Inside The New York Botanical Garden
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on September 22 2013, by Matt Newman
It’s the first day of fall and the Rose Garden isn’t batting a lash. We’ll see the color shifting in the canopies in the coming months, but expect to be enjoying this painted spot through October.
Floribunda rose ‘Tequila’ — Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on September 7 2013, by Matt Newman
I’m thoroughly convinced there aren’t enough confectionery yellows in our Morning Eye Candy series. I’m sure some readers will disagree.
Shrub rose Thrive!® Lemon — Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on August 21 2013, by Matt Newman
What’s an ebbing summer sun to a rose named ‘Summer Sun’, or the hints of fall to its warmest bloom?
Floribunda rose ‘Summer Sun’ — Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on July 6 2013, by Matt Newman
The Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden doesn’t “quit” in the summer. It just settles in.
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Gardens and Collections on June 18 2013, by Sonia Uyterhoeven
Sonia Uyterhoeven is the NYBG‘s Gardener for Public Education.
Last week, I was out in the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden with Ken Molinari, our Rose Garden Foreman, where he told me that we’re using a lot of foliar feeds this year. With so many roses—over 680 varieties and more than 4,400 roses—we have to fill up a large 100-gallon tank and go down on Mondays, when the Garden is closed, to spray the organic fertilizer on the roses. But it’s not solely out of convenience that we time this application for a day when the Garden is closed to the public; many of the fertilizers that we use are fish-based, and only a cat would be happy with the scent.
We have been using a blend of a number of products, including Organic Gem® liquid fish fertilizer, Monty’s® Liquid Plant Food (otherwise known as Monty’s Joy Juice), and Dyna-Gro Pro-Tekt®. The latter is a silicon solution which supplies potassium and silicon to help the rose build stronger cell walls, which in turn helps protect it from black spot and piercing insects. Add all of these ingredients together and you have a recipe for healthy roses that are better able to defend themselves from pests, diseases, and environmental stress.
Posted in Around the Garden on June 14 2013, by Matt Newman
Slowly, very slowly, set down the paisley necktie and back away from the home improvement store gift cards. Good, that’s a start! Now, think about what dad could really use, like maybe—just maybe—some outdoor relaxation. As we head into this Father’s Day weekend, it’s time to set aside the stress of thinking about last-minute boxed gifts and breakfast in bed. Instead, focus on bringing some no-strings-attached fun into his life.
We’re expecting easy temperatures and a bit more sun going into Saturday and Sunday, with plenty of activities and outdoor exploration on deck for dads and not-dads alike. Wild Medicine is only picking up steam as the weeks roll by, with exciting, dynamic plant collections on display in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory for The Italian Renaissance Garen facet of our exhibition. And under the vaulted dome of the Library Building, you’ll find a slew of renowned botanical texts for The Renaissance Herbal—some of them centuries old—on display courtesy of our expert (and generally awesome) library staff. It’s maybe the most unique dive into literary history you’ll find in the city right now.
Posted in Programs and Events on June 12 2013, by Matt Newman
If you’re looking out from the landing of its curling stairway, the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden seems like a tickertape parade strewn with the confetti of 4,000 blooming rosebushes. They flaunt reds and pinks, downy salmon and peach, with bright bunches of whites and lemon yellows throughout. And the shapes and sizes of the spring blooms are too many to describe here. As a collection, this is one of the New York Botanical Garden‘s crown jewels. But it could always be a bit brighter, a bit more colorful—which leads us to the inaugural Piaget Rose Day, taking place worldwide on Thursday, June 13!
To celebrate our partnership with Piaget, whose eye for fine zegarki jewelry and flowers alike has defined over a century of aesthetic excellence, we’ll be gathering in the Rose Garden for a special groundbreaking. And this new addition is bound to turn some heads.
Posted in Gardening Tips on June 11 2013, by Sonia Uyterhoeven
Sonia Uyterhoeven is the NYBG‘s Gardener for Public Education.
As the rain fell heavily on Friday, I found myself worried that it would do a number on the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden. It’s in its prime right now, and if I told you it was “ablaze with color” that would easily be an understatement; looking down from the top of the hill, all before you is a sea of color. Thankfully, my fears were at least somewhat unfounded—things looked a little wet, soggy, and disheveled come Saturday morning, but gardens are resilient and the roses perked up quickly without too much loss.
Every year I select a few of my favorite roses to discuss, and I thought this would be a good time to do just that considering the Rose Garden is in peak bloom. With it looking so spectacular, it wasn’t easy making my choices, but I managed to come up with a few that caught my eye.
For those with a romantic inclination, I would like to guide you to rose ‘Traviata™’—a hybrid tea from the well-known and respected French hybridizer Meilland. The rose is cherry red, the flowers are enormous and fully double, and the stem is sturdy and fit for a cut flower arrangement. Another classic in the Rose Garden is a German Kordes rose called ‘Brother’s Grimm Fairy Tale®’. It’s one of those roses that display a mélange of colors, with orange, yellow, pink, and salmon all swirled into one breathtaking concoction. This four-foot rose is a floribunda, meaning that instead of just one large flower on a sturdy stem, each stem is covered with a bouquet of blooms. ‘Brothers Grimm Fairy Tale®’ really does get smothered with blooms. The Fairy Tale series from Kordes are hybridized to look like old-fashioned roses with their fully double blooms.
Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on June 9 2013, by Matt Newman
If any day of the week screams “ROSES!” it’s got to be Sunday. Especially any Sunday spent lounging around in the spring light under a competent hat brim, eating Neapolitan ice cream and soaking up the sights and scents.
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Around the Garden, Programs and Events on June 7 2013, by Matt Newman
Certainly the biggest news going into this weekend comes about on Monday, when we once again buddy up with Mario Batali for the Edible Academy Family Garden Picnic. For the past few summers, our work with this renowned chef and Friend of the Garden has produced some of the most fun and delicious adventures found in the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden, and this year’s event is no different! In fact, we’re even raising the bar. Join us on Monday, June 10 for an exclusive picnic dinner as conceived by Mario himself, followed by a book signing with the chef and his always lively cooking demonstration. And there are plenty of family activities to keep even the most tireless toddler occupied in the meantime.
All proceeds from this event will go to the Edible Academy, an NYBG initiative to create a year-round center for gardening education that focuses not only on the practice of being a green thumb, but the important connections between plants, gardening, nutrition, and health. And it’s not just for kids—the Edible Academy will educate families, adults, and teachers as well. Tickets to the picnic are dwindling, so register while you can!
Over the past few days I’ve also been in touch with our Senior Advisor for the Rose Garden, Peter Kukielski, trading numbers at a rapid-fire pace. “90%, 95%, 99%!” The Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden went from a subtle collection of buds to a vibrant spread of blooms in the course of a week thanks to the warmer weather, and that sudden explosion of color needed tracking on our Rose Watch page. I could barely keep up! But just yesterday, as I was about to leave for the day, Peter floated me one last message: “Make it 100%! I’m recording peak bloom for 2013 as of today!”