New York Botanical Garden
Spring is in the city! The birds are chirping, the leaves are blooming and flowers are quietly emerging from the ground. It’s finally getting warmer and New York City becomes a more vibrant, fun place to visit. New Yorkers tend to be so excited as spring arrives that you’ll see them spending time outdoors. New York Botanical Garden is among the best places to welcome spring.
New York Botanical Garden location
The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) is a botanical garden located in the Bronx, New York City.
The 250-acre (101-hectare) garden has a plant collection consisting of about 12,000 species from almost every part of the world. Many of the specimens are displayed throughout the year in a conservatory that covers nearly 1 acre (0.5 hectare). Outdoor exhibits include a pristine 40-acre woodland, a rock garden, and a garden of native plants, as well as special collections of conifers, lilacs, and magnolias. Also located at the garden is one of the largest botanical libraries in the country.
Founded in 1899, the LuEsther T. Mertz Library is the largest, most comprehensive botanical library in the Americas. In addition to botany and horticulture, the Library’s collections are used for studies in fields as diverse as history, anthropology, landscape and building design, architectural history, ethnobotany, economic botany, urban social history, and environmental policy.
In addition to current scholarly books and serials, the Mertz Library holds many rare and historically important works ranging from medieval herbals, to 17th-century depictions of the princely gardens of Europe, to accounts of botanical exploration and discovery in the 18th century, to the writings of Carl von Linné (Linnaeus) and Charles Darwin.
At the heart of the Garden is the old-growth forest, the largest existing remnant of the original forest which covered all of New York City before the arrival of European settlers in the 17th century. The forest, which was never logged, contains oaks, American beeches, cherry, birch, tulip and white ash trees, some more than two centuries old. If you’re looking for ideas or practical advice for your own backyard, you’ll be inspired by the Home Gardening Center where you can also learn essential gardening techniques.
The forest itself is split by the Bronx River, the only fresh water river in New York City, and this stretch of the river includes a riverine canyon and rapids. Along the shores sits the landmark Stone Mill, previously known as the Lorillard Snuff Mill built in 1840. Sculptor Charles Tefft created the Fountain of Life on the grounds in 1905.
The Enid A. Haupt Conservatory is a stunning example of Victorian-style glasshouse artistry, and a New York City Landmark. It is home to A World of Plants, which showcases the wonders of the Garden’s living collections in lush tropical rain forests, cactus-filled deserts, curated displays of palms from around the world, aquatic and carnivorous plants, and much more. From early summer through fall, the Courtyards come alive with vibrant hardy and tropical water lilies and graceful lotus.
The Conservatory also hosts the Garden’s seasonal exhibitions, including the annual Orchid Show, Holiday Train Show, and themed flower shows that reveal surprising connections between plants and culture. These immersive experiences will transport you to another time and place and dazzle you with their ingenious designs.
The William & Lynda Steere Herbarium is one of the largest herbaria in the world, as well as one of the most highly used. The herbarium currently houses approximately 7,800,000 specimens, making it the largest herbarium in the Western Hemisphere. Digitized specimen data is available through the C. V. Starr Virtual Herbarium website. The herbarium is named after William Steere (son of William C. Steere) and his wife Lynda, who endowed the herbarium in 2002.
Quick tip: Outside of the New York Botanical Garden you will find the Edgar Allan Poe Cottage, which was the final home of the writer. This Bronx treasure is a quick ride from Main Entrance.
Tickets and opening hours
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 28, 2019 (Thanksgiving) and December 25, 2019 (Christmas)
- 3 p.m. early closing on December 24, 2019
- Winter hours: 10 a.m.–5 p.m., January 22–February 21, 2019
- In order to accommodate free Grounds-Only Admission, the Garden grounds open at 9 a.m. on Saturdays.
- Other special exhibitions and events, such as Members-Only Previews, may cause early closing of Garden areas.
All visitors, including Members, need tickets for entry to the Garden. Reserve your tickets online and print them at home in advance to avoid lines at entry gates.
Grounds Admission is available to NYC Residents Only; proof of residency required and may only be purchased onsite. Grounds Admission includes access to outdoor gardens and collections, including the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden. Grounds Admission is free to everyone regardless of residency, all day on Wednesdays and from 9–10 a.m. on Saturdays.
Adults: $15
Seniors (65+): $7
Students (with valid ID): $7
Children (2–12 years): $4
Children under 2: Free
Members: Free
Grounds Admission does not include admission to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, Special Exhibitions, Rock Garden, or Tram Tour.
Click below to see what’s happening in New York Botanical Garden:
Link to Month View » New York Botanical Garden
Month View » New York Botanical Garden
For top things to do this month at NYBG, search our calendar of exhibitions, tours, classes and more.
New York Botanical Garden (Source: We Eat We Travel)