Inside The New York Botanical Garden
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on February 7 2013, by Matt Newman
The weekend forecast promises prodigious snow for much of the northeast, so get outside and enjoy the fluff-free skies while you can! The squirrels, meanwhile, can only be looking forward to the wintry playground to come.
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Gardens and Collections on February 6 2013, by Scott Mori
Scott A. Mori, Ph.D., Nathaniel Lord Britton Curator of Botany, has been studying New World rain forests at The New York Botanical Garden for 35 years. From 1978 to 1980 he took a leave from the Garden to serve as the Director of the Herbarium of the Cocoa Research Center in Bahia, Brazil.
On a previous blog, I covered the natural history of chocolate but failed to admit my addiction to this melt-in-your-mouth delight. This problem of mine has reached the point where I have asked my wife to hide it from me, and then only dole out small portions on special occasions. Nevertheless, I still scheme to get more chocolate from her. But she has become familiar with my tactics as the years have passed, making extra rations almost impossible to get my hands on.
Of course, chocolate doesn’t begin as the confection we know and love. The fruits of the cacao tree produce two edible treats for humans–the first is the pulp that surrounds the seed and the second is the bitter seed that, after processing, becomes the source of our favorite chocolate. Although the pulp can be made into a delicious juice, I usually open the pods and suck the pulp from the seeds to quench my thirst and boost my energy when I am collecting plants in the field. The pulp is the reward given to monkeys and other animals in exchange for disseminating the seeds, carrying them from the mother tree to a place where they have a better chance to germinate and escape predation. On the other hand, animals do not eat the seeds because they are too bitter.
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on February 6 2013, by Matt Newman
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Learning Experiences on February 5 2013, by Sonia Uyterhoeven
Sonia Uyterhoeven is the NYBG‘s Gardener for Public Education.
Garden designers are about vision. They transform worn out frameworks of existing gardens, empty spaces, and natural areas into poetic visions. Where most of us will muster up all of our creative juices only to create something that still looks like we threw a bunch of plants into the ground, the seasoned designer makes the garden seem simultaneously magical and effortless, as if their creation was always meant to occupy the space. On January 31, the well-known British garden designer Tom Stuart-Smith kicked off the 13th Annual Winter Lecture Series at the NYBG, beginning with a lecture on “The Modern Garden: Finding a Language.”
In an eclectic discussion that covered sources of inspiration ranging from cellular biology and psychology to Schumann and Wagner, Stuart-Smith invited us into the inner workings of his mind, giving us a very personal account of the impetus for his designs.
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on February 5 2013, by Matt Newman
Tiny tropical treats flourish in the Nolen Greenhouses for Living Collections, primped and preened as they wait for their moment to take over the Conservatory.
Pleurothallis cardiothallis — Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Photography on February 4 2013, by Ann Rafalko
Another week, another set of Tropical Paradise Photography Contest winners!
This week saw an increase in the number of entrants, which means the competition is really heating up! And don’t forget, you can enter as many times as you want. So escape the onslaught this week’s Alberta Clippers and bask in the warmth of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory (it’s a great way to exercise your Membership, no?).
Curious as to how to enter? Simply upload your pictures to Flickr (please limit them to photographs taken inside the Conservatory during Tropical Paradise), add them to our Group Pool, tag them with #tropicalparadise, and then sit back and hope we pick your pix! And don’t think that just because you’re snapping with an iPhone, you can’t take part–all skill and equipment levels are welcome to participate.
Now … Onto the winners!
Posted in Science on February 4 2013, by Joyce Newman
Joyce H. Newman has been a Garden Tour Guide with The New York Botanical Garden for over seven years, and is the former editor of Consumer Reports GreenerChoices.org.
A draft of the latest National Climate Assessment by a distinguished federal advisory panel has been released this month for public review. It is based on the work of more than 240 expert authors organized under the United States Global Change Research Program.
Coming just days after 2012 was named the hottest year on record for the contiguous U.S., the draft report is unique in that it points out the impacts of climate change on specific regions, including the Northeast. It also notes economic risks and adaptive strategies for our area.
The Yale Forum on Climate Change and the Media has excerpted the report’s basic findings, which are deemed the scientific consensus. The findings underscore the human-driven causes of climate change as follows:
— “Global climate is changing, and this is apparent across the U.S. in a wide range of observations. The climate change of the past 50 years is due primarily to human activities, predominantly the burning of fossil fuels.”
— “Some extreme weather and climate events have increased in recent decades, and there is new and stronger evidence that many of these increases are related to human activities.”
— “Human-induced climate change is projected to continue and accelerate significantly if emissions of heat-trapping gases continue to increase.”
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on February 4 2013, by Matt Newman
A little spark and fire to warm your Monday.
Canna ‘Oiseau de Feu’ — Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on February 3 2013, by Matt Newman
The Orchid Show — March 2 through April 22, 2013 — Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on February 2 2013, by Matt Newman
“Hello? Yes, hi! I can’t help but notice that you’re not food. So, yeeeeeeah, you’re gonna have to relocate. I can appreciate that you’re a photographer–it’s a very nice camera–but if you’re not edible, we’re not interested. Thanks for your understanding.”
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen