BBG - Banzai Museum & Japanese Garden

Continuing with our tour of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.....here we are in the C.V. Starr Bonsai Museum, which is the oldest collection of dwarfed, potted trees in the United States.

These miniature trees and shrubs are amazing.

Some of the trees in the collection are well over a century old.

Text panels introduce the history of bonsai and explain culture and care. It's a little too labor intensive for me to want to try, but it would certainly be a fascinating hobby.

Now we've left the Conservatory behind and are strolling around the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden. These Higan and Weeping Higan cherry trees are in full bloom now, but we were a couple of weeks too early to see them casting the reflections of their beautiful blooms in the pond.

This link shows a map of which cherries are now in bloom.

And

Here's a link to a site on Flickr where people are collectively posting photos of the cherry blossoms at BBG. It's well worth a look.

On the hill above the bridge, hidden behind the trees to the left of the photo, is a Shinto Shrine which I neglected to take a photo of (hard to believe, I know), but if you'd like to see it you can take a peek at Flatbush Gardener's photos of it here.

Several turtles were enjoying a bask in the warm sunshine. The morning's brisk wind calmed half way through the day, and gave us a lovely, mild afternoon.

This lovely shrub is Japanese Pieris.

'White Cascade'.....

......and 'Dorothy Wyckoff'

The Yoshino Cherry was one of the few that were in bloom.

It has a slight fragrance.

The bright vermilion Torii signifies the presence of the shrine tucked away in the pine grove up on the hill.

We enjoyed watching the mallard ducks having a grand time on the pond.....

......and the colorful koi,

.........which were as big as the ducks!

.....and such vibrant colors!

All in all it was a wonderful day, spent in a glorious setting, with delightful company. Who could ask for anything more?

Thanks to all who helped name plants in the other 2 BBG posts. It's amazing what one can find out in Blogland, where there are so many willing helpers :)

BBG - The Steinhardt Conservatory

Spring has finally sprung in upstate NY, and this week we've been blessed with 3 superb, sunny days of 60º (15ºC) temperatures! It's difficult to find words to describe the delight in having a few warm days, free of the biting winds that blew all through March, and being able to get out into the garden to do some clean-up work.

The reluctant snowdrops finally opened their dainty white buds on March 26th, and are putting on quite a show. And since April 5th we've also been treated to the bright faces of crocus blooms in purple, yellow and white.

One morning, about 2 weeks ago, we sighted dozens of robins in the yard, having a worm party on the lawn, and apparently finding plenty because they stayed for a couple of hours.

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The warm weather and work have cut into my time on the computer, leaving me tired at night, but here, finally, are some of the photos taken at The Steinhardt Conservatory during our trip to the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens in New York City on March 29th.

These first 7 photos were taken in the Desert Pavilion, with plants from the American Southwest, Mexico, and African deserts and scrublands.

I don't remember most of the names, so I'd be happy to have any input from those of you who might know...like you southern gals down there in Austin perhaps, if you've recovered enough to visit after your Spring Fling :)

I've never really taken much notice of desert plants before, but this garden made quite an impression on me. I'd love to know the name of this lovely specimen (above).

Isn't this a neat cactus?

Another one with amazing flowers!

Here's an interesting group.

...with lovely contrasts.

So many fascinating cacti.....some round and prickly, some tall and fuzzy!

This Kalanchoe was happy in the desert.

Now we're in the tropical pavilion, with plants from the Amazon Basin, African rainforest, and tropical eastern Asia.

A gentle waterfall flowed from somewhere above into this peaceful setting, but it's hard to see in the foreground of this photo, unless you click to enlarge it.

The tropical blooms were flamboyant.....

Edit: Thanks to Trudi for naming this plant. It's Heliconia - 'Christmas'.

.........dramatic,

Edit: ( this one is Heliconia angusta -'Yellow Christmas')

..........and vibrantly colored!

There were plants with brilliantly patterned leaves.......

Edit: The plant pictured above is a Croton. Thanks to Isabelle for naming this one.

.....and some with huge leaves.

Here's just one of the many beautiful ferns, and more big leaves (philodendron perhaps?).

Now here we are in the Warm Temporate Pavilion with plants from central China, the Mediterranean, Australia, Asia, southern Africa, and the western U.S.

This one was my favorite, with so many unusual blooms that I'd never seen before. Do you see that yellow flowered shrub in the background?

Here it is up close. It belongs to the legume family, and has the most delicious scent.

I wish I could remember its name.

Edit: Old Roses visited the BBG on the Saturday after we did, and she very kindly took a picture of this plant's name tag and sent it to me. Many thanks Old Roses! It's Genista - Teline Canariensis - from the Canary Islands. Thanks to several people who named it as 'Broom'. It is, but not the Scotch Broom.

Wonderful colors everywhere!

The pink flower up close........another beauty.

Edit: This is Watsonia, a South African bulb. Again thanks to Trudi for naming it.

These petals were such an unusual color, they looked like they'd been dyed.

Edit: It's called Ixia, and is another South African bulb. Many thanks to Alice for naming this one.

A similar plant, but this one had lovely white blooms, with dark eyes.

Now we're on the upper level of the Conservatory where a Trail of Evolution traces the development of the natural world over three and a half billion years.

Bromeliads entered recorded history some 500 years ago.

I'm not sure about this one, but I think it may be another bromeliad.

Edit: Jeanette says this is indeed a bromeliad and she has one just like it. Thanks Jeanette!

There were just a few orchids in the Aquatic House, which features tropical water plants in freshwater pools and containers.

This one is rather spidery.

Pretty in pink.

And one last glorious pink.

I'd love to go back and spend a longer time in these fascinating glass houses where there's so much to absorb and learn. These wonderful collections are a work of art, and deserve to be studied at a leisurely pace.

The Bonzai Museum is also part of the Conservatory, but I'll show you that next time along with the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!