At the core of transformative learning theory, according to Wikipedia, is the process of “perspective transformation” with three dimensions: psychological, convictional and behavioral. True transformation in this world, according to many sources, is rare.

It has taken place, however, at a magnificent facility known as Glenstone, an art museum in Potomac, Md.

Prior to a phone call to SafeLawns in the early summer of 2010, the 150-acre facility with 16-acres of manicured lawn, functioned on the premise of IPM, known as integrated pest management in everyday landscape vernacular — or “instant pesticide manipulation” to the skeptics. Tasked with keeping the facility as emerald green and weed free as possible, Glenstone groundskeepers fertilized with synthetic chemicals, sprayed weeds and dealt with insects and fungal diseases with chemicals. They also hired outside contractors to spray plants just in case something might happen in the future.

All that stopped in July of 2010. The organization’s founders provided the psychological and convictional impetus that led to a behavioral change among the grounds crew.

It was such a major and sudden shift, I can admit to holding my own breath at times. The conventional wisdom, even among some organically oriented landscape professionals, is that the transition to organics takes three to five years. Many believe going organic is inherently “going ugly,” at least for a while.

Although it was never stated to me, part of me felt like if we did fail to deliver a beautiful landscape at any point in time then maybe that conviction to stay the organic course would be tested. Maybe the facility would revert to IPM, which may often loosely be defined as: “it’s OK to use pesticides as a last resort when nothing else is working.”

Eighteen months into one of the largest organic lawn care transformations anywhere in North America the grounds crew has never even had to consider going back. Given the true convictional transformation that has occurred — among the residents, the staff and the landscape crew — I can’t imagine synthetic chemicals will ever be openly sprayed again.

Just a few highlights of the results:

1) The grass has been green and lush, even in times of drought;
2) The lawn is fertilized with only compost top-dressings and sprays of compost tea, with only a single pound of organic nitrogen (alfalfa-based) fertilizer applied each year (per thousand square feet);
3) The limited weed pressure has been dealt with by spot spraying of Fiesta and other organic products, or by hand pulling;
4) The facility has SAVED MONEY on products and labor due to . . .
5) Vastly reduced mowing and watering, as well as elimination of all pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

The greatest thing about Glenstone from my perspective has been the facility’s willingness, even desire, to share what it’s learning with the world at large. We have hosted group tours with national horticultural dignitaries, held public events for local citizens and, just yesterday, hosted a VIP Open House for the greater DC environmental community. Enthralled attendees reached a unanimous conclusion: Glenstone’s beautiful, sustainable grounds serve as the model for the New American Landscape — where aesthetics and safety can co-exist.

Glenstone is funding research with the University of Maryland’s turfgrass department that is being replicated both at Glenstone and the UMD campus. Within the trials, composts and compost teas will go head to head with synthetic chemical products and results will be made public.

What we know already — stated above — is that Glenstone is saving money, just as any business, municipality or homeowner would if they follow what I call the Glenstone Model: 1) Stay committed; 2) Do it Right; 3) (that means) Don’t be afraid to do things differently.

Glenstone succeeded because it took a leap of faith, even though many of the techniques were inherently different from what had previously given the groundskeepers good results. Remember, Glenstone didn’t change because the grounds looked bad, or because it couldn’t afford the chemicals; Glenstone changed because founders were concerned about human, animal and planetary health within the context of providing a pleasant aesthetic experience to visitors.

I encourage anyone who visits the nation’s capitol to take the time to experience Glenstone, where viewings of the modern art galleries and grounds are arranged by appointment. The place may be the very polar opposite of Disney World, where millions of people visit at once. Glenstone is intended as a serene, intimate experience where the art and architecture integrate elaborately, yet quietly with a grand suburban landscape.

When you’re there, it’s as if you’re a guest in someone’s home — because essentially you are. No money changes hands. No one will try to sell you anything.

That doesn’t mean, however, you won’t leave transformed.

