A Botanical Tour of Harlem
The New York City neighborhood of Harlem is a center for Black…
NYBG 2021 New Species Review!
Every year, botanists describe hundreds of new plant, fungal, and lichen species from…
El Yunque
Set foot in El Yunque, the beautiful tropical rain forest in eastern Puerto…
Vampires Among Us: The Ghost Pipe Plant
Did you know that some plants lack chlorophyll? Often confused for a…
Leaves of three, let it be!
If you enjoy spending time outdoors, you surely have heard the age-old…
Fire Island: Preserving a Unique Ecological & Cultural…
On a geological time scale, barrier islands are by definition impermanent, ever-changing,…
Meet Spiranthes bightensis: A New Orchid in Our…
Focus on ScienceSpecimen Stories
Botanists have probably described and named 99% of the plants native to…
Rooted in Plants: An Interview with Arvolyn Hill
Arvolyn Hill is the Family Programs Coordinator at the Everett Children’s Adventure…
Conifers and Mistletoes
Evergreen trees and mistletoe both come to mind when we decorate with holiday…
Brown and Beautiful
Whether naturally brown, or turning brown during the preservation steps needed to create herbarium…
Extraordinary Oak Leaves
Cabinet of CuriositiesSpecimen Stories
Oak trees are a familiar sight to people all around the world,…
The Sacred Plant of Peru: The San Pedro…
For thousands of years, the indigenous people of Peruvian Amazon have used…
Traditional Medicine: Momordica charantia
Momordica charantia L. is a plant species that is used in the…
Greetings from Camp
Even if you have never attended a sleepaway summer camp, chances are you've gotten a…
Modern Art
Herbarium specimens play an important part in plant science research. But the specimens themselves can…
Mystery Tree of Rondônia
In September 2019 I went to Rondônia state in Brazil in the…
Sticky Rice
Focus on ScienceWhat's in a name?
A couple of years ago I was asked by Michael Purugganan (Dean…
The Tecate Cypress: What a Tangled Web
While working as a digitization intern, one of the most pleasing features…
Kate Furbish and the Flora of Maine
Catherine Furbish was born in 1834 in Exeter, New Hampshire. From an…
Virtual Road Trip: Southern Wildflowers
Many Americans are currently practicing social distancing and self-quarantine as a way…
Pollination after dark
Although sometimes overlooked, bats are vital pollinators for many economically important species…
Plant Inspired Innovations: Nepenthes and Slippery Liquid-Infused Porous…
Most plants absorb nutrients from the soil through their roots. Carnivorous plants…
Picnic in Central Park
Since its completion in 1876, Central Park has been a favorite destination…
Palm Patterns
Creating specimens of palms pose a challenge to collectors—how best to trim, arrange,…
Species that Work-from-Home
Like many of you, NYBG herbarium staff are currently working from home…
Dancing Lady Orchids Take Center Stage
Dancing Lady Orchid is the collective common name for the orchid genus…
Orchids of New York: Fairy Slippers and Dragon…
Although most orchids are found in the tropical mountain systems of the…
No Leaves, No Problem!
Although the vast majority of plants have leaves, not all plants do,…
Women in Genera
What's in a name?Women in Science
For as long as we've been using binomial nomenclature to name species,…
Seuss-ian Specimens
While the illustrations in books by Dr. Seuss depict fanciful folliage, reality…
The Saguaro Cactus: Emblematic Plant of the American…
Specimen StoriesWhat's in a name?
With its tall, columnar shape and upward-bending branches, the cactus we know…
Love Potions & Charms
Love potions and charms are mentioned countless times throughout literature; from ancient…
Surviving the Fires of Australia
Amid the tragedy of the Australian fires, the Wollemi Pine is a…
Confetti
No party is complete without confetti—especially when ringing in the new year.…
Eight Days of Oil
Oil has a special significance for those who celebrate Hanukkah. This Jewish…
Yuletide Greetings
European winter traditions that predate Christianity have a large focus on plants.…
Christmas Tree Species
Though most Christmas trees are in the pine family, Pinaceae, they are…
Mulled Cider
Put these fruits, seeds, bark, and flower buds together to get mulled…
People for Scale
A picture is worth a thousand words, and sometimes it's easier to…
Mums the Word
With their vibrant purples, deep reds and bright yellows, Mums (or Chrysanthemums) are always…
Witches!
Cabinet of CuriositiesWhat's in a name?
Don't be too scared by these witches - just some friendly plants…
Botanical Lessons
Botany students must learn the structures of flowers in all their intricate variety.…
Treeline Expansion
The absence of trees at high-elevations both defines Alpine zones and is…
"Citizen Scientists" Support Alpine Research!
Increases in temperature and changes to the availability of moisture and snow…
Alpine Adaptation: Dig-Down & Stand Your Ground
Extreme conditions at high-elevations tend to impede the establishment of annual plants…
Alpine Adaptation: Hold Tight & Take It Slow
These prototypical "cushion plants" are extreme alpine specialists. Short and dense branching…
Extreme Alpine Plants
Cabinet of CuriositiesExpeditions
Few places on the land's surface present weather conditions that are more…
Alpine Adaptation: Duck and Cover
Leaves and flowering stems flattened to the ground and outwardly spreading from…
Traveling Plants: Plants on the move
Plants might not be able to move the way animals do, but…
Traveling Plants: People lend a hand
Plants have lots of ways they can move and distribute their propagules…
Firewood and pathogens
As plants travel the world with people, these plants can bring along…
Tumbleweeds
Tumbleweeds aren’t restricted to one species or plant family, but are an…
Duck dispersal
As more land is developed, plants have an increasingly difficult task of…
Ballast Plants
Ships transporting cargo and passengers use ballast to stabilize the ship at…
Hitchhikers
Some plants have evolved to literally hitchhike on passing animals. They have…
Seeds go ballistic
Getting help is great, but sometimes you just have to do something…
Fruit-eating lemurs
Given the abundance of tasty fruit, it is clear that many plants…
Escapes from cultivation
Humans have a long history of moving and cultivating plant species. But…
Indicators of past settlement
Humans alter the environments where they live and we can use those…
Aquatic Hitchhikers
Although all plants need some water to grow, aquatic plants have adapted…
Bioremediation
Bioremediation is the use of living organisms to remove contamination from the…