Inside The New York Botanical Garden
bird walk
Posted in Around the Garden, Wildlife on May 31 2012, by Debbie Becker
Debbie Becker has been leading weekly Bird Walks at the NYBG for over 25 years. You can often find her on Saturday mornings, guiding new and veteran “birders” alike through the Garden’s 250 acres with binoculars in tow.
While leading my weekly Bird Walk at The New York Botanical Garden I observed a large woodpecker flying by me. I was able to see its wings with their black feathers and white markings. My first and only thought was that I had just seen a Pileated Woodpecker.
After leading birdwatching tours at NYBG for 27 years, the one bird that has always remained elusive is the Pileated Woopecker. Although they are common just miles north of the Garden, not many of these birds have ever been spotted south of Westchester County. But after careful research, I discovered that males wander during the month of April, presumably seeking new territory. It was on May 5 that I had what I hoped was a Pileated–the first for NYBG in decades.
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Posted in Around the Garden, Programs and Events on April 13 2012, by Matt Newman
This weekend we enter the home stretch of the Orchid Show balanced on a bittersweet note. Thousands of visitors have had the opportunity to experience Patrick Blanc’s inspiring vertical architecture, stepping under, around, and between the reaching walls of tropical foliage and luxuriant orchid flowers. This year’s spring display is a masterwork only “The Green Man” could have conjured.
Going into the final week of our tenth anniversary exhibition, we encourage everyone who hasn’t yet made the short trip to the Bronx to put on some comfortable shoes and step out for a day at the Garden. Between the sunlit brilliance of these spring afternoons and the rare form of the Orchid Show, there are few excuses for missing out.
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Posted in Around the Garden, Wildlife on April 11 2012, by Matt Newman
From here to Pelham Bay Park, and straight on down to Central Park, the kinship of bird watchers is peaking. April and May are something of a pilgrimage holiday for the truly dedicated ornithological set, though few in New York hoof it far from home; they set out with their binoculars, their pens, and their dog-eared notebooks, taking time off from work to travel a scant few miles to the nearest stand of trees.
These dyed-in-the-wool avian aficionados don’t come to the NYBG in spring specifically for the Red-tailed Hawks, or for the Great Horned Owls. Their prize is far smaller. And as prizes go, these birds seem more of an indulgence than the rare and elusive species recorded with fingers scribbling furiously between the lines of a “life list.” Many New York birders–seasoned or green–instead come to see the little puffs of color and song known as warblers.
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Posted in Around the Garden, The Orchid Show on March 23 2012, by Matt Newman
If the flowering magnolias and budding bottlebrushes around the Garden are any evidence, New York really has shifted gears to full-on spring pleasantry. You know it was satisfying to leave your coat on the hook before work all this week! And with the Orchid Show now settled into its groove and flourishing with its thousands of exotic flowers, this is the time to head up to the Bronx and see what everyone is swooning over. You finally get to start off without the screech of an alarm clock, ditch the briefcase, and leave your uncomfortable shoes near the front door for a couple of days–make the most of it!
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Posted in Around the Garden, Programs and Events, The Orchid Show on March 16 2012, by Matt Newman
Have you been following Plant Talk this week? If you have, you’re already well aware that the skies are criss-crossed with soaring hawks, the daffodils are bobbing alongside the paths, and the NYBG‘s tenth annual Orchid Show is proving every bit the belle of the ball we knew it would be. With or without a few hems and haws from departing winter, a welcome spring is here more than two weeks early.
If you’re looking for escapism, the walkways of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory are a sure bet, ringed as they are with thousands of orchids in nearly every color of the spectrum. Better yet, you can start the day with Debbie Becker’s Saturday Bird Walk, then jump into orchid workshops and lectures of all sorts, with terrarium building in Little Landscapes to occupy the kids; there’s something about holding a miniature world unto itself–all in the palm of your hand–that’s infinitely appealing.