Horticulturists from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and other Mid-Atlantic institutions toured Glenstone in late November.

Related Posts:

• Why Ban Lawn Pesticides? The List of Reasons Keeps Growing
• Common Ground: The Ocean, Lakes, Rivers & Streams
• Citing Guilty Plea, Wildlife Federation Ends Agreement with Scotts

Article source: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2012/02/the-glenstone-model-a-landscape-plan-for-businesses-municipalities-everywhere/

The report, titled Toxicol in Vitro, revealed that exposures of as low as one part per million of Roundup had the effect of reducing testosterone levels in male rats by more than a third. That exposure rate is well below the level a farmer or gardener would experience in a typical weed-killing session with a spray bottle or backpack sprayer.

Séralini, who has focused his research on Roundup for nearly two decades, has previously proven that Roundup kills placental cells and is also responsible for spontaneous abortion.

Related Posts:

• Why Ban Lawn Pesticides? The List of Reasons Keeps Growing
• The Glenstone Model: A Landscape Plan for Businesses, Municipalities Everywhere
• Bee Evidence Builds . . . The Government Sleeps . . . And YOU Need to Take Action

Article source: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2012/01/researchers-link-roundup-to-male-infertility/

Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen

Tags: conifers, Morning Eye Candy

This entry was posted
on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 at 6:00 am and is filed under Around the Garden, Photography.
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Article source: http://www.nybg.org/plant-talk/2012/01/photography/morning-eye-candy-three-stooges/

Did you know the main ingredient in chocolate comes from the fruit of the cacao tree? Perhaps you read our earlier article on “cauliflory” in trees like this one. Lucky for us there are cacao trees (Theobroma cacao) thriving in The New York Botanical Garden’s tropical rain forest, a part of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. In fact, two of our cacao trees now have cocoa bean pods growing on them, each one about six inches long and dark brown.

Inside each of these pods are dozens of reddish-brown cocoa beans arranged in rows and surrounded by pulp. You can tell if the beans are ripe by shaking the pod to see if they rattle.

It takes up to 14 pods to produce just one pound of dry cocoa beans and about 400 roasted, ground beans to make a pound of chocolate. But contrary to the taste of the finished product you might buy in the candy aisle, cocoa beans themselves are very bitter; in fact, the word “chocolate” is from the Aztec word xocolatl, which means “bitter water.”

It turns out that dark chocolate, in particular, is very good for your heart–convenient but true. The antioxidants in chocolate are called flavanols. They are naturally-occurring compounds known to have positive influences on heart health, such as lower blood pressure, lower risks of heart failure, and improved blood flow to the brain and heart.

Eating a little dark chocolate can be healthful, but all good things in moderation–too much can have the opposite effect. Chocolate can contain in the range of 200 calories and eight to 18 grams of saturated fat per 1.4-ounce serving. Eaten in large amounts, this can actually do damage to your heart and expand your waistline.

Because cacao trees grow well in the shade, the rain forest does not need to be cut down in order to grow cocoa, which is very good news as we are losing many acres of rain forest each day. By purchasing chocolate products labeled “USDA Organic” and “Fair Trade,” you can support shade-grown cacao producers and sustainable harvesting practices.

Chocolate is in such high demand globally that it is important for cacao trees to continue to be grown and harvested sustainably, in a way that is safe for people, wildlife, and the environment as a whole.

NYBG expert Jessica Bohn reveals chocolate’s fascinating botanical background, how it can be grown organically, and how it is marketed through fair-trade practices. Join her on Saturday, February 11 from 3 to 5 p.m. at our Midtown Education Center in Manhattan for “The Temptation of Chocolate,” or register for the all-day session on “The Botany of Indulgence.”

