NAACP member J. E. Spingarn and the Clematis…
Joel Elias Spingarn (May 17, 1875 - July 26, 1939) was a…
Naming the Rainbow
Botany uses Latin to describe and name plants, including the Latin words…
Naming the Rainbow: Aurantiaco / Orange
Alas, the Latin name of the sweet orange that makes orange juice…
Naming the Rainbow: Caeruleum / Blue
The rarest color in nature, caeruleum (Latin for blue), usually indicates a…
Naming the Rainbow: Coccineum / Scarlet
A close cousin of the color rubrum, coccineum (Latin for scarlet) is…
Naming the Rainbow: Flavum / Yellow
Flavum (Latin for yellow) is often used to indicate yellow flowers, hairs, or…
Naming the Rainbow: Indicum / Indigo
Indigo, the dark bluish-purple color of blue jeans, is a natural dye…
Naming the Rainbow: Purpurea / Purple
The deep color purpura, Latin for purple, is commonly used to indicate…
Naming the Rainbow: Rubrum / Red
Rubrum, Latin for red, is often used to indicate firey red flowers…
Naming the Rainbow: Viola / Violet
In an etymological twist, the color violet takes its name from the violet…
Naming the Rainbow: Viridis / Green
Most plants are green, but only a select few have viridis (Latin…
Newspaper time capsule: B. Maguire 23559
A trip to the field isn't always necessary to describe a new…
No Leaves, No Problem!
Although the vast majority of plants have leaves, not all plants do,…
NY's Missing Species
When you think of a rare, endangered species, you may think of far-off…
NYBG 2021 New Species Review!
Every year, botanists describe hundreds of new plant, fungal, and lichen species from…
NYBG 2022 New Species Review!
Every year, botanists describe hundreds of new plant, algal, fungal, and lichen…
NYBG 2023 New Species Review!
Every year, botanists describe hundreds of new plants, algae, fungi, and lichens…
NYBG 2024 New Species Review!
Every year, botanists describe hundreds of new plants, algae, fungi, and lichens…
NYBG 2025 Biodiversity Impact Review!
Every year, botanists describe hundreds of new plants and fungi from across…
Octopodotus stupendus
Octopodotus from octopus and the Greek suffix–otus, indicating resemblance, because of the…
Okra’s journey to the United States
Many culinary delights that Americans enjoy today, especially in the Southern United…
Old Man's Beard
This lichen grows as an epiphyte on trees. They require clean air,…
Old Man's Beard: A Medicinal Lichen
Usnea is a genus of lichen, commonly known as Old Man’s Beard. …
Ophelia’s Flowers
Shakespeare never visited the crown prince Hamlet’s home on the east coast of…
Orchids in your Home!
Orchids are the largest plant family, with over 28,000 known species, and…
Orchids Named for Mexico!
Focus on ScienceWhat's in a name?
Scientific names for plants can indicate a number of different attributes, including…
Orchids of Mexico!
Mexico is a 'mega' biodiversity hotspot, and it is particularly rich in…
Orchids of New York: Fairy Slippers and Dragon…
Although most orchids are found in the tropical mountain systems of the…
Oro City – A Colorado Ghost Town
Oro City was a gold placer (stream-bed) mining town in Colorado, founded…
Otto Kuntze
Carl Ernst Otto Kuntze was a german botanist who made expeditions to every…
Palm Patterns
Creating specimens of palms pose a challenge to collectors—how best to trim, arrange,…
Paphiopedilum
Paphiopedilum is genus of slipper orchid found in tropical Asia, from eastern…
People for Scale
A picture is worth a thousand words, and sometimes it's easier to…
Pertusaria andersoniae
Specimen StoriesWomen in Science
Some of our herbarium specimens are of incredibly rare species. This is…
Phalaenopsis
Phalaenopsis, the moth orchids, are perhaps the most commonly cultivated orchid. With…
Phenology and Herbarium Specimens
As habitats get warmer, a plant's life cycle can change. For example, when spring…
Philodendron
Specimen StoriesFocus on Science
Greek: Philo- (love) dendron (tree) There are close to 500 species of…
Picnic in Central Park
Since its completion in 1876, Central Park has been a favorite destination…
Pilostyles
Upon first glance, this mounted specimen may seem nothing more than an…
Pitcher Plants
Pitcher Plants sometimes attract insects to their specialized leaves with nectar or…
Pitcher plants: so nice, they evolved thrice!
Pitcher plants are famous (or perhaps infamous) for their carnivorous structures that…
Plant Inspired Innovations: Nepenthes and Slippery Liquid-Infused Porous…
Most plants absorb nutrients from the soil through their roots. Carnivorous plants…
Plant species named after Alice Eastwood
Several botanists have honored Eastwood's contributions to science by naming new plant…
Plants of Sítio Roberto Burle Marx
Roberto Burle Marx was an artist, a landscape architect and an early…
Pleurothallid orchids of Mexico!
The Pleurothallid orchids are a clade of related genera, meaning they are…
Point Judith
Can't get away to the beach? Let these field photographs and algae…
Polka-dot Ferns
Unlike flowering plants, ferns reproduce with spores instead of seeds. Fern spores…
Pollination after dark
Although sometimes overlooked, bats are vital pollinators for many economically important species…
Prairie White Fringed Orchid
Nearly all of the habitat of the endangered Prairie White Fringed Orchid…
Prosthechea of Mexico!
Prosthechea is a large tropcial American genus of 125 known species, occuring…
Purple Pitcher Plant
The purple pitcher plant (Sarracenia purpurea) is a carnivorous plant found throughout…
Queer Love Lives in Hyacinth
The flowering period of hyacinth may have passed, but their celebration continues…
Rainbow of Plant Dyes
People have been dyeing their clothing with plants since ancient times. All around…
Reindeer Lichens
In this most wonderful time of the year, Christmas is naturally on…
Remembrances of Yours
There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance.Pray you, love, remember. And there is pansies,that’s…
Resurrecting from the Dead
I remember coming across Selaginella lepidophylla while imaging herbarium specimens for the…
Rice and its Wild Relatives
Humans have been farming rice for approximately 10,000 years. The two major…
Richard Spruce
“Whenever rains, swollen streams, and grumbling Indians combined to overwhelm me with…
Riclef Grolle
Riclef Grolle (1934 – 2004) was among the most dedicated and knowledgeable…
Riverbank Grape
Riverbank grape (Vitis riparia) is a climbing vine native to North America…