Savor the play of spring light and colors, the sounds of birds and pollinators at work, and the fantastical profusion of blooms in this delightful video of the Rose Garden in June.
SUN, OCT 4 AT 11:00 AM EDT
loved. Live.
The deadline to complete the census is almost here! If you haven’t yet done so, please take a few minutes to fill out the #2020Census form today at my2020census.gov⠀
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Two Congressional seats and New York’s fair share of billions of federal dollars are at stake. This includes funding for our public education, affordable housing, roads and bridges, and much more. ⠀
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Brooklyn had the lowest self-response rate of any New York City borough in the 2010 Census. Fill out the form today and #MakeBrooklynCount!
Climate Week is taking place now through the 27th! Climate Week NYC is one of the largest climate summits, this year with a special focus on the effects of COVID-19 on the planet. Visit climateweeknyc.org to follow events taking place this week.
CLIMATEWEEKNYC.ORG
Climate Week NYC
BBG's new Elizabeth Scholtz Woodland Garden was designed with the existing tall canopy of oaks and hornbeam overhead, and showcases plants and gardening strategies suitable for Brooklyn backyards and similar shady, dry conditions.
Learn more about the plants included in this new space, and consider including them in your city garden!
BBG.ORG
Woodland Garden Plants and Design Ideas for Your Shady, Urban Garden - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Thrilled to share the news that Adrian Benepe is joining BBG as our new president and CEO! Adrian is one of the nation’s most accomplished leaders at the intersection of community and open green spaces. Born and raised in NYC, he started out as a 16 y.o junior park ranger and rose to oversee the city’s Parks as Commissioner from 2002 to 2012. Recently, as SVP of the Trust for Public Land, Adrian has advocated for access to green spaces as a democratic right, and has led teams mapping and studying the role of plants in offsetting the heat island effect across the country. Please join us in giving him a hearty BBG welcome.
Consciously watching for small wonders in the world around you during an otherwise ordinary walk could amplify the mental health benefits of the stroll, according to an interesting new psychological study of what the study’s authors call “awe walks.” – The New York Times
NYTIMES.COM
An ‘Awe Walk’ Might Do Wonders for Your Well-Being
"As the gardener and curator of the Visitor Center gardens, I work with a small team from New York Green Roofs to maintain the planting... Weeding takes up the bulk of our time, but we also check on the irrigation system, monitor for pests, inspect the drains and weatherproofing elements, take soil samples to assess nutrient levels, apply soil amendments as needed, and take notes and photographs for monthly reports."
The Diane H. and Joseph S. Steinberg Visitor Center has a 9,600-square-foot green roof meadow thriving atop the building, with a palette of over 28,000 plants. Learn more about the types of plants found in the garden and the process that goes into maintaining the green roof from Curator Anne Hunter.
BBG.ORG
Get to Know the Garden’s Green Roof - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Join us tomorrow, Oct. 4, as Mantra Percussion performs "loved." live on Cherry Esplanade.
"loved." is a site-specific sound composition created for BBG by NYC-based composer Michael Gordon to honor those we have lost in the pandemic.
https://www.bbg.org/visit/event/loved_live
Reserve your advance ticket at bbg.org/visit
BBG.ORG
loved. Live. - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
SUN, OCT 18 AND 1 MORE
Art in the Garden: Fall Sundays
In honor of #IndigenousPeoplesDay, we would like to highlight the work of the Native American Food Sovereignty Alliance - NAFSA, a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring the food systems that support Indigenous self-determination, wellness, cultures, values, communities, economies, languages, and families, while rebuilding relationships with the land, water, plants, and animals that sustain Indigenous communities. NAFSA is composed of a Turtle Island-wide alliance of Indigenous food sovereignty activists, advocates, practitioners, and knowledge-holders.
Through their efforts and programs, NAFSA brings stakeholders and communities together to advocate and support best practices and policies that enhance dynamic Indigenous food systems, cultivate sustainable economic development, provide education and mentorship, restore Indigenous trade routes, uphold stewardship responsibilities, and tend multi-generational empowerment. NAFSA works to put Indigenous farmers, wild-crafters, fishers, hunters, ranchers, and eaters at the center of decision-making on policies, strategies and natural resource management.
NAFSA houses two signature programs - the Indigenous Seedkeepers Network and the Indigenous Food and Culinary Mentorship Program. The Indigenous Seedkeepers Network (ISKN) is a shade tree of support to the essential work of Indigenous regional and tribal seed initiatives. NAFSA’s Food and Culinary Mentorship Program assists Indigenous chefs and cooks in reconnecting with their traditional diets and lifeways for the wellbeing and health of their communities.
To learn more and join NAFSA's virtual community, follow Native American Food Sovereignty Alliance - NAFSA and subscribe to their quarterly newsletters by visiting nativefoodalliance.org
Last week's Art in the Garden: Fall Sundays filled BBG with live music and dance as performers presented their work throughout the grounds. The second and final Fall Sundays takes place on October 25 from 1 to 6 p.m. Reserve your advance ticket at bbg.org/visit
Fall Sundays are presented in partnership with Haiti Cultural Exchange.
Images: 1. Craig Harris performing in the Osborne Garden 2. Melanie Charles performing in the Plant Family Collection 3. Charlie Burnham performing in the Water Garden. Photos by Michael Stewart.
As the weather turns brisk, you might find yourself doing a double take when you spot the gorgeous fruits of this month’s weedy plant, porcelain berry (Ampelopsis glandulosa var. brevipedunculata). Although the porcelain berry is still planted ornamentally due to its showy display of sparkling blues and purples, it is invasive to the native flora of the East Coast.
Learn more about this month's Weed of the Month.