Tags: cacao tree, chocolate, fair trade chocolate, organic chocolate, Rainforest, shade-grown cacao trees, The Botany of Indulgence, The Temptation of Chocolate, Valentine’s Day

This entry was posted
on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 at 11:00 am and is filed under Adult Education, Around the Garden, The Edible Garden.
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Article source: http://www.nybg.org/plant-talk/2012/01/exhibit-news/the-edible-garden/the-conservatory-rain-forest-chocolate-lovers-lane/

Since we unveiled the display in early November, thousands of people–kids and adults, first-timers and yearly regulars–have passed through the glass doors of the dome to view our sparkling homage to the city and the season. And while we’re sad to see the delicate landmarks disappear until next fall, we’re making the most of the time we still have to show the holidays the proper bon voyage.

Visit the Garden tonight (Friday, January 13) between our extended hours of 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. for a surprise evening of entertainment surrounded by holiday lights, friends, and family. We’ll even have a cash bar set up for those looking to top off the event with a casual drink or two. I’ve said it before–so very many times–but you really haven’t seen the Train Show until you’ve walked the paths under the dome after dark. There’s a fireplace glow to everything that tends to wipe the thought of miserable winter weather from your memory. And this weekend is aiming to be a frosty one (or cold in comparison, at the very least).

Between now and the closing of our gates on Monday you’ll have just a few more chances to see the Holiday Train Show, Gingerbread Adventures, and All Aboard with Thomas and Friends™ before they leave us for another year. But please be aware that tickets are a pretty finite resource right about now. Thomas™ spots in particular are flying out the door and many scheduled mini-performances have already sold out, so playing the early bird is your best bet for getting one of the remaining seats.

As an aside, I’d just like to thank all of our guests for coming out to support The New York Botanical Garden and celebrate this momentous anniversary with us. It’s only because of our gracious visitors that we have been able to keep this New York City tradition running for two amazing decades. But the year’s only just beginning–we hope you’ll come back for the many jaw-dropping exhibitions we still have up our sleeve.

Tags: gingerbread adventures, Holiday Train Show, NYBG, Thomas the Tank Engine

This entry was posted
on Friday, January 13th, 2012 at 4:43 pm and is filed under Holiday Train Show.
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Article source: http://www.nybg.org/plant-talk/2012/01/exhibit-news/hts/until-next-season/

I hauled him off to the veterinarian who anesthetized him and examined him more closely. According to the vet, because chickens don’t have significant blood circulation in their feet, it’s difficult for a major foot wound to heal.

“Robin, you need to put T. Boone to sleep,” advised the vet. “He’s not going to get better. In fact, he’s going to get a lot worse. And he is in pain.”

Now, if you haven’t ever had pet chickens, you might find it odd that I was reduced to a puddle of tears at hearing this news. Even some people who have pet chickens might consider the fact that I spent the better part of the afternoon weeping an overreaction.

But I raised T. Boone from the time he was a baby fuzz ball in my palm. I bought him and two other baby chicks from an Amish farmers market.

I was assured that all three chicks would grow up to be fine hens. So we called him Olivia—for a while anyway. Two of the three chicks survived and both were roosters. (So much for the chick sexing skills of the guy at the farmers market.)

T. Boone was second rooster around here for a long time. In fact, he was at the bottom of the pecking order and the hens never hesitated to shoo him away or punish him by pecking at  him. The big chicken on campus at that time was Johnny Cash.

T. Boone cheated death once before.

Two years ago he, Johnny Cash and the hens were on walkabout, searching for bugs, stretching their legs and enjoying the unseasonably warm February day. I didn’t see what happened, but it appeared that the roosters fought off an attack by one—or possibly two—hawks or eagles. Johnny Cash was carried off and never seen again.  There were two huge pools of T. Boone’s white feathers about 200 yards apart. Could T. Boone have been attacked, dropped and attacked again?

When we finally found T. Boone in the woods it was clear that he was gravely injured. He was dazed and couldn’t walk. He let me pick him up to examine him and I found he had huge puncture wounds on both sides of his body under his wings.

