From the bloom of our ever-fragrant lilacs to the dainty dramatics of the Auricula Theater, spring’s progress isn’t hard to see here at NYBG. The crabapples are waking near Daffodil Hill, and the magnolias—always some of the season’s top charmers—are still trucking along with pink and white blooms. Meanwhile, the Azalea Garden is becoming a sea of color.
Classic fragrance and color define the Garden this week with the addition of the Azalea Garden, Magnolia Collection, and Burn Family Lilacs to our growing list of spring beauty. With the daffodils at peak bloom, now is the time to see them, and this weekend’s Daffodil Celebration & Wine Weekend should give you even more reason to be here!
Head below to see just a few of the many flowers coming into vogue this week across NYC’s most stunning 250 acres. With spring marching on, we’re seeing new and exciting growth each and every week!
Tai Montanarella is the Marian S. Heiskell Associate Director of School and Out-of-School Programs at The New York Botanical Garden.
Alongside a naturalistic waterfall in the Thain Family Forest tourists were snapping family photographs, capturing scenes of the rushing Bronx River, its rocky gorge, and the leafing and flowering spring trees behind them. Yet only 20 feet away lay a tarp with hundreds of pieces of litter, from styrofoam bearing popular fast food logos to glass beer bottles. It was this scene which captivated the students of St. Brendan School in the Bronx.
“In order to find out how garbage gets into the Bronx River, we have to think about the ways water gets into the river,” said forest gardener Erica Deluca. Students had some ideas to share. Thanks to the generosity of Con Edisom STEM Days Out, they have been stewards of the Bronx River for the past two years, observing seasonal changes and thinking about how water quality changes over time by collecting and analyzing macroinvertebrate leaf pack data, and by keeping abreast of current events about human activities and the river.
Spring’s beauty is settling into its groove this week, with strong showings from both our cherry trees and our daffodils. They should reach peak color soon, meaning this week and into the weekend will offer a great opportunity to see these collections in rare form!
Elsewhere in the garden, such as the Rock Garden and Home Gardening Center, early tulips are beginning to make an appearance, while the magnolia collection is now blooming and fragrant.
Katherine Wagner-Reiss has her certificate in botany from NYBG and has been a tour guide at the Garden for two years.
Daffodils, narcissus, and jonquils can get jumbled in the mind, but they are easily sorted out.
Daffodil is the common name for spring-flowering bulbs in the genus Narcissus, of which there are over 50 species. One species, Narcissus jonquilla has its own common name, jonquil. When in doubt, you can never go wrong by calling any of these flowers “narcissus,” since they are all in that genus.
The name daffodil is an alteration of the name for another striking flower, the asphodel. No one knows how the initial “D” came to be added to daffodil. So lovely is the asphodel that it was said to grow in the Elysian Fields: blessed fields of the afterlife in ancient Greek literature. Asphodelus alba is planted in the NYBG Perennial Garden; I will certainly be looking for its bloom this summer!
After a shaky start to spring, with cold and warm days jostling for the lead, this week’s steady warmth has finally cut the ribbon on the start of the season’s flowers. All across our 250 acres you’ll find collections waking up with purples, pinks, yellows, and whites, providing fragrance and beauty after the long winter.
Have a look at just a few of the highlights to be found this week, then plan your visit to NYBG! It’s only going to get better from here.
On Thursday, February 16, NYBG held celebrated Black History Month with workshops and presentations commemorating the accomplishments and contributions of African Americans.
This annual event invited school groups and visitors to attend facilitator-led workshops, including:
• Vickie Fremont: Students created African dolls while learning about the fabric, beads and shells as well as its significance in the African culture.
• Laura Gadson: Held a creative workshop making bandanas from quilted fabric to help students discover the African culture significance behind its colors.
• Pat Mabry: Presented a lively history on African Dance and Drum history
Afterwards, students filed into Ross Hall for a keynote address delivered by Senator Jamaal Bailey.
On Tuesday, November 22, NYBG held its annual Puerto Rican Heritage Month event celebrating the accomplishments and contributions of Puerto Ricans. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., 400 pre-registered school groups and visitors attended workshops and presentations throughout the Watson Education Building, Ross Hall, and Ross Gallery.An array of facilitators led workshops commemorating Puerto Rican Heritage Month:
On Sunday, November 20, NYBG held its annual Community Holiday Open House and Menorah and Tree lighting ceremony. Aaron Bouska, NYBG’s Vice President for Government & Community Relations at NYBG, welcomed the audience, which included many members of the Bronx community as well as several elected officials with their families.
Don Eliseo Trinidad receives the community service award
Last Wednesday, September 21, NYBG celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month at our annual Fiesta de Flores event.
Guests enjoyed tours of the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden at the height of its fall bloom, while the historic Stone Mill offered food and wine tastings, live fine art painting, floral arranging workshops, artisan vendors, musical entertainment, and a Bomba dance ensemble.
The highlight of the day came when Don Eliseo Trinidad was presented with this year’s community service award. As an NYBG community partner and the owner of La 21 Division, a botanica on the Grand Concourse, Don Eliseo was honored for his dedication and caring for the well-being of the Bronx community with medicinal plants. Ina Vandebroek, Ph.D., Assistant Curator of Economic Botany and Caribbean Program Director at NYBG, presented the award.
