New York Botanical Garden- the big daddy in the big apple

Every year, over 1 million wide-eyed visitors enjoy the vast, 100 hectare New York Botanical Garden, a ‘green paradise’ set in the heart of the Bronx. The garden is a major horticultural hub, with 80 Ph.D scientists working in it’s state of the art labs, and more than 100 members of staff keeping the gardens looking slick, and the visitor experience second to none.

I was extremely honoured to be given a personalised tour, and mainly from the comfort of a golf buggy! As I arrived at the metro station, little did I know I would soon be fan-girling over all manner of plants. I know it sounds cheesy, but it really IS a botanical paradise. The grounds are absolutely immaculate, dare I say even a bit glossy, but all in a good way! It’s almost as if every plant and bloom is stroked and fanned daily by a team of roadies!

Check out these amazing Tree Peonies for starters…

Everywhere I turned, there were majestic looking shrubs, almost appearing cartoon-like…

The true squealing happened in the glasshouse for me though.. I mean, just check out these unusual beauties…

Getting behind the scenes really reminded me how much goes into preparing a botanical garden for public viewing, the stress must be like exhibiting at the Chelsea Flower Show, but EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK!

 

Our golf buggy ride was quite lively too, as our driver exercised his years of practising cornering, and of course my sudden emergency stop requests to photograph Trilliums! The final stop was the glasshouse, where I was to be unleashed… and thanked Brian and Kristin for their kind touring!

With that, I trundled off, gripping my iPad of gorgeous findings tightly, and perhaps skipping a little bit back to Grand Central!