Changing Pots: A Newcomer’s Perspective

Posted in Learning Experiences, People on November 4 2011, by Matt Newman

Transplants can be harrowing occasions, and not solely for the houseplants and conservatory wonders we love so well. It’s just as difficult to find yourself changing pots as a walking, talking outsider, a newcomer not only to the Garden, but the often overwhelming reality of New York City.

And this is exactly where I find myself as The New York Botanical Garden’s latest recruit.

The weather, the flora–they’re curious shocks to the system for a Florida boy. There are few evergreen copses where I’m from, and fewer rose gardens. Certainly the leaves don’t flush with shades of citrus and fire when fall makes its appearance. Rather, I’m more accustomed to hurricanes, swamp cypress and banana trees. And we don’t pull the stowed parkas from the crawlspace when October arrives, either; we’re more likely to say a silent “thank you” that the humidity will let up for a few months. Better yet, perhaps the mosquitoes will give it a rest.

I think the change is a welcome one, though. There’s the jarring cold to deal with, of course, and the weekend storm’s sudden decision to bury my car in drifts of white has shown me that I have neither the clothes nor the winter driving skills to thrive just yet. But there’s something to say for the northeast. Catching the first flashes of the changing foliage in the Thain Family Forest is something impossible to conceive in the sub-tropics, and to see the green peek of the grass here–draped with snow–is eye candy at the very least.

As your newest blogger here at the Garden, I aim to bring fresh eyes to these 250 sprawling acres of forest and flowers. My only hope for right now is that you’ll stick around and see what comes of it–I’m certainly intrigued.