Red-Tailed Hawks and Opening Day of The Edible Garden at The New York Botanical Garden

Roberta on the Arts

Red-Tailed Hawks and Opening Day of The Edible Garden at The New York Botanical Garden

Red-Tailed Hawks and Opening Day of The Edible Garden at The New York Botanical Garden

- On Location: Sponsors and Testimonials

The New York Botanical Garden

Landscaped Gardens on 250 Acres with Forests and Waterfalls
Exhibitions, Events, and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory
Open Year - Round, Tuesday - Sunday, 10 AM - 6 PM
Shop at the Garden for Holiday Gifts and Much More!
Go to www.NYBG.org to Plan Your Visit!

The New York Botanical Garden
www.nybg.org
Guided Bird Walk
The Edible Garden, Opening Day
(On-Site Tours Web Page)
(Edible Garden Web Page)
(Shop in the Garden Web Page)

The Edible Garden: June 27 – September 13, 2009

VP for Communications, Karl F. Lauby
Assoc. VP for Marketing: Marisa Biehl

Dr. Roberta E. Zlokower
June 27, 2009

(See the March 2009 Orchid Show Tour)

(Click Here for Photos of The Edible Garden Exhibits and Events)

(Click Here for New Summer Photos of The Shop In the Garden)

The Bird Walk and Edible Garden Tour Introduction

It was a sunny and gorgeous early summer day at The New York Botanical Garden. I timed today’s trip to coincide with the final Bird Walk, led by the knowledgeable guide, Debbie Becker, as well as Opening Day of The Edible Garden, with exhibit booths, cooking demonstrations, celebrity programs, tropical fruits growing in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, herbal plants growing in the Martha Stewart Culinary Herb Garden, and children’s gardening activities. The mood was festive, and the Garden staff was on hand to guide visitors to the day’s special exhibits and events.

I began this Saturday with a hot coffee and muffin in the Visitor Center Café, after being kindly oriented by Karl Lauby, Vice President of Communications at the Garden. The morning Bird Walk began at the Reflecting Pool, and our guide, nature buff, Ms. Becker, led us immediately to a nest on high, inhabited by a family of red-tailed hawks. An adult hawk was poised on the ledge, as still as could be, but another hawk was flying over the Garden, trying to swoop down on a nest of smaller baby birds. The mother bird, Ms. Becker showed us, was attacking the hawk in the air, pulling at its feathers, to prevent it from stealing its prey, and this adventure kept the group of Garden bird watchers enthralled for quite some time. Ms. Becker also led us to a resting robin, various passing birds, and a heron on a pond. We saw a robin’s nest and heard croaking frogs. The “daily” thunder storm was impending about one hour into the Walk, and the group soon dispersed.

As it happened, the thick black clouds passed by, and, after another hot coffee, I was ready for a Garden walk. Herbs were thriving in the Martha Stewart Culinary Herb Garden, and perennials brought color and elegance to the greenery outside the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. Inside the Conservatory, small purple peppers and tropical fruits engaged the eye. A few orchids remained, a flash-back to the Spring Orchid Show, and I made time for one of my favorite resting spots, the two impressionistic Waterlily Ponds.

Throughout the 250-acre Garden, staff and booths were adorned in bright yellow, green, and white, and The Edible Garden was everywhere. I stopped by one booth, where state of the art cookware was being demonstrated, and tasted a bit of spinach frittata. This program was called “Cooking Demonstrations in the Conservatory Kitchen”, and it was an outdoor kitchen provided by Viking, designed by National Kitchen & Bath Association. It featured up-and-coming chefs using cookware from Anolon, one of The Edible Garden’s sponsors. At another booth, I tasted Ciao Bella gelato, and, at yet another, Long Island wines, both frozen and standard cold.

Under a yellow tent, a buzzing audience eagerly awaited Martha Stewart, today’s Celebrity Chef, who would present "Cocktail Hour from Martha Stewart's Culinary Herb Garden". On September 12 and September 13, another special weekend of cooking demonstrations will culminate the full summer Edible Garden series, with Emeril Lagasse (Sept. 12) and Lidia Bastianich (Sept. 13) demonstrating techniques. Each Saturday at 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM, all summer long, the Garden will present Cooking Demonstrations at the “Conservatory Kitchen”.

Of course, I could not go home without a visit to The Shop in the Garden, and it was filled with Edible Garden décor, such as books, china, giftware, toys, apparel, and a large selection of unusual seeds and gardening equipment. I chose a jar of homemade Gazpacho, from Low Country Produce. The Shop in the Garden has a wide variety of their products, ready to take home. I may return for one of the Garden’s Thursday Night “Celebrations of Wine, Beer, Food”, and August Waterlily Concerts on the Conservatory Lawn. See The New York Botanical Garden Website for details. The Metro North Railroad has a station and direct stop at the Mosholu Gate, with a pedestrian walkway, that, this summer, also leads to a Wednesday and Saturday Farmer’s Market. I found farm fresh strawberries, cherries, asparagus, and broccoli, and I carried my bags of Edible Garden fruits and vegetables on the train to Grand Central Station.

Do not miss The New York Botanical Garden’s “The Edible Garden” (Edible Garden Web Page), running through September 13, 2009. Wear comfortable shoes, light clothing, and be sure to bring your camera. You might even see a flying hawk or nesting robin along the way!