In honor of Veterans Day we’re pleased to announce the THRIVE program, an initiative that commemorates NYBG’s long history working with service members—dating back to World War I when we first invited returning veterans into the Garden for rehabilitation and learning new skills. Hear from Carrie Rebora Barratt, CEO and The William C. Steere Sr. President of The New York Botanical Garden, and discover how we’re continuing that legacy in collaboration with the James J. Peters Veterans Administration Medical Center in the Bronx.
Annie Novak is the Manager of the Edible Academy at The New York Botanical Garden.
We introduced our first pair of beehives to the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden in 2010, the year beekeeping was re-legalized in New York City. We sited the apiaries—Langstroth hives—atop the single flat rooftop on our garden site, a one-story brick and concrete building home to both gardening and office equipment fondly called “the tool shed.” This gave our foraging worker bees zipping in and out of the hive a clear flight path above our vegetable plots, above and away from our visitors.
With the opening of the Edible Academy campus in the spring of 2018, our beehives moved to a much better location: the Kate Solomon Family Apiary, a flat, staff-accessible platform adjacent to the Gossett Overlook Pavilion. Now at eye-level (at a safe distance), visitors can observe the honeybees more readily. Unsurprisingly, a frequent query is what we do with their honey.
NYBG’s beloved Family Garden Picnic returns on Sunday, September 27, with organic gardening activities, delicious refreshments, and live cooking demonstrations for the whole family. This annual event benefits the Edible Academy at an afternoon of outdoor exploration and celebration in the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden, the centerpiece of the planned state-of-the-art facility that will become the hub of the expanded organic vegetable gardening program at NYBG.
NYBG has been a leader in organic vegetable gardening education for nearly 60 years. Become a part of this long-standing tradition by bringing the whole family for an exciting culinary adventure, live music, crafts, and a delicious picnic. Special guest Chef Carla Hall, co-host of ABC’s The Chew, will present a live cooking demonstration for guests. Hall will be joined by Chefs Andy Nusser of Tarry Lodge and Anthony Sasso of Casa Mono, two culinary talents from Mario Batali’s acclaimed restaurants. Click through for photos from last year’s Family Garden Picnic!
NYBG is pleased to continue its partnership with Whole Foods Market for another season of fresh, nutritious, and delicious family food activities. Through September, hundreds of local families and school children will visit the Whole Foods Market Family Kitchen in the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden for daily hands-on cooking and tasting events hosted by NYBG Staff. Whole Foods Market will also host seasonal demonstrations and tastings by the Reflective Pool on the last Wednesday of June, July, August, and September from 1 to 3 p.m., coinciding with NYBG’s fan-favorite Greenmarket.
The Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden—and its groundbreaking programming—is at the heart of the Edible Academy and the future site of a new, state-of-the-art building that will serve as the hub for edible education at NYBG. Together, the Edible Academy and the Family Garden bring plenty of fun for adults and kids alike, with cooking demonstrations in the Whole Foods Market Family Garden Kitchen and daily, hands-on gardening activities. Bring the family to the Garden this summer for wholesome and yummy learning experience!
The Garden will be open for regular hours on Monday, February 16, for Presidents’ Day—but that’s just the beginning! On that same day, NYBG is thrilled to welcome Carla Hall, celebrity chef, co-host of ABC’s The Chew, and NYBG Edible Academy Committee Member, for a live cooking demonstration at 12:30 p.m. to kick off Carla Hall’s Culinary Kids Week! This family-friendly food festival invites kids to explore the relationships between plants, farms, and their favorite foods through a full schedule of programs and activities.
The rest of the week includes daily cooking demonstrations at 1 p.m. by a series of special guests preparing their favorite recipes. Visiting chefs will include Kate Gardner; Stacey Antine, HealthBarn USA; David Mawhinney, Haven’s Kitchen; George Edwards, Garden-to-Cafe; Matt Abdoo, Del Posto; and Alicia Walter, Vetri Ristorante.
