Plant People: Episode 1

Plant People—a new podcast from NYBG and PRX Productions featuring NYBG’s CEO & President, Jennifer Bernstein—connects the dots between nature and humanity through lively conversations with plant scientists and curators, gardeners and naturalists, and other experts. In episode one, take an in-depth look at how NYBG has championed the natural world for over 130 years by caring for its unique and historic collections—together with Dr. Emily Sessa, Director of the William and Lynda Steere Herbarium, and Rhonda Evans, Director of the LuEsther T. Mertz Library.

We’re first joined by Library Director Rhonda Evans for an exploration of the world-renowned Mertz Library, where she digs into the ways that a botanical literature archive like this is incredibly important for our understanding of plants and environmental health, past, present, and future. She goes into the highlights of our collection, how we’re growing it, and takes a peek into our book restoration and conservation lab.

Next, Emily Sessa takes us inside NYBG’s Steere Herbarium and its miraculous collections to share what our herbarium specialists do, and why studying the past through collections like these is key to protecting the future of biodiversity on Earth. The hidden stories of various herbarium specimens will come to life, to help listeners orient themselves amidst the centuries-old act of collecting, documenting and studying plant specimens.