BBG.ORG
Weed of the Month: Porcelain Berry - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
"The researchers said their experiment shows it may be possible to improve the development of the immune system with relatively simple changes to the living environments of urban children." – Guardian US
THEGUARDIAN.COM
Greener play areas boost children’s immune systems, research finds
This month, Adrian Benepe joins Brooklyn Botanic Garden as its seventh president. At a time of historic challenge, he shares his thoughts on the role botanic gardens can play in sustainable cities, resilient communities, and our collective mental health.
BBG.ORG
Q&A with Brooklyn Botanic Garden President Adrian Benepe - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Today's Art in the Garden: Fall Sundays is named one of the one best things to do in NYC this weekend by
Time Out New York! Advance tickets are required.
TIMEOUT.COM
Brooklyn Botanic Garden is hosting a fall foliage-themed event with live music this weekend
"Botanical gardens have long represented an ideal of nature civilized, clipped and classified. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden hasn’t discarded taxonomic collecting or spectacular floral displays but has steadily brought more of an ecological ethos to its intimate 52 acres. The new plant groupings are comparatively disorderly, host insects and birds, and change constantly with flowers, seed pods, and leaf colors constantly popping and fading." – The New York Times
NYTIMES.COM
Brooklyn Botanic Garden Turns Over a New Leaf
Brooklyn Botanic Garden remembers and honors those who have served our country. #VeteransDay
We love to watch autumn leaves as they morph from green to red, orange, or yellow, but once they fall to the ground, many gardeners no longer see them as beautiful, but instead as a mess to be contained and removed. But that might not always be the best approach.
How do you decide when to let leaves be and when to remove them? Here are some questions to help you decide.
BBG.ORG
Autumn Leaves: Should You Collect Them or Leave Them in Place? - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Through a summer and fall unlike any we have known, BBG was proud to work with The Campaign Against Hunger and the Brooklyn Museum in their Pop-Up Food Pantry. From June through November 2, BBG was able to donate more than 2,400 lbs. of produce grown in our Children’s Garden in 73 plant beds set up during BBG’s closure. The total produce donated was market valued at $10,253 and was given to an average of 150 individual families every week.
We are honored to have worked with the Campaign Against Hunger and the Brooklyn Museum, along with BBG staff, volunteers, and a bountiful garden, in this act of neighbors helping neighbors. #BrooklynStrong #CampaignAgainstHunger
This project recently is supported by an award from the U.S. Botanic Garden / American Public Gardens Association Urban Agriculture Resilience Program.
Clear your mind with a walk among the brilliant shades of yellow, red, and orange enveloping the Garden. Reserve your ticket now for this weekend at bbg.org/visit
BBG is honored to have received an extraordinary $1 million Challenge Grant from the Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust in response to ongoing revenue loss in the face of COVID-19.
The Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust was established by the late Robert Wilson, a long-serving trustee of the Garden. Creating transformative change was a signature approach throughout Robert Wilson’s philanthropy.
To unlock this $1 million, BBG must raise $3 million in new and increased support through the end of 2021. We can’t do this without you! Please consider making a donation today to help us meet this challenge and fully release the Trust’s grant! For more information, please contact development@bbg.org. Thank you for your generous support of BBG.
To donate, please visit:
https://support.bbg.org/pages/bbg-donation-form-social
Learn a new skill when you join one of BBG's online classes! Current classes include Chinese Brush Painting, Smartphone Photography, and Landscape Painting from Home. Sign up today at https://classes.bbg.org/
The Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden features two species (Acer palmatum and A. japonicum) and several cultivars of Japanese maples. In Japan, changing leaf colors inspire the tradition of momijigari, or autumn maple leaf viewing, in which foliage fans travel to gardens, parks, and into the mountains to admire the show.
This Thanksgiving, we are grateful to our supporters and community, who remind us daily of the importance of beauty, science, and the ability to find ones place in nature. A garden is only a collection of plants and landscapes without people. It's you who imbue it with meaning. We are lucky to have a community who supports and loves the Garden.
The Garden is closed today for Thanksgiving but will reopen tomorrow should you wish to #OptOutside this holiday weekend.
We wish you a safe and healthy Thanksgiving.
BBG congratulates East 25th Street, a four time Greenest Block winner, for becoming East Flatbush’s first historic district!
BROWNSTONER.COM
LPC Unanimously Approves Landmarking of Flatbush’s East 25th Street Historic District
Take a cue from landscape designer Todd Haiman and visit BBG this weekend:
"Sometimes I’ll run over to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden with a plant nerd friend....To me it’s a completely transportive place to walk through. There are acres of original forests there. It feels primeval, like bathing in nature." –The New York Times
NYTIMES.COM
How a Designer of Outdoor Spaces Spends His Sundays
Today is the lighting ceremony for the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. This year's tree is a "Picea abies," commonly known as Norway spruce. The species is native to Europe but is now naturalized in some parts of the United States.
Do you know which kind of Christmas tree you have? Try our Christmas Tree Key at bbg.org/treekey and learn what species you've brought home this year!
BBG.ORG
Identify Your Christmas Tree - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
The second installment in our Plant Evolution series is here. The multipart series explores some of the major events during the evolution of plants. The first explored plants evolving onto the land from their aquatic ancestors. In this new blog, learn about the origin of trees and forests from Jamie Boyer, paleobotanist and vice president of Children’s Education at New York Botanical Garden.
BBG.ORG
Great Moments in Plant Evolution, Part 2: The Origin of Trees and Forests - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
This year, BBG’s Education team worked with Title I and Urban Advantage teachers to provide online teacher trainings and resources during the challenging school year. BBG connected with thousands of families to bring science into homes with free plant-based activities. A new class of Brooklyn Urban Gardeners completed their training online, and celebrated with a virtual graduation.
All this could not have not been possible without your support.
BBG is facing an unprecedented deficit due to COVID-19, and every dollar you can donate helps. Visit https://support.bbg.org/pages/bbg-donation-form-social to support the Garden's programs with a donation today.