The Kids Kitchen Corner and ongoing Activity Stations—featuring Big Apple Edibles, the Hudson Valley Seed Library, and more—fill the Conservatory Tent. The Enid A. Haupt Conservatory hosts a Tropical Treasure Hunt that leads kids through the plants included in Wild Medicine in the Tropics. Kids can even participate in preparing their own healthy snack to take home at daily Culinary Workshops at 11 a.m., and 12 and 2 p.m. (first-come, first-served registration), with different instructors each day from the Edible Academy, HealthBarn USA, Growing Chefs, Kendall Holmes, Butter Beans, and Michelle Warner.
Kick off fall with NYBG this weekend at the Harvest Festival! Two days of music and activities will fill the Garden grounds to benefit the Edible Academy. Come enjoy games on Daffodil Hill, and work up an appetite for our array of specialty samplers and vendors of food, beer, and wine while our exciting lineup of Americana bands fills the air with music. For those who want the full VIP experience, special tickets are available for a live cooking demonstration by Mario Batali and his co-host from ABC’s The Chew, Carla Hall! Those who purchase tickets to Sunday’s Family Garden Picnic may even access a booksigning with Carla Hall or an exclusive reception hosted by Mario Batali—all to support NYBG’s children’s education hub, the Edible Academy.
Your All-Garden Pass grants you access to the Harvest Festival, as well as the recently opened Haunted Pumpkin Garden. Let your kids get into the Halloween spirit with a wide variety of activities in the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden—including Creepy Critters of Halloween, an entertaining and educational experience featuring live reptiles. The next two days offer many ways to enjoy fall at NYBG, during this warm and sunny weekend. Click through to check out the full schedule for the Harvest Festival, The Haunted Pumpkin Garden, our special tours, and more!
Kick off thew new season and support the Edible Academy with food, live music, beer and wine talks, and even a live cooking demonstration with the one and only Chef Mario Batali!
On September 27 and 28 the Garden will host autumnal activities for the whole family at the Harvest Festival. Unwind with two full days of live music from such hit acts as Miss Tess and the Talkbacks, and Roosevelt Dime. Peruse the samples and offerings available for purchase at our Harvest Market, including live talks from featured purveyors. The Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden will host cooking demonstrations and family activities where kids can learn about the importance of pollinators. Read on for the details on Mario Batali’s special appearance!
Celebrated chef and NYBG Board Member Mario Batali is Honorary Chair of the Edible Academy Committee, and for four nights only the Garden will host chefs from the Batali & Bastanich Hospitality Group‘s acclaimed restaurants to prepare a three-course, family-style menu to be served al fresco in the most secluded green oasis in New York City. Your family can join in the fun too, so read on for more details about the special menu and fun activities in store!
Well, harvest time is just about here, and the whole family is invited to enjoy a nutritious and delicious meal, al fresco, at Family Dinners with Mario Batali’s Chefs! Visiting culinary talents from the Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group’s stellar restaurants—including Otto, Del Posto, and Eataly—will host a series of evenings featuring hands-on gardening and craft activities followed by a a three-course, family-style menu. Each evening will take place under the cool evening sky in the Whole Foods Market® Family Garden Kitchen.
Tomorrow is your chance to support educational nutrition programs for children when you buy nutritious food for yourself! Our friends at Whole Foods Market® will donate 5% of their daily net sales on June 25 to the programs and activities of NYBG’s Edible Academy and the award-winning Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden.
NYBG has always worked to reconnect children with nature, with a special focus on where their food comes from. At the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden, kids engage in hands-on gardening activities that teach them the benefits of naturally grown vegetables, fruits and herbs. The Edible Academy includes plans for a new, state-of-the-art building that will serve as the hub for edible education at NYBG.
Tomorrow you can help us get closer to that reality when you shop at any one of dozens of Whole Foods Markets across New York and New Jersey. Click through for the full list of participating locations and find the closest one to you!
Kick off fall with 
