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The Big Apple is famous for its bustling avenues, towering skyscrapers, and addictive energy. However, the concrete jungle also houses some of the world’s most beautiful flora and fauna, with stunning parks, massive gardens, and flower-centric events that bloom all around the city. Visitors can take in Broadway and bright lights one day and then stroll through verdant gardens and rows of fragrant rose bushes the next. Of course, there is the sprawling grandeur of Central Park located in the middle of Manhattan, but there are various attractions around New York that offer gardens, festivals, and events to take in botanicals, flowers and all things green. One of New York’s most famous gardens is the New York Botanical Garden located in the Bronx, just a quick subway ride from the Row NYC in Midtown.
Hailed as a living museum, a major educational institution, and a renowned plant research and conservation organization, The New York Botanical Garden is a National Historic Landmark, and is renowned as one of the greatest botanical gardens in the world. The Garden is the largest in any city in the United States, and offers extensive collections and gardens, as well as interactive activities and programs throughout the year.
The New York Botanical Garden houses historic and contemporary architecture, 50 gardens, one-million plants, collections, and displays across the Garden’s 250-acre landscape. The Garden recently completed an expansion and enhancement of the Burn Family Lilac Collection, an addition of 100 new herbaceous peonies to the Matelich Anniversary Peony Collection, Piet Oudolf’s redesign of the Marjorie G. Rosen Seasonal Walk, and the planting of 150,000 new daffodils on Daffodil Hill.
Year-Round: Orchid Collection
In addition to the Garden’s famous annual Orchid Show that takes place every March through April, the Garden houses the exotic and stunning flowers year round in the Garden’s Conservatory and Orchid Rotunda in the Library Building.
Mid-July to Mid-September (Actual bloom time may vary) - Water Lilies and Lotuses
According to stories, the most beautiful Lotus flowers emerge from the muddiest waters. The lotus is renowned as a symbol for strength and overcoming adversity, and has become associated with divinity, strength, harmony, and purity across a variety of religions, cultures, and countries. The Conservatory courtyard pools at the Garden bring these flowers to bloom during the intense heat of the New York summer. Bouquets of colors in bright yellows, pinks, purples, and serene blues adorn the pool’s surface. According to the New York Botanical Garden’s website, the Victoria Amazonica, the world’s largest water lily, whose leaves can span seven-feet across, bloom each summer.
April–October: The Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden
May through October greets over 650 varieties of roses in The Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden. Visitors will see an array of roses, from heirloom varieties known for their fragrant perfumes, to modern selections and hybrids. The Rose Garden has received many international awards, and is considered to be among the world’s best rose gardens. On June 9th and 10th, Rose Garden Weekend celebrates the peak of the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden’s spring color with live music, plant care demonstrations, expert-led tours, and refreshments.
Year-Round: Azalea Garden
A crescendo of white, coral, pink, and purple azalea blossoms is one of the Garden’s most striking seasonal spectacles in May. Set amongst the dramatic rock outcrops and historic native trees, this garden features azaleas, rhododendron, flowering trees and shrubs, woodland perennials, bulbs, ferns and grasses. Collections in this garden include dogwood, mountain laurel, hydrangea, spice-bush, witch-hazel, epimedium, hosta, hellebore, snow-drop, and ferns.
Location:
2900 Southern Boulevard
Bronx, NY 10458-5126
Hours of Operation:
The Garden is open year-round, Tuesday to Sunday, and select holiday Mondays.
Hours are typically 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
Special Circumstances
● Closed on November 22, 2018 (Thanksgiving) and December 25, 2018 (Christmas)
● In order to accommodate free Grounds-Only Admission, the Garden grounds open at 9am on Saturdays.
● Other special exhibitions and events, such as Members-Only Previews, may cause early closing of Garden areas. To find out about becoming a Botanical Garden Member and the many special benefits Membership offers, or to join online, Conservatory.
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