Brooklyn Botanic Garden

At this critical moment in human history, Making Brooklyn Bloom will highlight the meaning, healing, and connection that plants provide us. By centering stories of seeds and the often difficult histories they contain and reveal, we’ll explore the question: Can sowing the seeds of our pasts help us heal our collective future? On this second day of Making Brooklyn Bloom, we are joined by Owen Taylor, seed farmer and founder of Truelove Seeds, and Wilbur A. Levin Keynote Speaker, Christopher Bolden-Newsome, farmer and codirector of the Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden in Philadelphia. Christopher Bolden-Newsome is joined by his colleagues Laquanda Dobson and Ashley Gripper.

There’s no better time than spring to delve into the world of plants at BBG. Sign up for one of our new virtual classes and expand your skills in gardening, food, wellness, art, or horticulture. Upcoming classes include Houseplant Propagation Basics, Botanical Drawing for Absolute Beginners, and Herbal Remedies for Spring Allergies. Register today at https://classes.bbg.org/ Pictured: Tulips blooming at Rose Arc last spring. Photo by Steven Severinghaus.

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.

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.

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.

"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

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.

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.

"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

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

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

"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.

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

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 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. 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.

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!