This is not the first time Brooklyn Botanic Garden has faced a pandemic. The Garden was founded in 1910, and just a short while later, the influenza pandemic of 1918 emerged in the United States. At that time, the effects of flu were very much intertwined with World War I, as well as with other devastating illnesses.
Read more on what BBG was like in 1918, a time of pandemic, war, and poverty, in our latest article.
https://www.bbg.org/news/brooklyn_botanic_garden_in_1918_a_time_of_pandemic_war_and_poverty
BBG.ORG
Brooklyn Botanic Garden in 1918: A Time of Pandemic, War, and Poverty - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
SAT, DEC 19 AND 1 MORE
Winter Solstice Walks
Over the summer and into the fall, BBG's Children’s Garden was transformed into a 1-acre working farm, growing vegetables to share. 100 lbs. of fresh organic produce was donated to 150 members of our community in need each week.
This could not have not been possible without your support.⠀
BBG is facing an unprecedented deficit due to COVID-19, and every dollar you can donate helps. Visit https://support.bbg.org/pages/bbg-donation-form-social to support the Garden's programs with a donation today.
Happy Hanukkah from BBG! The Festival of Lights commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, and a one-day supply of oil miraculously lighting the menorah for eight nights. Wishing all who celebrate eight nights of joy.
Pictured: Blue flowers on the Plumbago auriculata (cape leadwort) blooming now in the Warm Temperate Pavilion. Photo by Michael Stewart.
As you walk through the Garden at this time of year, you'll see pops of colors from various berries that persist through winter, like the bright red berries of Nandina domestica or Heavenly-Bamboo.
Despite its name, Heavenly-Bamboo is actually an evergreen shrub, not a bamboo. This colorful specimen can be found in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden.
Photo by Michael Stewart.
This holiday season, Adopt a Plant at BBG! Your gift will directly support BBG’s care of its world-class collections—and will bring a smile to someone in your community. This year’s eight adoptable plants highlight the diversity of our gardens and collections, and they symbolize what we at BBG hope to share with you this winter: gratitude, warmth, friendship, and peace. ⠀
Adopt a plant by December 22 to ensure e-delivery by December 25! BBG will send an e-card with your personalized message, a photo, and plant facts.⠀
Visit www.bbg.org/support/dedications to learn more.
The Garden will have a late opening today at 12 p.m. to allow for storm clean up. Stay safe out there, and we hope to see you soon!
Due to last night's snow storm, BBG will be closed today while our grounds team cleans up. ❄️ Ticket holders for today will be receiving an email with more information.
Stay safe and warm New York!
Image: The Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden in a past winter. Photo by Rebecca Bullene.
The Strategist includes a membership to BBG as one of the best gifts for gardeners!
"A gift membership to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden makes it easy for gardeners in the five boroughs to seek respite in nature whenever the mood hits."
NYMAG.COM
The Best (Strategist-Approved) Gifts for Gardeners
Merry Christmas from BBG!
Ilex aquifolium (English holly) is the holly species most commonly associated with Christmas, especially in England where it is one of the few native evergreen plants. Its bright red berries ripen in winter and provide food for birds.
The Garden will be closed today and New Years Day. Visit soon to enjoy the quiet beauty of the Garden during winter.
Ilex aquifolium (English holly) in the Shakespeare Garden. Photo by Michael Stewart.
An update in the Fight for Sunlight: As the @Gothamist reported, Mayor Bill de Blasio has come out against “the proposed 960 Franklin development in Crown Heights that would harm the research and educational work carried out by one of this city’s prized cultural institutions, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and is grossly out of scale with the neighborhood.”
BBG’s president, Adrian Benepe, was also interviewed for the article: “[Benepe] said the organization was grateful to de Blasio as well as the community activists and elected officials that rallied against the plan. ‘On the shortest darkest day of the year, this is a big blast of sunlight in every sense. Today is a solstice and we’ve been fighting for sunlight for more than a year.’”
While we are cautiously optimistic about this news, we will remain vigilant in opposing any zoning changes that will harm the Garden.
GOTHAMIST.COM
In Surprise Shift, Mayor De Blasio Says He Opposes Controversial Crown Heights Towers
The latest in our Birds of Brooklyn series looks at the Winter Wren, one of the great songbirds of North America. Winter wrens start to appear in city parks in October. They are usually located by their song, which they like to sing on pleasant winter days.
Continue to follow our Birds of Brooklyn series year-round at bbg.org/gardening/birds_of_brooklyn
Photo by Melissa McMasters.
When you step into the Native Flora Garden, no matter what season, you feel a sense of wonderment and mystery. During the lush summer months, the garden pulses with activity. During the winter months, it’s peaceful and quiet, with an almost haunting beauty.
The Native Flora Garden exhibits plants native to the New York area. At times it can feel as if we have grown almost completely out of touch with the spirit and legend of the forest that once flourished here. Reconnect with nature again with a trip to the Native Flora Garden this wintertime. #WinterSolstice #OptOutside
BBG.ORG
The Quiet Earth: The Native Flora Garden in Winter - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Happy New Year's Day from BBG. We wish everyone a healthy and happy #2021.
Pictured: Light shining through a Cedrus libani (cedar of Lebanon) in the Plant Family Collection. Photo by Michael Stewart.
In 2020, connecting with you outside of the garden was more important than ever before. These were a few of your favorite photos from this past year. We can't wait to welcome you in 2021.
1. Prunus ‘Kanzan’ (flowering cherry cultivar) on Cherry Esplanade. Photo by Steven Severinghaus. 2. Rhododendrons and azaleas blooming in the Osborne Garden. Photo by Blanca Begert. 3. Autumn in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden. Photo by Michael Stewart. 4. Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum’ in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden. Photo by Brian Funk.
During this challenging year, BBG’s top priority has been to find ways to connect with you and our community.