I was certain that he wouldn’t live until morning. I didn’t know of any veterinarian at the time who would even euthanize a chicken but I didn’t have the heart (or the nerve) to break his neck—even to put him out of his misery. Neither my husband nor my son would take on the job.

We put him into the coop where he crawled into one of the nest boxes to hide. Well, he thought he was hiding, but as you can see, he didn’t fit. T. Boone was a very big chicken.

Days went by and T. Boone kept hanging on. I gave him water, put salve on his wounds and prepared myself to find him dead every morning I went into the coop to greet the chickens for the day.

Instead of dying,  T. Boone crawled out of the nest box and tried to stand! At first he couldn’t hold his head up or walk. He did a lot of standing around. I positioned him near the food and water so he could help himself whenever he was thirsty or hungry. After a month or so, he could stand upright again, but he walked. With a limp.

Without Johnny Cash in the role of leading chicken, T. Boone stepped into the job. Whenever the hens were on walkabout, T. Boone would be standing guard. He knew full well what dangers the hens faced outside the safety of their coop and chicken run. The chickens would hunt and peck for bugs. T. Boone would stand nearby warily eyeing the sky and the nearby woods. Any time there was a sense of danger, T. would begin honking in alarm, sending the hens scrambling under the shrubs and into the trees.

He fulfilled all of his roosterly duties (if you know what I mean).

Some people have had bad experiences with aggressive or mean roosters. I have seen both sides of the rooster behavior spectrum and T. Boone was definitely one of the kinder, gentler roosters. He always greeted us and would follow me around begging for treats. His favorites were corn, pizza and any kind of baked good—cake, muffins, biscuits, bread. He would even show up at the back door to peer in and beg.

“Is this where you keep the cans of corn?”

I love my hens, but they don’t have the bold personality, the larger-than-life appearance or the endearingly quirky habits that T. Boone had. If you can love a chicken, I loved T. Boone.

Rest in peace, T. Boone. You were a good and brave rooster. I hope you’re in chicken heaven where the sun is shining and where there is an endless supply of corn, pizza and baked goods.

Robin

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Filed in: Chickens

Tags: Chickens, hens, Johnny Cash, rooster, T. Boone Chickens

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Article source: http://www.bumblebeeblog.com/2012/01/13/good-bye-t-boone-chickens/

Lips quivered on ashen faces. Hair stood on forearms. Heads shook and, in some cases, tears formed.

The forum, at the Acres USA conference in Columbus, Ohio, last Friday, lasted two and a half hours. For 150 minutes, Dr. Don Huber dispassionately laid out fact after fact, more research than was possible to digest, with almost surgical precision that led to the same unavoidable conclusion: “Roundup is the most widely abused product in American history.”

Don Huber addresses the Acres USA conference on Friday.

The result, he said, is the death of agriculture, our livelihoods and the planet as we know it. A pesticide product which was supposed to just be killing weeds, he stated bluntly, is systematically killing us.

When he was done, I snapped a photo of his final slide with my iPhone (above) that talked about our children’s futures. I knew I would soon be heading home to enjoy a holiday weekend setting out decorations, cutting down a tree and sipping hot chocolate with two precious little girls — yet I also knew my life would never quite be the same.

“Future historians may well look back and write about our time, not about how many pounds of pesticide we did or did not apply; but by how willing we were to sacrifice our children and jeopardize future generations based on false promises and flawed science, just to benefit the “bottom line” of a commercial enterprise.”

You simply can’t hear what Don Huber had to say and then go blindly about your life. At least I can’t.

Last Christmas . . . my daughter kissed my grandmother for the last time.

So this weekend I shuddered when I looked at the base of the Christmas trees . . . where Roundup had been sprayed to make things look “clean” for holiday lumberjacks. I scowled at the shelves of the garden center where the poinsettias stood like bright sentries announcing the season at hand. At the end of the row canisters of Roundup awaited spring, when they would be as eagerly gobbled up by customers as the Christmas flowers were on this day.

