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Magazine

A day at Brooklyn Botanic Garden

One of New York’s most breathtaking outdoor locations, the urban botanic garden is located next to the Brooklyn Museum and is right on the border of Prospect Park. With 52 acres, the garden contains more than 12,000 plant varieties arranged by taxonomic order. The gardens flow seamlessly into one another creating an aesthetically engaging harmony throughout. The Local Flora Section consists of eight small ecosystems—inherent to within 100 miles of the garden—each with its exceptional species of trees, shrubs, wildflowers and, mosses.

Walking through the park you can find the stunning Japanese Hill and Pond Garden, constructed in 1914 and recently restored, is one of the finest representations of its kind outside Japan. The Fragrance Garden provides significant encounters for visually impaired visitors. The Herb Garden, which includes medicinal, culinary, fragrant and ornamental herbs, features a 16th-century-knot design. Hugh Hardy’s Steinhardt Conservatory, completed in 1988, has expanded the garden’s capacity to display plants from around the world. Visitors stroll through desert, tropical rainforest and temperate environments in three mesmerizing structures. The Garden also offers weddings and private events at the Palm House and Atrium, in a beautiful outdoor setting.

 

Brothers Frederick Jr. and John Charles Olmsted, sons of Prospect and Central Park designer Frederick Law Olmsted, designed the original Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The present garden is largely the product of Harold Caparn, the landscape architect who took charge of the project in 1912. When Brooklyn Botanic Garden was founded more than a century ago, New York City area was quickly being developed into a cityscape of buildings and paved roads. Creating a public garden was one way to ensure that some green space remained. Today, the Garden has come to represent the very best in urban gardening and horticultural display.