We could not do it without you! Before the year comes to a close, consider giving to Brooklyn's Garden. BBG is facing an unprecedented deficit due to COVID-19, and every dollar you can donate helps. For more info visit: support.bbg.org/pages/bbg-donation-form-social
Thank you for your love of the Garden and your continued commitment.
Photo by Dave Allen.
"But a Facebook video caught my eye one day in June, of the trombonist Craig Harris performing at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Accompanied by the keyboardist Pete Drungle, framed by a flowering grove and a trellis, he played “Breathe.”— The New York Times
Revisit BBG's virtual performances from the past year, now on bbg.org/videos.
NYTIMES.COM
The Year in Improvised Music: ‘Everything’s Changing. So the Music Should.’
The Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker migrates from the Catskills and is a winter resident in the Garden and elsewhere in Brooklyn.
The bird is a keystone species, that is, a species that by its actions may affect a whole community. The yellow-bellied sapsucker provides habitat for other species by building nests that can be used by birds like swallows, chickadees, and bluebirds the following year.
The yellow-bellied sapsucker is also a great provider of food. It drills many “wells” in living trees that bleed throughout the year. Small birds like warblers and hummingbirds, as well as butterflies and bats, also come to these sap wells to feed.
You may spot this woodpecker here from now until April, when it heads back north.
Photo by Steven Severinghaus.
President and CEO of Brooklyn Botanic Garden Adrian Benepe will give the keynote address at the 25th annual Plant-O-Rama, the symposium for horticultural professionals in the NY area.
Benepe's address will discuss the way the pandemic has underscored the intrinsic human value of and need for public gardens, parks, and lands, but also laid bare many social and cultural injustices. The challenges are many as we search for solutions and move forward.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden has been the on-site host and partner from the beginning including this year when the event goes virtual!
Learn more at https://www.metrohort.org/calendar/plant-o-rama
METROHORT.ORG
Plant-O-Rama
Witch hazel flowers earlier than other plants and stays in bloom longer as well. Most perennial plants bloom for roughly two weeks, but witch hazel does so for eight weeks or more. It first opens in winter, usually during a warm spell, but the flowers don’t die when the temperature drops back down. Instead, the ribbonlike petals curl up temporarily, and as soon as the temperature rises, they unfurl again.
Image: Hamamelis × intermedia ‘Jelena’ blooming in the Plant Family Collection. Photo by Michael Stewart.
Learn a new skill in the new year with an online class at BBG. Choose from a bevy of online classes to expand your skills in gardening, food, wellness, art, or horticulture. Classes include How to Not Kill Your Houseplant, Botany for Horticulturists, and Watercoloring Variegated Leaves.
Visit bbg.org/visit/calendar to sign up for a class today.
Photo by Lee Patrick.
The calm and beauty of the Garden awaits you this winter, offering a balm for challenging times. The Garden's grounds are open for a restorative walk, and winter weekdays are pay as you wish.⠀
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Get a closer look at ecosystems in the Garden by tuning into BBG's Winter Nature Walks audio tours. As you explore the Garden, listen and learn about the habits and survival strategies of wildlife in the winter months, guided by naturalist Brad Klein. Learn more at bbg.org/visit. ⠀
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Photo by Rebecca Bullene.
The Garden is open this #MLKDay for visitors to find respite, beauty, and inspiration.
We honor the life, legacy, and ongoing work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on this national day of service when all Americans are called on to volunteer to improve their communities.
This week we will spotlight some of the important service work being done in our neighborhoods by our partners and friends.
Last summer, BBG was proud to partner with the Campaign Against Hunger, anti-hunger advocates who have served over 1.4 million since the pandemic began. This #MLK week, they hope to pack 20,000 bags of nutritious food for community distribution. Check them out at @tcahnyc for more information on how to help them reach this goal.
Visitors walking past the icy pond in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden might notice that the painted turtles and red-eared sliders are not basking on the rocks as they do in summer. Where do they hunker down for winter? Turtles actually hibernate deep in the mud at the very bottom of the pond, insulated by layers of ice, water, and muck.
Learn more:
BBG.ORG
Where Did the Turtles Go? - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
President and CEO of Brooklyn Botanic Garden Adrian Benepe will give the keynote address at the 25th annual Plant-O-Rama, the symposium for horticultural professionals in the NY area.
Benepe's address will discuss the way the pandemic has underscored the intrinsic human value of and need for public gardens, parks, and lands, but also laid bare many social and cultural injustices. The challenges are many as we search for solutions and move forward.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden has been the on-site host and partner from the beginning including this year when the event goes virtual!
Learn more at https://www.metrohort.org/calendar/plant-o-rama
METROHORT.ORG
Plant-O-Rama
Witch hazel flowers earlier than other plants and stays in bloom longer as well. Most perennial plants bloom for roughly two weeks, but witch hazel does so for eight weeks or more. It first opens in winter, usually during a warm spell, but the flowers don’t die when the temperature drops back down. Instead, the ribbonlike petals curl up temporarily, and as soon as the temperature rises, they unfurl again.
Image: Hamamelis × intermedia ‘Jelena’ blooming in the Plant Family Collection. Photo by Michael Stewart.
Learn a new skill in the new year with an online class at BBG. Choose from a bevy of online classes to expand your skills in gardening, food, wellness, art, or horticulture. Classes include How to Not Kill Your Houseplant, Botany for Horticulturists, and Watercoloring Variegated Leaves.
Visit bbg.org/visit/calendar to sign up for a class today.
Photo by Lee Patrick.
As we conclude a week of highlighting service work, we want to take a moment to highlight the work of our Garden Apprentice Program (GAP) teens.
The GAP at Brooklyn Botanic Garden is a way for teens to learn about urban agriculture and the environment while working hands on at BBG. Last summer, GAP worked with the Brooklyn Cultural Adventures Program to create an educational activity video on upcycling that was shared with BCAP participants. The video was also posted onto the Brooklyn Museum's website. The lesson and video was entirely created by a small group of dedicated apprentices.