We sang Christmas carols. We baked cookies and set our tree in its stand, yet as I draped lights and hung ornaments, Dr. Huber’s words echoed in my ears. I kept thinking about the fact this would be my first holiday season without my grandmother and my aunt, both of whom were claimed by Alzheimer’s Disease. Dr. Huber told the audience the incidence of Alzheimer’s is expected to skyrocket in the next 20 years — probably because Roundup robs so many essential micronutrients from our food.

Our friends Mary, left, and Michael.

As we talked of our holiday plans and the friends and family we’ll visit, our hearts ached for our lovely, amazing friend, Mary, who will spend Christmas week tethered to a chemotherapy drip. She’ll make it through, because she’s a ferocious fighter. But why should she have to fight so hard? Is it because when we inhale Roundup it then targets our livers, our kidneys, our hormones, our bones, our thyroids and our sex organs . . . and Roundup is literally everywhere in the air and water we breathe?

It’s impossible not to take this personally if you let yourself think about it. Do you know anyone with autism, ADHD, endometriosis, Crohn’s disease, dementia, Parkinson’s? If so, then you know someone who has been affected by the atrocities of Roundup. Do you know anyone who’s overweight, even obese? Of course you do, since one in three Americans now fall into that category. Well, it’s probably not because those people are lazy, or want to eat too much, or because their grandparents were fat and the gene was passed down. It’s more likely because people don’t get enough essential nutrition in their meals each day, so they eat more to compensate.

And why don’t the meals have enough nutrition? It’s because most of our food is grown while being sprayed with Roundup, which reaches into our bodies and soils and steals things like nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, boron, copper, and especially iron, manganese and zinc. Whether you understand bodily function, or not, all you need to know is that without these essential elements in their daily essential amounts, your body stops working properly. Disease becomes rampant.

And whether you understand soil science, or not, understand this: Mother Nature is pissed off . . . and Mother Nature always wins.

Dr. Huber told the audience last Friday that his life changed profoundly the day he allowed SafeLawns to “leak” his letter to the Secretary of Agriculture to the general public last February. In that letter he warned that a newly studied soil organism was capable of living among plants, and animals, and that it was causing spontaneous miscarriage in humans. He warned that the appearance of the organism was heightened when Roundup was sprayed, as if Mother Nature were fighting back.

He was vilified. Mercilessly. Often by academics who had been his colleagues for decades.

But on Friday the 75-year-old emeritus professor — who was widely regarded in all circles as one of the planet’s most respected scientists until he began pointing out a rather inconvenient truth about Roundup — showed us pictures. They were images of a sinister organism that appears to be wreaking havoc that is perhaps irreversible.

“I have practically begged our government to invest more resources into studying this organism before it’s too late,” he said. “To date, I’m not seeing any action being taken.”

Since the government won’t act against the manufacturer, Monsanto, or the sellers like Scotts Miracle Gro or your local garden center, that means it’s up to you to vote with your wallet by not buying the stuff. It’s up to you to understand that approximately 80 percent of our commercial food supply is grown in a “Roundup Ready” environment — and that to support organic food and farming is to support a planet without Roundup.

Maybe instead of Christmas cards this holiday season, you can send a strong message to your elected officials that foods genetically modified to resist Roundup ought to be banned as they are in many European communities — where they call our sustenance Frankenfood.

The world has a lot of problems these days and it can come off as hyperbolic ranting to suggest that so many problems are the result of a weed killer that comes in a ready-to-use spray bottle at your local hardware store. There’s lots of other bad stuff out there. The thing about Roundup, though, is that unlike many maladies it’s a problem we can control. We don’t have to use Roundup. We don’t have to eat the food produced with it.

And if we stop doing that, the problem could conceivably go away.

For our children’s sake we need to make this happen. Now.

