Gardens are romantic, blissful, glorious, and empowering.
Consider
gardens a prism through which we can view our world – be that our window box,
stoop containers, yards, rooftops oasis or farms, community gardens, parks --
or in the bigger scheme of arcadia -- the Rainforest or Pine Barrens.
Here is where
we can touch Nature, grow our food to get healthier and stay fit, nurture
glamorous florals that will accessorize our homes and offices, walk through our
landscape designs of beauty, sustainability and mystery, and be inspired to write
about and photograph our transcendent, Edens.
But wait, you
might be thinking...
Is your head reeling thinking about all the dizzying, green possibilities?
Is your head reeling thinking about all the dizzying, green possibilities?
How do you know
how to get started?
Or take the
next step on the garden path to botanical bliss?
Don’t fret.
Guess what?
You're in clover!
You're in clover!
The New York
Botanical Garden (NYBG) is your Garden Concierge.
Yes, think of
the Garden’s Adult Education program as your gateway; guide.
They’ve curated
all that’s important in the world of gardens so that you can choose with
confidence and esprit to engage and learn from a community of fellow garden
enthusiasts. And with more than 500 classes to choose from, you know there will
always be a new garden adventure just waiting to be discovered.
Ahhh. Sweet…
How Sweet, you may
ask…
Very.
Garden Glamour & NYBG Garden Quiz Challenge
The cool Garden Concierges
at NYBG reached out to Garden Glamour
readers to offer you a special fun way to earn a $25 credit toward your next
class with an exclusive Garden Glamour/Garden Quiz!
This is a fantastic
botanical contest and a quick way to earn some “green” for your next greening
class at the Garden.
So let’s “dig in”
and get started.
It’s
easy.
Take a
look at the Plant Photo here. (Or gaze at it. With botanical abandon.)
And correctly
answer the five questions posed by the NYBG staff botanists.
Garden Glamour Botanical Quiz
1. What is the scientific name of
this plant? You can include the common name if you wish but we are looking for
the scientific name.
2. Name one state to which the
plant is native. (Hint: North Carolina, Georgia, Virginia)
3. Does it thrive in sunny sites
or shady sites?
5. Would it grow best in a dry,
arid environment, or a moist one?
6. When does this plant bloom?
•
A. Early spring
•
B. Early summer
•
C. Mid-summer
•
D. Late summer
•
E. Autumn
Email me your
answers and I’ll select the winner. (Leeann@Duchess-Designs.com)
Be sure to include
your email for prize notification.
Now that your Hortie
curiosity is geared up, you can skip over to the online NYBG Adult Education
catalog to sign up for any of the intriguing class and lectures that seduce you
– just in time for your Spring Fling – in the Garden!
In fact, the garden
gurus at NYBG have a class for gardeners at every level – from beginners trying
to grow their first plants to advanced gardeners looking for the best plants
and techniques to keep their garden flourishing.
You can take a
one-time class, or dig deeper and start a prestigious NYBG Certificate class.
I earned a
Certificate in Landscape Design from NYBG and am honored to share with you that
it is a rigorous, stimulating program that will change your life.
It did mine – in all
the best ways.
Clients and
horticulturists alike recognize the Certificate program as a benchmark
achievement for any of the seven disciplines offered by the Garden, including:
·
Floral
Design
·
Landscape
Design
·
Horticulture
·
Horticulture
Therapy
·
Botanical
Art & Illustration
·
Botany
·
Gardening
The NYBG
Gardening Certificate Program includes topics such as current gardening
techniques, soil science, plant propagation, and garden maintenance and design.
Regional experts teach the program and trains students in ecologically
sound gardening practices.
Check out these
suggested class offerings. And just follow the link to enroll.
* Fundamentals of
Gardening http://conted.nybg.org:8080/WebModule/jsp/ed2df.jsp?df1=slayout:144GAR301A
·
Integrated
Pest Management
·
Container
Gardening
The New York
Botanical Garden has just released a new season of classes for Spring-Summer
2014.
And the butterfly
collage on the website and catalog cover sets the tone.
NYBG is on a mission
to help people garden more efficiently and sustainably and to train you to be
the best gardener possible.
This term, NYBG is
renewing their focus on eco-friendly gardening practices, with classes on
sustainable pest control, watering smartly, planting pollinator-friendly and
native plants in the garden, and more.
Sounds so “you,”
doesn’t it.
Garden Friends
See, the other thing
about taking classes at NYBG is you will find a community of garden friends –
others just like you who are passionate about plant beauty and gardens and a
healthier, more sustainable life.
You can bring a
friend and make new Garden friends.
Tell
your new Garden Friends there you just entered the Garden Glamour contest!
Need more reasons to
enroll? I don’t think so, but here goes:
· NYBG just released a new season of gardening
classes, which start in March
· There are classes for urbanites and city
slickers, too. Check out the container
gardening and kitchen gardening classes to learn how to manage a garden in a
small space, or even indoors.
· You also have a choice of where you want to
take your classes. I most enjoy going to
the Garden’s 250-acre landscape in the Bronx.
Its unsurpassed beauty is so inspiring.
Yet, I also frequent the NYBG Midtown Education Center on 20 West
44th Street in Manhattan. If you
North, you can attend satellite locations in Dutchess and Fairfield counties
· You can take a one-time workshop-style class,
or get your Wellied feet wet with an introductory certificate class, like
"Fundamentals of Gardening I" and "Soil Science for
Beginners."
·
Designing
a Bird- & Pollinator-Friendly Garden http://conted.nybg.org:8080/WebModule/jsp/ed2df.jsp?df1=slayout:144GAR122
·
Making
Small Meadows
·
Native
Plant Garden Saturday
·
Grow More
with Less
