New York .... three gardens
Perhaps it is an example of synchroncity but this photo from my winter visit to New York in January 2010 shows the restored Victorian library in Greenwich Village. On this visit I went to the very small garden which you see in the foreground. It was a real treat! See below for more information and photos.
New York Botanic Garden - an update
The new 11 acre Azalea Garden was built on a beautiful hilly setting with mature trees and rock outcrops. Design for the garden started in 2004 and it was intended to replace an existing 70 year old azalea garden which had become overgrown. The curators say that azaleas are one part of the species Rhododendron and both plants are included in what they term is an “encyclopaedic collection”. Ferns, grasses and flowering trees add variety to the garden. Many of the plants are Asian and while this is not a formal Japanese garden, the sight of azaleas against rock is evocative of one.
I was lucky to be there for the opening party. The upside of this was that the plants seemed to be at their peak; the downside was that they were so many people there. The paths and viewing platforms are well designed so that it did not feel crowded. Where there were bottlenecks it seemed that there was always an alternative path with more space.
From the garden’s website :
http://www.nybg.org/
The Azalea Garden includes nearly a mile of woodland paths that meander through a collection of 3,000 azaleas and rhododendrons from around the world, planted beneath ancient native oaks, tulip trees, and sweet gums.
The Azalea Garden has been meticulously designed to ensure brilliant color and rich texture for much of the year. It begins to flower during the first warm days of spring, when the pale pinks and lavenders of Korean rhododendron emerge. The spectacle provided by azaleas reaches a crescendo in late April and early May, when an entire hillside of Asian hybrid azaleas erupts into clouds of white, pink, coral, and magenta. Azaleas and rhododendrons continue to provide color through late spring and into summer, flowering in sequence until the last of the vivid orange-red flowers of plum-leaf azaleas open in July. Companion plantings of fall-blooming witchhazel and herbaceous plants, as well as a second flush of magnificent color from reblooming azalea cultivars, ensure that the garden remains vibrant into late autumn. A tapestry of daffodils and crocus, vast sweeps of ferns and hostas, and grassy glades inspired by mountain meadows provide additional drama in early spring, summer, and fall.
As one of very few azalea collections to be located within a formal educational institution, the Azalea Garden provides a rare opportunity to educate the public about the value and importance of these plants to ornamental horticulture. The Azalea Garden contains more than 70,000 plants, including 40,000 bulbs, over 28,000 flowering woodland perennials and ferns, and more than 3,000 trees and shrubs
I was lucky to be there for the opening party. The upside of this was that the plants seemed to be at their peak; the downside was that they were so many people there. The paths and viewing platforms are well designed so that it did not feel crowded. Where there were bottlenecks it seemed that there was always an alternative path with more space.
From the garden’s website :
http://www.nybg.org/
The Azalea Garden includes nearly a mile of woodland paths that meander through a collection of 3,000 azaleas and rhododendrons from around the world, planted beneath ancient native oaks, tulip trees, and sweet gums.
The Azalea Garden has been meticulously designed to ensure brilliant color and rich texture for much of the year. It begins to flower during the first warm days of spring, when the pale pinks and lavenders of Korean rhododendron emerge. The spectacle provided by azaleas reaches a crescendo in late April and early May, when an entire hillside of Asian hybrid azaleas erupts into clouds of white, pink, coral, and magenta. Azaleas and rhododendrons continue to provide color through late spring and into summer, flowering in sequence until the last of the vivid orange-red flowers of plum-leaf azaleas open in July. Companion plantings of fall-blooming witchhazel and herbaceous plants, as well as a second flush of magnificent color from reblooming azalea cultivars, ensure that the garden remains vibrant into late autumn. A tapestry of daffodils and crocus, vast sweeps of ferns and hostas, and grassy glades inspired by mountain meadows provide additional drama in early spring, summer, and fall.
As one of very few azalea collections to be located within a formal educational institution, the Azalea Garden provides a rare opportunity to educate the public about the value and importance of these plants to ornamental horticulture. The Azalea Garden contains more than 70,000 plants, including 40,000 bulbs, over 28,000 flowering woodland perennials and ferns, and more than 3,000 trees and shrubs
Photo Gallery
The slide show should appear in the window to the right. If not, click here to link to the Picasa Web Album.
Queens Botanic Garden
This rusty hasp and lock are my abiding memory of this dull place. I really felt cheated and my long trip there a waste of time. I feel that I should call on the Trade Description Act about this place. It is a park; it is a recreation space; it is a playgournd for local children and an exercise yard for the elderly Chinese who inhabit this part of Queens. It is only a botanic garden because it inherited the name. The 'water garden' was small and in need of maintenace. The tulip field was impressive but this could be seen in many parks at this time of year. The only area of any botanic interest is reserved for weddings and not open to the public.
From the QBG website : Wedding Garden
(open by appointment only)
A Victorian-style garden with a gazebo, footbridge, and stream, featuring beds of ornamental trees, shrubs, perennials, daffodils, tulips, and annuals in bloom from late April through October. The garden is closed to the public and rented for weddings by appointment.
From the QBG website : Wedding Garden
(open by appointment only)
A Victorian-style garden with a gazebo, footbridge, and stream, featuring beds of ornamental trees, shrubs, perennials, daffodils, tulips, and annuals in bloom from late April through October. The garden is closed to the public and rented for weddings by appointment.
Photo Gallery
Queens Botanical Garden
Jefferson Market Garden
This is not a market garden as defined by Wikipedia (A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumers and restaurants. It is distinguishable from other types of farming by the diversity of crops grown on a small area of land,)
Instead, the name comes from Jefferson Market, a public market opened on this site in 1833. The imposing building on the site is a courthouse which was built in 1877. In 1927 the House of Detention for Women was added and the adjacent court dealt only with cases involving females.
In 1961 the courthouse was closed and only through persistent campaigning by Greenwich Village groups was it saved from demolition. In 1962 it was opened as a branch of the New York Public Library.
The House of Detention was a nuisance for local residents. I can recall passing by there in the 1960s and hearing the shouts and screams of the women. Sometimes they were calling to friends in the street but often they seemed to be shouting just for the hell of it. In 1973 the House of Detention was demolished . It was not until 1998 that the decorative fence was built to define the space for the present garden. The garden exists through efforts of volunteers and is financed by donations. What an amazing achievement on such a small plot (one third of an acre). Just think what they could do with the 39 acres of the Queens Botanic Garden!
http://www.jeffersonmarketgarden.org/
Photo Gallery
The fine print
Date of visit : May 2011