In the meantime, don’t just take it from me. Here’s a great interview with Dr. Huber:
http://www.foodconsumer.org/newsite/Safety/gmo/gut_flora_1210110827.html. It encapsulates many of the similar points he made last Friday before the audience, numbering in the hundreds, stood for a long, almost sobering, standing ovation. It wasn’t the kind of raucous applause we lavish on Broadway actors or athletes on a field, but rather a respectful, somber homage to a man who is daring to try to save us from ourselves.

Related Posts:

• Researchers Link Roundup to Male Infertility
• Good-Bye T. Boone Chickens
• Report: Genetically Modified Food Crops an Utter Failure

Article source: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2011/12/dr-huber-lays-it-all-out-roundup-is-killing-us/

Scotts Miracle-Gro announced earlier this week that it will likely lose $70 to $75 million in the fiscal quarter ending Dec. 31 — which is considered its first quarter of 2012. Scotts always loses money this time of year, but this year’s loss is approximately $10 million more than last year for the same period. That follows a year (2011) in which the company’s global consumer sales dipped by more than 9 percent, according to information published by Scotts in November.

The company publicly blames its demise on weather-related issues, as well as increasing commodity costs related to the rising costs of fossil fuel. Chief Financial Officer David Evans admitted the price of synthetic chemical fertilizer has increased approximately 50 percent in the past five years, but told market analysts that a bag of Miracle Gro won’t go up in price this year as the company tries to retain its shrinking market share.

As recently as November, Scotts CEO Jim Hagedorn defiantly predicted that sales would rebound in 2012. Based on the recent losses — along with a sharp drop in the company’s stock price to less than $44 from a high of $60 earlier this year — Hagedorn will now have to hedge his bets.

“We’ll provide (financial) guidance to our investors in February,” he said recently. “We need to evaluate the continued variability of commodity costs and work is still being done to finalize next year’s marketing plans.”

Meanwhile a survey of sales in the organic sector point to an approximately 20 percent increase in fertilizers and natural pesticides in the U.S. Numerous companies continue to jump into the natural market and even the dinosaurs like Scotts and TruGreen (ChemLawn) now offer natural alternatives.

All of this follows a worldwide trend back to the future.

Honesto Baniqued Jr., president of the National Agribusiness Corporation of the Philippines, said the efficacy of organic offerings has improved in recent years just as understanding of the products has skyrocketed globally.

“We’re seeing a 35 percent increase in yields with a switch to an organic fertilizer,” he said. “The use of (synthetic) fertilizer is scandalous and unnecessary.”

Well said.

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• Researchers Link Roundup to Male Infertility
• Good-Bye T. Boone Chickens
• Guest Blog: ‘I Gave You This Knowledge . . . And What Did You Do With It?’

Article source: http://www.safelawns.org/blog/index.php/2011/12/miracle-gro-sales-continue-to-plummet/

I wander the garden and yard looking at the carpet of wet leaves. They would be a lot more beautiful if they would just voluntarily hop right into those bags for composting. They have nearly all fallen now except the two zelkovas, which stubbornly hold on to the leaves until I have raked up all the others. Then those rascally zelkovas drop them all the next day within about five minutes.

How do they know?

Trees have fallen in the fall as well, like giant pick-up sticks. More mess that will require a chainsaw. Chickweed is creeping into the neglected beds.

I wake up in the dark. The days are so short now that the chickens go to roost at 3:30 in the afternoon.

I try to reframe my view of autumn.

The shorter days mean there is less time for frolicking with my rake and leaf bags. But I’m as happy sucking up books as a drunk at an open bar wedding reception.

The cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes are gone. But I have a robust crop of Swiss chard. I have even managed to outsmart the deer by netting it. Lettuce, spinach and arugula are thriving in the cold frame. Cabbages and Brussels sprouts will be ready for harvest soon.  The salvia is blooming. Chickens love chickweed.

