This Weekend: Treat Dad to Bands and Brews

Posted in Programs and Events on June 13 2014, by Matt Newman

Beer, bands, BBQ. In a nutshell, that should be enough to give you an idea of what’s going on this Saturday and Sunday at the Garden. We’re opening up Daffodil Hill for a Father’s Day weekend to remember with a stacked roster of great Americana bands, visiting samplers, BBQ for sale, and plenty of craft beer offerings to help you toast the coming summer warmth!

While our Big Backyard BBQ is our spotlight event (grab tickets in advance if you can!), there are a number of other activities taking place at NYBG over the weekend for those who are raring for some exploration. The Rose Garden’s still popping, making it the perfect time to jump on a tour. And if you’re of a mind to break out your binoculars, Debbie Becker’s weekly Bird Walk takes place at 11 a.m. this Saturday. We’re even holding our Three Billy Goats Gruff family concert for anyone with kids to entertain.

From our Groundbreakers activities to the growing vegetables in our Family Garden, the end of spring is beyond lively. See you on grounds!

Saturday, June 14

Big Backyard BBQ & Music Festival — 11 a.m.–5 p.m.
On Daffodil Hill
Make the sprawling lawns of Daffodil Hill your backyard and enjoy the warm weather with live music, outdoor fun, and a selection of food and fixin’s. Sample food and drink from New York-based specialty purveyors, paired with family entertainment throughout the weekend, and it’s the perfect opportunity to get dad out of the house for Father’s Day! We’ll also have an array of local New York craft brews on hand to keep you cool.

Bird Walk – 11 a.m.
Meet at the Reflecting Pool at the Leon Levy Visitor Center
The diverse habitats of the Botanical Garden offer visitors a chance to see dozens of species of birds throughout the year. Bring your binoculars and walk the Garden grounds with an expert to learn about bird-friendly habitats, migrating species, and birds that make a permanent home at the Garden.

Rose Garden Tour – 12:30 p.m.
Meet at the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden
Immerse yourself in the fragrance, color, and beauty of the award-winning Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden on a tour with a Garden Tour Guide. Learn the differences between Heritage and Modern roses and between floribundas and hybrid teas as well as facts about rose history, cultivation, and folklore.

From Ragtime to Jazz: The Roots of Pop – 1 & 3:30 p.m.
In the Ross Hall
Music from the period of Groundbreakers—ragtime, jazz, Broadway, and beyond to Hollywood—had a great impact on American culture. Enjoy a variety of styles in live performances by a trio of artists, including musical producer, pianist, and historian Terry Waldo, featuring the works of Scott Joplin, Eubie Blake, Irving Berlin, and Tin Pan Alley composers such as George Gershwin, George M. Cohan, and Dorothy Fields.

Yours for a Song: The Women of Tin Pan Alley – 2 p.m.
In the Ross Hall
Many popular music standards of the Tin Pan Alley era (1920–49) were written by women, including Dorothy Fields, Kay Swift, Dana Suesse, and Ann Ronell, who were among the most influential songwriters of the time. This PBS documentary includes archival footage, motion picture clips, and rarely seen photographs, as well as performance clips of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Perry Como.

Native Plant Garden Tour – 2:30 p.m.
Meet at the Reflecting Pool at the Leon Levy Visitor Center
Join a tour guide for an insider’s view of the newly designed Native Plant Garden. Enjoy a mosaic of nearly 100,000 native trees, wildflowers, ferns and grasses designed to flourish in every season.

Sunday, June 15

Native Plant Garden Tour – 11 a.m.
Meet at the Reflecting Pool at the Leon Levy Visitor Center
Join a tour guide for an insider’s view of the newly designed Native Plant Garden. Enjoy a mosaic of nearly 100,000 native trees, wildflowers, ferns and grasses designed to flourish in every season.

Film Screening: Yours for a Song: The Women of Tin Pan Alley – 2 p.m.
In the Ross Hall
Many popular music standards of the Tin Pan Alley era (1920–49) were written by women, including Dorothy Fields, Kay Swift, Dana Suesse, and Ann Ronell, who were among the most influential songwriters of the time. This PBS documentary includes archival footage, motion picture clips, and rarely seen photographs, as well as performance clips of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Perry Como.

Conservatory Tour – 2:30 p.m.
Meet at the entrance to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory
Explore the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, an acre of plants under glass, with one of the Garden’s Guides. Take an ecotour around the world through 11 distinct habitats, including two types of rain forest, deserts of the Americas and of Africa, and aquatic and carnivorous plant displays.

Family Concert: Three Billy Goats Gruff — 11:30 a.m. & 1 p.m.
In the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden
Meet Barry, Maurice, and Robin, three billy goats that encounter a bridge troll en route to their concert. Cheer the brothers on as they harmonize to stay alive. Three Billy Goats Gruff is a new adaptation of the Norwegian fairy tale with a dose of Saturday Night Fever, written by Dante Albertie with musical arrangements by William Scribner. Animated actors from The Children’s Theatre Company at Lehman College perform to music played by the Bronx Arts Ensemble. The audience will be introduced to their instruments and join in the adventure!

Edible Academy Tours — 2, 3, 4, & 5 p.m.
In the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden
Learn all about the Garden’s latest plans for the Edible Academy. Staff will lead tours of the precinct being developed into the new and exciting campus dedicated to edible plants. Featuring the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden as its centerpiece, the Edible Academy will add new display gardens, classrooms, greenhouse, as well as an amphitheater. The improvements and additions will accommodate year round programming and significantly expand current offerings for children and families.

Cooking Demonstrations for Families — 2 & 4 p.m.
In the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden at the Whole Foods Market^® Family Garden Kitchen
Stop in and join us as we demonstrate delicious grilled preparations featuring our aromatic culinary herbs and sweet onion family plants. Samples are sure to delight and inspire your family to make the dishes together for many meals to come!

Ongoing Children’s Programs

Family Adventures: Focusing on Nature — 10 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
In the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden
Children will explore the art of garden photography and will even have the opportunity to become garden photographers themselves. Through a series of stops within the Garden, they will see the world through a new lens as they learn how observations in science and nature have been recorded throughout time. They will also receive tips about perspective, scale, and framing when taking photographs.

Dig, Plant, Grow: Sweet & Stinky — 1:30–5:30 p.m.
In the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden
Aromatic alliums and spicy herbs thrive in the summer heat. Follow the sweet and stinky smells to the Family Garden and discover these culinary champions. Savor the scents and tickle your taste buds with cooking demonstrations and samples, and become a green thumb by planting your very own herb to tend at home.

Mario Batali’s Kitchen Gardens – 1:30–6 p.m.
In the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden
Kids can explore with Mario’s Menu Mystery game, featuring favorite vegetables and herbs from nine of his restaurants’ kitchens, including Otto and Del Posto.

This Weekend: Treat Dad to Bands and Brews

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