BBG's mission of inspiring a sense of stewardship of the environment includes teaching the importance of service work to the younger generation, and empowering them to make differences in their community and beyond.
Pictured: Past participants of the GAP program. Photos by Blanca Begert and Michael Stewart.
Taking a walk outdoors—solo or with your household or a socially-distanced group of friends—remains one of the safest activities to do now. It can also give your mind and body a much-needed winter recharge.
This weekend, visit BBG and tune into the first in our series of winter nature walks. Naturalist Brad Klein guides short audio walks through the Shelby White and Leon Levy Water Garden, Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, and Osborne Garden. As you walk, listen to descriptions of the habits and survival strategies of wildlife you may encounter in the winter months. Learn more:
BBG.ORG
Winter Nature Walks - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Although our Greenest Block contest had to be put on pause last year, that didn’t stop 2019 Greenest Block Winners, Lincoln Place, from coming together in new ways.
They continued to garden, promote green spaces, and uplift others during these difficult times. This past year, alongside their award-winning gardens could be found messages of thanks to first responders and essential workers in bright chalk.
As we highlight the importance of service work, we look to the neighbors of Lincoln Place, who demonstrate the power of green spaces in bringing people together and nurturing stronger communities.
"In normal winters, we socialize inside, head to cozy restaurants or escape to warmer climates and hope for an early spring. Alas, none of these options are good ones during the pandemic."
Read BBG President Adrian Benepe's new op-ed for New York Daily News about the importance of spending this winter outdoors.
https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-its-a-long-winter-go-outside-20210122-lis4ai4ij5b7pi3cc6wn3c4ijm-story.html
NYDAILYNEWS.COM
It’s a long winter. Go outside.
Even in the middle of January we can find the signs of sunnier days ahead. On this #InaugurationDay2021, hope is unfurling like a late winter bloom. Congratulations, President Biden and Vice President Harris on this momentous occasion.
Pictured: Chimonanthus praecox (wintersweet), blooming in January in the Children’s Garden. Photo by Lee Patrick.
This winter, BBG's public programming focuses on sound works with new site-specific compositions and audio walks that can be experienced at your own pace in the Garden or even from home.
Opening January 29, BBG and HERE Arts Center present "Meander" a new sound walk designed for Brooklyn Botanic Garden that guides listeners on a meditative stroll into the natural landscape.
Created by Joseph White and HERE Arts Residency Program artist Gelsey Bell, the composers who brought you Cairns (included on the New York Times “Best Theater of 2020” list), Meander encourages listeners to watch, listen, and reset their clocks to pastoral temporality, inviting them to sink into the complex patterns and fine details of the natural environment.
Audio tracks will be available at bbg.org/events starting January 29 and can be enjoyed on-site or at home. Upcoming winter Art in the Garden sound works will be announced soon.
Meander is copresented with HERE Arts Center.
Pictured: Gelsey Bell and Joseph White in the Water Garden. Photo by Michael Stewart.
"An old-growth forest is neither an assemblage of stoic organisms tolerating one another’s presence nor a merciless battle royale: It’s a vast, ancient and intricate society." Ferris Jabr's fascinating article for the The New York Times Magazine last month looked at the pioneering work of Suzanne Simard who studies the mycorrhizal network through which trees seem to communicate.
New Yorkers may be surprised to hear there are places to visit old-growth forests in every borough of the city. Visit New York City Department of Parks & Recreation to find your closest forest - or discover a new one!
Though BBG's landscape was entirely designed by people, visitors can find a small forest in BBG's Native Flora Garden, which exhibits plants native to the New York metropolitan area arranged to represent the natural habitats that once flourished here. Groupings of large trees are present in other parts of the Garden too, such as the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden and adjacent conifer collection.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/12/02/magazine/tree-communication-mycorrhiza.html
Pictured: Metasequoia glyptostroboides (dawn redwood) in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden. Photo by Michael Stewart.
The Northern Cardinal is one of the most beautiful and recognizable birds in North America and a common resident of the Garden. It is a nonmigrant species, and every cardinal we see at BBG was likely born and raised right here. #BirdsofBrooklyn
The downy, golden-gray buds of Paperbush Buds hang in tight clusters from its bare branches. Lacking scales, these buds are naked, but they do have fine hairs to protect them. The hairs also give the buds a wonderful shimmery quality so that they sparkle in the winter sun. Find these on the Perennial Border on Lily Pool Terrace.
BBG bonsai lovers: we know you've missed these special trees while the bonsai museum has been closed as a COVID-19 precaution. Now when you visit the Garden you will be able to get a better glimpse of them as the collection has been re-positioned to view from the terrace outside the museum. Come take a look!
As we conclude a week of highlighting service work, we want to take a moment to highlight the work of our Garden Apprentice Program (GAP) teens.
The GAP at Brooklyn Botanic Garden is a way for teens to learn about urban agriculture and the environment while working hands on at BBG. Last summer, GAP worked with the Brooklyn Cultural Adventures Program to create an educational activity video on upcycling that was shared with BCAP participants. The video was also posted onto the Brooklyn Museum's website. The lesson and video was entirely created by a small group of dedicated apprentices.
BBG's mission of inspiring a sense of stewardship of the environment includes teaching the importance of service work to the younger generation, and empowering them to make differences in their community and beyond.
Pictured: Past participants of the GAP program. Photos by Blanca Begert and Michael Stewart.
Taking a walk outdoors—solo or with your household or a socially-distanced group of friends—remains one of the safest activities to do now. It can also give your mind and body a much-needed winter recharge.