Without the leaves, I can see more of the majestic, sculptural beauty of the trees.

Yes, I have mixed feelings about the change of seasons. I will work on seeing the glass half full.

(Click on the photos to embiggen.)

Robin

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Filed in: Chickens, Gardening, Gardening Life, Vegetables

Tags: autumn, Chickens, fall, seasons, Vegetables

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Article source: http://www.bumblebeeblog.com/2011/11/25/a-glass-half-full/

My walk starts at Twin Lakes. The lakes–which just a week ago were busy with muskrats and ducks–are finally beginning to show signs of freezing.

Just across from Twin Lakes is the entrance to the Spicebush Trail.

The trail is marked on the left by an enormous American Beech tree that is at least 150-years old.

One of the things that keeps me amused on this walk is to pay close attention to all the life that can grow on top of a boulder.

The Spicebush Trail provides wonderful vistas of the Bronx River. The Bronx River is New York City’s only freshwater river.

Keep your eyes open for this massive red oak, which is believed to be at least 250-years old! That makes this tree older than the United States.

There aren’t many leaves left on the trees, so those that are left deserve a closer look.

Another giant tree to keep an eye out for (they’re all marked by signs along the trail) is a 90-foot tall American Elm.

You should still be able to spot splashes of vibrant green moss along the Forest’s ephemeral streams.

Admiring the architecture of tree limbs may not be for everybody, but I really enjoy it. They remind me of dancers.

The last big tree I will draw your attention to is this example of a very tall Sweetgum. It’s hard for me to say this, but Sweetgums may be my favorite trees at the Garden. I love their common name. I love their Latin name (Liquidambar styraciflua). I love their leaves. And I love that they’re thriving in the Forest when other native trees are declining.

That big Sweetgum also marks the junction of the Spicebush Trail with the Bridge Trail. Turn left and head for the River. Keep an eye out for big boulders in the trail bearing marks from retreating glaciers, and for many tree snags that look like they could easily serve as fairy houses.

Your first glimpse of the Bronx River will appear soon.

Stop and admire the graceful Hester Bridge (which some might remember from the opening credits of Sesame Street long, long ago).

I also recommend that you take a (very) short detour and walk out to the middle of the bridge. If you have brought a camera with you, this is one of the Garden’s many “must snap” vistas. I mean, where else are you going to get a picture of a waterfall in New York City?

Turn around and head back to the Bridge Trail, turn right, and walk along the ridge overlooking the river. While the Bronx River is beautiful, I also enjoy the ridge on the left where plants growing in the cracks of rocks create a multitude of naturally-formed still lifes.

This ridge is also home to a varied and healthy moss and lichen population.

Today the Bronx River Waterfall had caught a deflated blue balloon in its current. Detritus in the river is a big problem. Please remember to place any trash you might have in the proper bins, or carry it out with you.

After admiring the Waterfall, I retrace my steps back to the big Sweetgum tree and follow the Bridge Trail toward the Azalea Garden, the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden, the Visitor Center, and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. Along the way, I always stop to take pictures at the Forest Picture Post. The Picture Post has directions to take nine pictures.

Why? It is all part of a phenology program run by the University of New Hampshire. By collecting panoramas from one location over time, scientists hope to study how plants and ecosystems change, and to possibly draw conclusions about the effects of climate change.

So get out there and take a walk! Enjoy this odd weather, and if you visit the Forest and see something amazing, mystifying, or just downright pretty, add it to our Trail Book. I would love to hear what your favorite walk at the Garden is, or even what your favorite walk is in New York City. What makes a good walk in your opinion?

Tags: forest, new york city, The New York Botanical Garden, Walking, Weather, Winter

This entry was posted
on Friday, January 6th, 2012 at 3:10 pm and is filed under Around the Garden.
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Related Posts:

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Article source: http://www.nybg.org/plant-talk/2012/01/around-the-garden/a-january-walk-in-the-forest/