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Plant Talk

Inside The New York Botanical Garden

This Weekend: Enjoy Curative Plants & A Restorative Walk

Posted in Programs and Events on January 29 2016, by Lansing Moore

Mandevilla-Sun-Parasol-Giant-WhiteThe Garden grounds continue to shine under a bright blanket of snow. This weekend offers several tours that highlight the season’s most picturesque parts of NYBG as part of a brisk winter walk. Our ongoing exhibition, Wild Medicine in the Tropics, is on view in the warmth of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, so warm up inside the landmark glasshouse as you admire the curative bounty of tropical plants on display.

In the meantime, Valentine’s Day is around the corner, and it’s not too early to start planning a romantic day with that special someone. We’re pleased to offer a full afternoon of tours, talks, chocolate tastings, and even a pop-up bar in the Haupt Conservatory. Complete your intimate celebration with a full-service dining experience at the Hudson Garden Grill, where a special prix fixe lunch menu is available through February 25.

View the full schedule of tours and programs below!

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Color Our Collections in the Mertz Library!

Posted in From the Library on January 29 2016, by Esther Jackson

Esther Jackson is the Public Services Librarian at NYBG’s LuEsther T. Mertz Library where she manages Reference and Circulation services and oversees the Plant Information Office. She spends much of her time assisting researchers, providing instruction related to library resources, and collaborating with NYBG staff on various projects related to Garden initiatives and events.

#ColorOurCollectionsCome #ColorOurCollections in the Mertz Library during two events next week! On Wednesday, February 3, and Friday, February 5, from 12 p.m. until 2 p.m., the Mertz Library will be hosting coloring parties for all those looking to de-stress and chase away the winter blues.

In case you are wondering how coloring and the Library might go together, rest assured that we are not scribbling all over the Library’s books. (Although marginalia is another fascinating component of some of the great works we hold.) Instead, we will be offering participants coloring books featuring some of the many beautiful illustrations seen in our collections. Keen readers of Flora Illustrata: Great Works from the LuEsther T. Mertz Library of The New York Botanical Garden, (published in 2014 by Yale University Press), will spot some of the images featured in that work, as well as images from the library’s seed and nursery catalog collection, much of which was recently digitized and made available through the Biodiversity Heritage Library.

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Morning Eye Candy: Stamp of Approval

Posted in Photography on January 29 2016, by Matt Newman

The New York Botanical Garden’s LuEsther T. Mertz Library is home to a trove of botanical treasures—and not just of the written variety. Our Library also contains one of the country’s most extensive collections of nursery and seed catalogs, windows into the rich history of botany and horticulture that are valued as much for their incredible artwork as for their academic uses.

Thanks to a partnership with the U.S. Postal Service, you can now bring a bit of that art home in the form of 10 colorful new postage stamps from the Botanical Art Forever collection. Each one boasts a piece of artwork from a catalog published as early as the Garden’s founding in 1891 and up into the early 20th century. They’ll be available nationwide, so keep an eye out!

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From the Library: The Field Guide to Peppers

Posted in From the Library on January 26 2016, by Esther Jackson

Esther Jackson is the Public Services Librarian at NYBG’s LuEsther T. Mertz Library where she manages Reference and Circulation services and oversees the Plant Information Office. She spends much of her time assisting researchers, providing instruction related to library resources, and collaborating with NYBG staff on various projects related to Garden initiatives and events.

The Field Guide to Peppers by Dave DeWitt & Janie Lamson, 307 pp. Timber Press.
The Field Guide to Peppers by Dave DeWitt & Janie Lamson,
307 pp. Timber Press.

The Field Guide to Peppers promises to help readers achieve two things: “to identify unfamiliar pepper varieties … and to assist in the selection of peppers” for inclusion in gardens. Authors Dave DeWitt and Janie Lamson bring extensive expertise and differing strengths to this publication. DeWitt, known to some as the “Pope of Peppers,” has authored over 30 books related to peppers and spicy foods. Lamson, the “Chile Goddess,” is the owner of Cross Country Nurseries in New Jersey and grows and sells all 400 pepper varieties covered in Field Guide.

Field Guide is undeniably attractive even at first glance, with bold and colorful cover art. A quick skim through the book heightens the appeal, bright red pages and accents complementing full-color photos of all 400 peppers. Most readers likely have a favorite pepper, and I found the images of jalapeños to be especially attractive.

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Morning Eye Candy: A Visit from Jonas

Posted in Photography on January 25 2016, by Matt Newman

Saturday’s blizzard made for quite the scene at the Garden over the weekend, with feet of snow painting the landscape white. And while we were closed to give our grounds staff time to cut a path through it all, we’ll be open again this Tuesday for all to come and enjoy the winter scenery!

Jonas in the Garden

Tulip Tree Allée – Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen