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Plant Talk

Inside The New York Botanical Garden

This Weekend: The Holiday Train Show Takes You Around the World!

Posted in Programs and Events on November 14 2014, by Lansing Moore

Unisphere World's Fair New York 1964 Holiday Train Show New York Botanical GardenTomorrow is the big day! At long last the Holiday Train Show, a New York Favorite, returns to NYBG. Over 150 plant-based replicas fill the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, including several new and updated landmarks! From dearly departed monuments to familiar favorites, these miniature models are suspended in time, criss-crossed by almost a quarter-mile of tracks. Tickets are reserved in advance, so check out our schedule of programs now and pick a day to enjoy this 23-year tradition with your family.

Tickets for the most popular dates and events do sell out quickly!

Tomorrow we kick off the new season of festivities with our Holiday Tree Lighting at 4 p.m., so don’t miss it if you’re planning to be hear toward sundown! And when you’re in the Conservatory, keep an eye out for replicas marked by a red label. These represent the many designated New York City Landmarks represented in this year’s Holiday Train Show as part of an exciting partnership with the NYC Landmarks50 Alliance to commemorate 50 years of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.

This weekend also marks the opening of two very unique exhibitions in the LuEsther T. Mertz Library. Flora Illustrata: A Celebration of Botanical Masterworks, in the Art Gallery, highlights many of the treasures from the Mertz Library’s unparalleled Rare Book Collection. Journey through botanical history as you admire books, manuscripts, maps, private letters, and art from around the world—some of which are on public display for the first time! In the Ross Gallery, NYBG is also proud to present Hudson Valley Seed Library: Art of the Heirloom, a display of art commissioned by the Hudson Valley Seed Library for a series of limited edition seed packets.

Continue reading for the full schedule of programs and events this weekend, including all-new children’s programs!

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Shades of Autumn

Posted in Horticulture on November 13 2014, by Sonia Uyterhoeven

Sonia Uyterhoeven is NYBG‘s Gardener for Public Education.

variegated Japanese Solomon’s seal (Polygonatum odoratum var. pluriflorum ‘Variegatum’)
Polygonatum odoratum var. pluriflorum ‘Variegatum’

When we think of autumnal shade in our gardens, we always look to woody plants. It is the season when trees monopolize our attention. In New England and the rest of the northeast, a thriving tourist industry kicks into full swing for three weeks around this time, paying homage to the brilliance of fall foliage. New Englanders pray for the warm days and cool nights which will provide the ideal conditions for a colorful show.

While most of us are looking up at this time of the year, looking down isn’t a bad idea, either. There are many perennials that compete with the brilliance of the trees. I was perusing the gardens two weeks ago admiring some of the best fall performers, and now I’d like to share some of the best fall candidates for the home gardener.

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NYC Council Leadership Tours New York Botanical Garden

Posted in People on November 13 2014, by Aaron Bouska

From left to right: Councilman Andrew Cohen, Councilman Ritchie Torres, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, and Gregory Long, CEO and The William C. Steere Sr. President of NYBG
From left to right: Councilman Andrew Cohen, Councilman Ritchie Torres, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, and Gregory Long, CEO and The William C. Steere Sr. President of NYBG

On Saturday, October 18, I was honored to host a Garden tour for the Speaker of the New York City Council, Melissa Mark-Viverito. Joining us were two Councilmen—Ritchie Torres and Andrew Cohen—whose Council districts include a part of the Garden.

The day’s schedule called for a golf cart tour through the grounds, viewing The Haunted Pumpkin Garden and Ray Villafane’s masterful carvings, taking in the elegant Kiku exhibition in the Haupt Conservatory, and touring much of the Garden’s historic permanent collections. In addition, the Speaker spent a good deal of time in the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden learning about NYBG’s edible gardening program and the Edible Academy project soon to break ground.

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Why Stop Now?

Posted in Horticulture on November 12 2014, by Kristin Schleiter

Kristin Schleiter is the NYBG’s Associate Vice President of Outdoor Gardens and Senior Curator. She oversees the wonderful gardening team that keeps our flowering gardens looking top notch, curates the herbaceous gardens and collections, and manages the curator of woody plants. She lives and gardens in Fairfield, CT.

Schizachyrium scoparium bluestem
Schizachyrium scoparium

Most of our gardens evolve through the seasons, and I look forward to seeing the next wave of loveliness all spring and summer. It may be November, but we are just coming in to one of my favorite times. Most people think of perennials for their lovely flowers, but many perennials have more to offer—beautiful fall color!

Even as the trees and shrubs are glowing with their fall display, perennials in the garden add their own distinct light. The broad leaves of Penstemon digitalis sing in scarlet and ruby. Graceful, feathery Amsonia hubrichtii ripples with the wind, showing off golden and burnt orange hues. Many of the garden geraniums, most notably Geranium wlassovianum, are simply amazing with their Jacob’s coat of orange, gold, scarlet, and purple. Even hosta—those the deer haven’t eaten, anyway—bring touches of lemon or gold into a shady spot.

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This Week at the Greenmarket: Simply Radishing

Posted in Programs and Events on November 12 2014, by Lansing Moore

NYBG GreenmarketNYBG’s Greenmarket is back today until 3 p.m. with fresh fruits, vegetables, and baked goods from our local vendors. Halloween may be behind us, but there are still pumpkins available for sale in time to whip up a fresh pie for Thanksgiving! Plus fresh mint, thyme, parsley root, broccoli, blue potatoes, fingerling potatoes, red delicious and crab apples, and radishes.

The Children’s Aid Society will host a fun activity from 12 to 2 p.m. to teach about gardening, cooking, and food justice while providing healthy recipes and nutrition information. As always, information is available to those interested in the enrollment process for the New York State of Health Marketplace for Medicaid, Child Health Plus, and Qualified Health Path.

Plan your visit to the Greenmarket by checking out what’s in season. The Greenmarket accepts food stamps, EBT, WIC/FMNP, and Senior coupons, in addition to cash and credit or debit cards.