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Inside The New York Botanical Garden

This Weekend: Cheers!

Posted in Holiday Train Show on December 6 2013, by Ann Rafalko

barcar1It’s time for Bar Car Nights! Bar Car Nights are your chance to see the Holiday Train Show in a sophisticated, adults-only setting, cocktail in hand.

Starting tonight and happening again tomorrow, Bar Car Nights are a festive, sparkling, cheer-filled opportunity to embrace the holidays while indulging the kid inside you. The Holiday Train Show is a must-see for architecture buffs, train enthusiasts, and anyone who loves New York City.

See all your favorite New York-area landmarks recreated in miniature using only plant materials under the dazzling domes of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory while indulging in a signature cocktail designed just for us!

Bar Car Nights are a great date night, a wonderful way to celebrate the holidays with your friends, or a chance to see one of New York City’s most enchanting holiday experiences in a sophisticated, child-free setting. Cap the night off with dinner from one of our exclusive partner restaurants or nosh your way around our new Holiday Dining Pavilion: Streets of New York, Stephen STARR Events’ dining experience that celebrates everything delicious about historic NYC street food.

A very limited number of tickets are still available for tonight and tomorrow, so snap them up as quickly as you can and join us for this enchanting evening!

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The Train Show in Real Life, This Sunday in Queens

Posted in Holiday Train Show on December 5 2013, by Ann Rafalko

Bowne House
Bowne House

This weekend you have a great opportunity to visit some of the buildings of the Holiday Train Show in real life, as the Queens Historical Society hosts the 26th annual Queens Holiday Historic House Tour on Sunday, December 8.

The participating houses are: The Kingsland Homestead, Voelker Orth House, Lewis H. Latimer House Museum, Friends Meeting House, Flushing Town Hall, the Bowne House, and new this year, the Louis Armstrong House Museum.

Start your tour at any house, and then hop on a trolley and head to the next destination! Each location will offer special activities, delicious refreshments, and a glimpse at what life was like during the holidays decades, or even centuries ago.

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This Friday: Greet the Season on Roosevelt Island!

Posted in Programs and Events on December 4 2013, by Matt Newman

HTS Roosevelt Island Lighthouse
The Holiday Train Show‘s Roosevelt Island Lighthouse

A traditional tree-lighting ceremony is so central to the winter experience in New York City that it’s hard to imagine ringing in the holidays without one. And while our own lighting has already taken place this year, our good friends with the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) are just as keen to celebrate the season of twinkling lights, eye-catching ornaments, and memorable company. This Friday, they’re hosting one of the best kept secrets in the boroughs with their own tree-lighting ceremony—one that boasts a thriving small town spirit you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else in the city.

If you’ve never paid a visit to this sliver of island east of Manhattan, maybe you’ll recognize its contribution to our Holiday Train Show. The Roosevelt Island Lighthouse was originally built as the Blackwell Island Light in 1872, and since then it’s not only been added to the National Register of Historic Places, but immortalized in natural materials as a seasonal miniature in our Enid A. Haupt Conservatory.

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Who Am I? A Holiday Train Show Building Quiz

Posted in Holiday Train Show on December 4 2013, by Ann Rafalko

I am a beloved New York City museum, famed for my collection of old masters and important furniture. I am currently riding a wave of popularity based on a coincidental association with one of the year’s most popular novels. I am located on the Upper East Side, was once owned by a prominent American industrialist, and I am home to one of the world’s premier art research facilities and libraries. Who am I? whoami-1

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Morning Eye Candy: Look Up

Posted in Photography on December 4 2013, by Ann Rafalko

New Yorkers tend to look down a lot, and for good reason. It’s a busy town. So it’s important to be reminded sometimes that looking up can lead to remarkable sights!

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Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen

Gardening by the Sea: Shrubs & Trees

Posted in Gardening Tips on December 3 2013, by Sonia Uyterhoeven

Sonia Uyterhoeven is the NYBG‘s Gardener for Public Education.

Ilex opaca
Ilex opaca

I was recently sent a number of questions from readers still dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in their gardens. Many of the questions pertained to planting privacy screens that can withstand the perils of the sea. These protective plants are broken into primary dune plants; plants that commonly grow on the dunes closest to the ocean, and secondary dune plants; plants that grow on the backside of dunes and on dunes that are protected by primary dunes.

When planning a seaside garden, this privacy screen serves a secondary purpose in protecting more sensitive plants from wind and sea spray. Despite this protection, it is still important to choose your garden plants carefully, as they must be able to withstand sea spray, bright sunlight, periodic dessication, intermittent inundation, and poor soil nutrition. I discuss these considerations and give a list of good plants for these conditions here.

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