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Posted in Around the Garden, Exhibitions, The Orchid Show on March 9 2012, by Matt Newman
Much ado about the weather this week. Yesterday was a mid-spring day borrowed straight from early May, sending most of our office staff into ecstatic fits. I’m all but convinced one or two of us were out on the grass, belting out celebratory verses from The Sound of Music. Today it’s a bit cooler, of course. But with the warm sun and a promise of picturesque afternoons for Saturday and Sunday, winter seems all but out the door.
The dogwood is blooming, the crocuses are bright, and the Orchid Show is settling into the groove for its second big weekend. This is the perfect opportunity to hop a subway train to the Bronx and treat yourself to Patrick Blanc’s Vertical Gardens. But even if orchids aren’t your thing (a rare condition, albeit understandable), the schedule is packed with activities to suit.
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Posted in Around the Garden on February 17 2012, by Matt Newman
Last weekend’s predictions for snowfall missed the mark by a mile, so we’re spending today confident that the last white of winter is well behind us. Or that’s what we’re telling ourselves. Because without the snow, it makes spending a day at the NYBG a piece of cake, and the trains (usually) tend to run on time. With the Caribbean Garden winding down in preparation for the opening of this year’s Orchid Show, there’s also more motivation to come pay us a visit!
If you’re one of the lucky New Yorkers to have a full three-day weekend to enjoy, we’re even going to open the gates on Monday to make the most of it. We don’t exactly do that every week. And with the kids out of school, you might consider this an example of opportunity knocking–how often do you get to spend a day with them while out and about, anyway?
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Posted in Around the Garden, Photography, Wildlife on February 16 2012, by Matt Newman
NYBG member and resident bird photographer Laura Meyers was walking the grounds recently when she caught the hint of a welcome sight. It happened to be sitting on a sweet gum branch, munching a beakful of seeds. But as common as the Red-winged Blackbird is to most northerners, many don’t realize what the songbird signifies around this time of year.
As she sent along her photograph, Laura also shared this bit of information:
“I was happy and surprised to see a Red-winged Blackbird at The New York Botanical Garden this past Friday. Male Red-winged Blackbirds return north in the spring ahead of the females and migrate south after the females in the fall.”
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Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on January 27 2012, by Matt Newman
News for birding fanatics! The owls are making themselves known again at the NYBG, or so recent sightings would suggest. Friend of the Garden Pat Gonzalez informs me that a birdwatching group caught a glimpse of our Great Horned Owls mating (that’s a good sign) in the Forest near the hemlocks, meaning that we may have another small parliament of owls (I maintain that collective nouns are the most fun you can have in language arts) terrorizing our chipmunk population in the near future.
Despite often being year-round residents at the NYBG, we generally see neither hide nor feather of these airborne hunters due to their nocturnal habit–at least up until breeding season when diurnal hunting becomes more common. Having the leaves off the trees at this time of year also makes spotting these raptors more of a cinch. But when a storm toppled the birds’ favorite nesting tree, it made locating them something of a challenge. Seeing the owls going into 2012 has proven a hit-or-miss endeavor for our local birders.
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Posted in Around the Garden on January 20 2012, by Matt Newman
Rumor has it we’ll be seeing some snow in New York tonight! Does that mean winter’s finally making its frigid entrance stage right? Or maybe it’s just nature’s subtle way of nudging you to get off the couch and pay us a visit for the balmy opening of the Caribbean Garden. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that–yes–the season is giving you a signal. What could it hurt?
Snowflakes or no-flakes, the NYBG will be buzzing with tours, bird walks, and all the swinging, high-heeled dance numbers of the islands. I’m talking salsa. Salsa and warmth. When’s the last time you got to enjoy that kind of two-in-one in the middle of January? And even if the winter was mild until now, it’s a breezy icebox outside today; I’m convinced the threat of frostbite is reason enough to hang out in the jungle habitats of the steamy Enid A. Haupt Conservatory.
Here’s what’s going on this weekend at the Garden!
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While leading my weekly Bird Walk at The New York Botanical Garden I observed a large woodpecker flying by me. I was able to see its wings with their black feathers and white markings. My first and only thought was that I had just seen a Pileated Woodpecker.
