others’ benefit. But I didn’t get up. It’s not because I was lazy–rather, I didn’t want to ruin a rare moment of serenity.