This weekend, visit BBG and tune into the first in our series of winter nature walks. Naturalist Brad Klein guides short audio walks through the Shelby White and Leon Levy Water Garden, Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, and Osborne Garden. As you walk, listen to descriptions of the habits and survival strategies of wildlife you may encounter in the winter months. Learn more:
BBG.ORG
Winter Nature Walks - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Physical activity and exposure to daylight, even on a dreary day, brightens mood, boosts energy, and sharpens the mind. Just recently, scientists have affirmed what many of us intuitively knew: Spending time in nature also improves mood.
These days, we all need the restorative balm of nature walks more than ever. Read on for a wintertime guide to some of the wonderful sights, smells, and sounds at BGG from psychotherapist and veteran tour guide Lynne Spevack. And plan a visit to the garden to take in lovely hellebores in pink and white, beautiful early-blooming camellias, delicate, ribbon-like witch-hazels, fragrant honeysuckle, aromatic leaves of spicebush, lovage, fennel, and spearmint.
BBG.ORG
Chase Away the Winter Blues with a Walk in the Garden - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Expand your skills with a virtual class at BBG! Upcoming courses include Herbs and Remedies for Clarity and Focus and Tai Chi and Qi Gong for Beginners. Learn more: https://classes.bbg.org
BBG will be closed today while our grounds team continues clean-up from the storm. Ticket holders for today will receive an email with information on their refunds.
Stay safe and warm! #BrooklynBotanicGarden
The City Planning Commission today certified the application for the 960 Franklin Avenue development plan that would cause catastrophic harm to Brooklyn Botanic Garden, to adjacent Jackie Robinson Playground, and to other open spaces.
At the meeting, City Planning Commissioners strongly condemned the project. Commission Chair Marisa Lago stated her opposition (while also noting the opposition of Mayor de Blasio): “I want to note the Department’s deep concerns with the project’s bulk, tower width and overall massing … [the proposal] is comparable to high density areas like downtown Brooklyn and parts of Manhattan, a far cry from Crown Heights... And a development that is grossly out of scale with the surrounding context.”
Commissioner Anna Hayes Levin expressed:
“I have never seen an Environmental Impact Statement with such a stark, scary description of the open space impacts here not only on the Brooklyn Botanic Garden… but also on the playground. This is the first time that I’ve been sitting on this commission that I can remember that I’ve been confronted with information...that suggests that this should just be a non-starter.”
View the recording of the full meeting, learn about BBG's actions against rezoning, and get involved by visiting bbg.org/sunlight!
Image: A rendering of the proposed development at 960 Franklin Avenue. Collage courtesy of Municipal Art Society. See the interactive feature at https://www.mas.org/interactive_features/brooklyn-botanic-garden.
"An old-growth forest is neither an assemblage of stoic organisms tolerating one another’s presence nor a merciless battle royale: It’s a vast, ancient and intricate society." Ferris Jabr's fascinating article for the The New York Times Magazine last month looked at the pioneering work of Suzanne Simard who studies the mycorrhizal network through which trees seem to communicate.
New Yorkers may be surprised to hear there are places to visit old-growth forests in every borough of the city. Visit New York City Department of Parks & Recreation to find your closest forest - or discover a new one!
Though BBG's landscape was entirely designed by people, visitors can find a small forest in BBG's Native Flora Garden, which exhibits plants native to the New York metropolitan area arranged to represent the natural habitats that once flourished here. Groupings of large trees are present in other parts of the Garden too, such as the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden and adjacent conifer collection.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/12/02/magazine/tree-communication-mycorrhiza.html
Pictured: Metasequoia glyptostroboides (dawn redwood) in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden. Photo by Michael Stewart.
The Northern Cardinal is one of the most beautiful and recognizable birds in North America and a common resident of the Garden. It is a nonmigrant species, and every cardinal we see at BBG was likely born and raised right here. #BirdsofBrooklyn
BBG’s 2021 adoptable plants are here just in time for Valentine’s Day! Your gift will help bring much needed care to the Garden—and bring a smile to someone in your community.
This year’s plants feature a rotating seasonal bloom that showcase Garden highlights. Each plant represents what we at BBG hope to share with you this year: renewal, joy, and hope.
Adopt a plant by February 11 to ensure delivery by Valentine's Day! BBG will send an eCard with your personalized message, a photo, and plant facts.⠀
Visit bbg.org/support/dedications to learn more.
"Visitors to the horticultural museum can currently pop their ear-buds in and partake in the guided walk titled “Meander” by artists Gelsey Bell and Joseph White, which takes visitors through the Garden while meditative voices, compositions, singing, and facts about the space are played."—Brooklyn Paper
BROOKLYNPAPER.COM
Brooklyn Botanic Garden debuts guided winter walks • Brooklyn Paper
"Two developers, Continuum Company and Lincoln Equities, hope to build a pair of 39-story towers at 960 Franklin Avenue, in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights neighborhood. The problem is that the site is just 200 feet east of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden."
Fred Bernstein in The Architect's Newspaper makes the case that creating affordable housing and new construction does not need to come at the expense of public resources like BBG.
ARCHPAPER.COM
Op-ed: New York City developments that impinge on important institutions or iconic views should be rejected
BBG will be closed today due to the snowstorm. Ticket holders will receive an email with information on their refunds. Pictured: Camellia ‘Winter’s Star’ in the snow. Photo: Blanca Begert. ❄️ 🌸 #BrooklynBotanicGarden
Physical activity and exposure to daylight, even on a dreary day, brightens mood, boosts energy, and sharpens the mind. Just recently, scientists have affirmed what many of us intuitively knew: Spending time in nature also improves mood.
These days, we all need the restorative balm of nature walks more than ever. Read on for a wintertime guide to some of the wonderful sights, smells, and sounds at BGG from psychotherapist and veteran tour guide Lynne Spevack. And plan a visit to the garden to take in lovely hellebores in pink and white, beautiful early-blooming camellias, delicate, ribbon-like witch-hazels, fragrant honeysuckle, aromatic leaves of spicebush, lovage, fennel, and spearmint.
