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Inside The New York Botanical Garden

Enid A. Haupt Conservatory

Caribbean Garden Photo Contest: The Finalists

Posted in Photography on March 3 2011, by Plant Talk

The Conservatory (photo by Garden photographer Ivo M. Vermeulen)
The Conservatory (photo by Garden photographer Ivo M. Vermeulen)

Six weeks, dozens of new community members, and thousands of photos later, we’re down to 12 finalists in the first ever Caribbean Garden Photo Contest! We had a blast looking at all of your gorgeous shots, and I know that our photo guru Rich Pomerantz had a really great time meeting and working with many of you in the Conservatory. But like all good things, the contest had to come to an end (even though we’re already looking forward to next year!).

And there’s still time to vote in the contest to help us determine two overall winners in the Sense of Place and Macro categories! All you need is a free Flickr, Yahoo or Google account, and then you can leave a comment on your favorite photographs. The winner in each category will be determined based upon a final tally of comments and favorites gathered from today until Monday, March 7 at noon. So get clicking and support your favorite photographer!

See all the finalists below!

Sneak Peek: ‘The Orchid Show: On Broadway’

Posted in Behind the Scenes, Exhibitions, The Orchid Show on February 23 2011, by Plant Talk

Behind the Scenes at The Orchid Show: On BroadwayOpening night for The Orchid Show: On Broadway is getting closer by the day, and that means that Garden staff are hard at work wrangling orchids inside the historic Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. We thought you might like a sneak peek before the curtain comes up on this flower show full of showstoppers, star turns, and old favorites.

But that’s not all! The Orchid Show: On Broadway will also feature live music on weekends at the Broadway Cabaret; the opportunity to view rarely seen works by the don of Broadway, Al Hirschfeld, during Hirschfeld’s Broadway Scrapbook; and to attend classes, talks, and tours that will help demystify the art of caring for orchids at home.

Catch the first glimpse of The Orchid Show: On Broadway below!

Morning Eye Candy: Conservatory Trees

Posted in Photography on February 17 2011, by Plant Talk

Palms are what most people think they’ll see in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, but there are others, equally as beautiful.

Conservatory Trees

Ficus benjamina trees in the Conservatory (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)

The Caribbean Garden With an Ethnobotanist

Posted in Gardens and Collections, Gardens and Collections, Learning Experiences, Video on February 16 2011, by Plant Talk

Rustin Dwyer is Visual Media Production Specialist at The New York Botanical Garden.

An Ethno-what? It’s an all too common question for New York Botanical Garden Research Specialist Ina Vandebroek. Ethnobotany is a field many people take for granted and Ina finds that just saying “I work with plants” doesn’t quite explain it. Traveling the Caribbean, Ina has worked with local communities to document how plants have been and continue to be used medicinally. We took a quick visit to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory with Ina, where many Caribbean specimens are on display during The Caribbean Garden.

“Medicinal plants are a source for a lot of today’s pharmaceutical medicines,” said Vandebroek. “In a lot of places around the world people use plants as their only and first form of health care, so basically what ethnobotanists do is we go out to these remote places and we study how people use plants.”

Despite the fact humans have been using plants since the dawn of time, when thinking of ethnobotany many find it hard to get past the ideas of beat-influence Richard Schultes and Sean Connory’s rugged grey ponytail in the film Medicine Man. “It’s so much more than hallucinogenics and finding the next cure for cancer,” Ina said, laughing. “Its about helping communities that are really in need. We try to promote it as a science that can help local communities in conservation of their bio-cultural diversity.”

Ina’s current focus is on the flora of the Dominican Republic. She works not only in the Caribbean, but here in New York City with Dominican immigrants, frequenting many Botanicas.”We try to give those results back to them in the form of guides books as well as workshops within the community. We can also have programs together with universities to isolate bioactive compounds and those could lead to new medicines for humankind.”

Here’s a quick video about Ina’s thoughts on ethnobotany and a few of her favorite Caribbean plants on display now in the Conservatory.




You can find out a little more about her work here.