BBG.ORG
Chase Away the Winter Blues with a Walk in the Garden - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Expand your skills with a virtual class at BBG! Upcoming courses include Herbs and Remedies for Clarity and Focus and Tai Chi and Qi Gong for Beginners. Learn more: https://classes.bbg.org
Did you know that our Bonsai Museum has been recently repositioned to be enjoyed from the outside, looking in? Stop by and see these beauties today! The Garden is open for President's Day. Advance tickets are required.
Photo by Michael Stewart.
Happy #LunarNewYear! Celebrate the #YearoftheOx with vibrant citrus fruit, which are in season and delicious in February. The Chinese word for tangerine sounds like "luck" and the word for orange sounds like "wealth," so citrus fruits like tangerines, mandarin oranges, and kumquats are used for decoration, desserts, and gift giving during the Lunar New Year.
Citrus reticulata (Satsuma Mandarin orange) fruiting in the Conservatory. Photo: Michael Stewart
Happy birthday, Charles Darwin!
A specimen of Angraecum sesquipedale, sometimes referred to as Darwin’s orchid, is in bloom at Brooklyn Botanic Garden. In 1862, this species captured the attention of Charles Darwin when he encountered one among a batch of different orchids sent to him from Madagascar by an associate. Its flower has an unusually long nectary tube (up to 14 inches), which made Darwin write to a friend at Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, “Good Heavens what insect can suck it?"
Read more about Darwin's hypothesis about this flower and the later discoveries confirming it! https://www.bbg.org/news/darwins_orchid_in_bloom
This remarkable orchid is housed in BBG's conservatory complex, under threat of loss of sunlight by proposed towers less than a block away from the Garden. Learn more about BBG's Fight for Sunlight which is a campaign to protect the Garden's renowed plant collections—and public programs that rely on them—at bbg.org/sunlight.
Angraecum sesquipedale (Darwin orchid) is blooming in the Aquatic House. Photo by Blanca Begert.
BBG.ORG
Darwin’s Orchid in Bloom - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
BBG’s 2021 adoptable plants are here just in time for Valentine’s Day! Your gift will help bring much needed care to the Garden—and bring a smile to someone in your community.
This year’s plants feature a rotating seasonal bloom that showcase Garden highlights. Each plant represents what we at BBG hope to share with you this year: renewal, joy, and hope.
Adopt a plant by February 11 to ensure delivery by Valentine's Day! BBG will send an eCard with your personalized message, a photo, and plant facts.⠀
Visit bbg.org/support/dedications to learn more.
"Visitors to the horticultural museum can currently pop their ear-buds in and partake in the guided walk titled “Meander” by artists Gelsey Bell and Joseph White, which takes visitors through the Garden while meditative voices, compositions, singing, and facts about the space are played."—Brooklyn Paper
BROOKLYNPAPER.COM
Brooklyn Botanic Garden debuts guided winter walks • Brooklyn Paper
"Two developers, Continuum Company and Lincoln Equities, hope to build a pair of 39-story towers at 960 Franklin Avenue, in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights neighborhood. The problem is that the site is just 200 feet east of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden."
Fred Bernstein in The Architect's Newspaper makes the case that creating affordable housing and new construction does not need to come at the expense of public resources like BBG.
ARCHPAPER.COM
Op-ed: New York City developments that impinge on important institutions or iconic views should be rejected
BBG is closed today due to the snow. Come out and visit when we reopen this weekend to enjoy the Garden in what WNYC calls "an almost perfect blanket of glittering white."
WNYC.ORG
Good Things: A Snowy Garden | WNYC | New York Public Radio, Podcasts, Live Streaming Radio, News
BBG is closed today due to the snow! ❄️ We hope everyone is safe at home or on their commute.
Take a moment for yourself today to remember spring is just around the corner with last year’s virtual stroll through the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden.
BBG.ORG
Japanese Garden in Spring (Video) - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Did you know that our Bonsai Museum has been recently repositioned to be enjoyed from the outside, looking in? Stop by and see these beauties today! The Garden is open for President's Day. Advance tickets are required.
Photo by Michael Stewart.
Happy #LunarNewYear! Celebrate the #YearoftheOx with vibrant citrus fruit, which are in season and delicious in February. The Chinese word for tangerine sounds like "luck" and the word for orange sounds like "wealth," so citrus fruits like tangerines, mandarin oranges, and kumquats are used for decoration, desserts, and gift giving during the Lunar New Year.
Citrus reticulata (Satsuma Mandarin orange) fruiting in the Conservatory. Photo: Michael Stewart
Happy birthday, Charles Darwin!
A specimen of Angraecum sesquipedale, sometimes referred to as Darwin’s orchid, is in bloom at Brooklyn Botanic Garden. In 1862, this species captured the attention of Charles Darwin when he encountered one among a batch of different orchids sent to him from Madagascar by an associate. Its flower has an unusually long nectary tube (up to 14 inches), which made Darwin write to a friend at Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, “Good Heavens what insect can suck it?"
Read more about Darwin's hypothesis about this flower and the later discoveries confirming it! https://www.bbg.org/news/darwins_orchid_in_bloom
This remarkable orchid is housed in BBG's conservatory complex, under threat of loss of sunlight by proposed towers less than a block away from the Garden. Learn more about BBG's Fight for Sunlight which is a campaign to protect the Garden's renowed plant collections—and public programs that rely on them—at bbg.org/sunlight.
Angraecum sesquipedale (Darwin orchid) is blooming in the Aquatic House. Photo by Blanca Begert.
BBG.ORG
Darwin’s Orchid in Bloom - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
BBG’s 2021 adoptable plants are here just in time for Valentine’s Day! Your gift will help bring much needed care to the Garden—and bring a smile to someone in your community.
This year’s plants feature a rotating seasonal bloom that showcase Garden highlights. Each plant represents what we at BBG hope to share with you this year: renewal, joy, and hope.
Adopt a plant by February 11 to ensure delivery by Valentine's Day! BBG will send an eCard with your personalized message, a photo, and plant facts.⠀
Visit bbg.org/support/dedications to learn more.
There are only three more weeks until spring! Enjoy the snow while it lasts with a weekend visit to BBG. Free community tickets are available every day the Garden is open. Learn more at bbg.org/visit
Pictured: The Plant Family Collection in winter. Photo by Michael Stewart.
SAT, MAR 20 - MAR 21
Seeds of Hope and Healing: A Virtual Making Brooklyn Bloom Event
It’s easy to overlook the fact that your houseplant needs a new home, but eventually, every houseplant needs to be repotted. It’s best to examine your plants for signs every week. There are a number of reasons why your plants might need to be repotted. Here’s what to look out for.
BBG.ORG
When, Why, and How to Repot Your Houseplants - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
BBG is closed today due to the snow. Come out and visit when we reopen this weekend to enjoy the Garden in what WNYC calls "an almost perfect blanket of glittering white."
WNYC.ORG
Good Things: A Snowy Garden | WNYC | New York Public Radio, Podcasts, Live Streaming Radio, News
BBG is closed today due to the snow! ❄️ We hope everyone is safe at home or on their commute.
Take a moment for yourself today to remember spring is just around the corner with last year’s virtual stroll through the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden.
BBG.ORG
Japanese Garden in Spring (Video) - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Did you know that our Bonsai Museum has been recently repositioned to be enjoyed from the outside, looking in? Stop by and see these beauties today! The Garden is open for President's Day. Advance tickets are required.
Photo by Michael Stewart.
At the tail end of winter, fuzzy nubs start to appear along the branches of pussy willows. These soft silver tufts—as well as the plant itself—are named for their resemblance to tiny cats’ paws, and they feel so much like fur that young children often wonder if they are animals instead of plants. What are those little nubs? Are they seeds? Fruits? And why are they fuzzy?
BBG.ORG
What Are Pussy Willows, Anyway? - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
There are only three more weeks until spring! Enjoy the snow while it lasts with a weekend visit to BBG. Free community tickets are available every day the Garden is open. Learn more at bbg.org/visit
Pictured: The Plant Family Collection in winter. Photo by Michael Stewart.
SAT, MAR 20 - MAR 21
Seeds of Hope and Healing: A Virtual Making Brooklyn Bloom Event
It’s easy to overlook the fact that your houseplant needs a new home, but eventually, every houseplant needs to be repotted. It’s best to examine your plants for signs every week. There are a number of reasons why your plants might need to be repotted. Here’s what to look out for.
BBG.ORG
When, Why, and How to Repot Your Houseplants - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
BBG is closed today due to the snow. Come out and visit when we reopen this weekend to enjoy the Garden in what WNYC calls "an almost perfect blanket of glittering white."
WNYC.ORG
Good Things: A Snowy Garden | WNYC | New York Public Radio, Podcasts, Live Streaming Radio, News
Crocuses and snowdrops are the first bulbs to bloom in late winter or early spring and a sign of more to come. As the snow finally melts, these blossoms appear, blanketing the Garden, as well as parks and gardens all around Brooklyn.
Find signs of spring around the Garden. Reserve a ticket today at bbg.org/visit
Brooklyn's Garden is under threat from proposed high-rise towers that would block our plants' access to light. BBG is a community resource for ALL New Yorkers and visitors from around the world.
Take part in the public review process during the Community Board hearing on March 18.
Learn more, sign our petition, and join us in our fight against devastating zoning changes at www.bbg.org/sunlight.
At the tail end of winter, fuzzy nubs start to appear along the branches of pussy willows. These soft silver tufts—as well as the plant itself—are named for their resemblance to tiny cats’ paws, and they feel so much like fur that young children often wonder if they are animals instead of plants. What are those little nubs? Are they seeds? Fruits? And why are they fuzzy?
BBG.ORG
What Are Pussy Willows, Anyway? - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
There are only three more weeks until spring! Enjoy the snow while it lasts with a weekend visit to BBG. Free community tickets are available every day the Garden is open. Learn more at bbg.org/visit
Pictured: The Plant Family Collection in winter. Photo by Michael Stewart.
SAT, MAR 20 - MAR 21
Seeds of Hope and Healing: A Virtual Making Brooklyn Bloom Event
Join us tonight, Tuesday, March 16, at 5 p.m., as we partner with the Municipal Art Society on a new Fight for Sunlight Community Training. This webinar will unpack important information from the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 34-story proposal at 960 Franklin Avenue. We will translate technical details into plain English, helping our neighbors make informed arguments to oppose any building that will harm the Garden’s collections or negatively impact our community.
As you may have heard, due to the ongoing lawsuit, the Community Board 9 public hearing for the 960 Franklin Avenue Rezoning proposal will not take place on Thursday, March 18 as scheduled.
We are closely monitoring the situation and will share the new date and time as soon we have confirmation. Meanwhile, we continue to update you, our supporters, on ways to make your voices heard in the public review process. We hope you are able to join us tonight.
https://www.bbg.org/visit/event/fight_for_sunlight_march_community_training
BBG.ORG
Fight for Sunlight Community Training - Brooklyn Botanic Garden
BBG joins Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and other Brooklyn cultural institutions in lighting our entrances yellow in commemoration of those lost to COVID-19. See the lights this evening beginning at 5:00 p.m. Tune it at https://www.facebook.com/BKBoroHall to view the program.
Crocuses and snowdrops are the first bulbs to bloom in late winter or early spring and a sign of more to come. As the snow finally melts, these blossoms appear, blanketing the Garden, as well as parks and gardens all around Brooklyn.
Find signs of spring around the Garden. Reserve a ticket today at bbg.org/visit