SUNDAY, MAY 5      ARRIVE NEW YORK CITY
You are welcome to arrive any time today as no activities are planned. Make your own way to the hotel. Enjoy a welcome dinner and meet your fellow travellers.  (D) 

MONDAY, MAY 6   UPPER MANHATTAN GARDEN

Begin our garden tour at Fort Tryon Park, a fusion of natural and landscaped terrain.  Among the wooded slopes and open lawns are the Heather Garden and the Alpine Garden, each showcasing flowers and plants that are adapted to the unique and varied terrain of the Park.

Located in the park, The Met Cloister is a replica of a medieval monastery. It specializes in European medieval architecture, sculpture, and decorative arts, with a focus on the Romanesque and Gothic period. We have a tour of some of the museum’s 5000 artworks dating back to the 12th through 15th centuries.

Our tour ends today with a guided tour of Central Park’s only formal garden, the 6-acre Conservatory Garden. Enter through the magnificent wrought-iron Vanderbilt Gate. Stroll through the magnolia and lilac trees of the English garden. Enjoy yew trees, a large fountain and a wisteria pergola in the Italian garden. The French garden offers Korean chrysanthemums in autumn and Walter Schott's sculpture, Three Dancing Maidens. (B)

TUESDAY, MAY 7     BROOKLYN GARDENS       

Today we tour Brooklyn Botanic Garden founded in 1910. This garden is made up of more than a dozen separate gardens such as the Fragrance Garden, the Japanese Hill and Pond garden and Shakespeare’s Garden. There are 52 acres of herbs, annuals, perennials, shrubs, trees, and even fruits and veggies to wander through, everything from bonsai to old garden roses.

This afternoon we take a guided tour of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Rooftop Farm.  We learn how they produce thousands of pounds of vegetables annually and the development of rooftop and urban farming techniques. 

The gardens of Brooklyn Bridge Park bring nature into a former industrial site. Several of the gardens collect rainwater for irrigation while growing native plants and providing a habitat for birds and butterflies. The Salt Marsh gardens are planted with native saltmarsh grasses that support coastal wildlife and protect the park from waves. Dune Gardens, Wetland Gardens, Berms and flower gardens all play a role in the protection of wildlife. (B)

WEDNESDAY, MAY 8 LOWER MANHATTAN GARDENS

Built on a historic, elevated rail line above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side, the High Line is one continuous 1.45-mile-long greenway featuring 500+ species of plants and trees. On our guided tour, you’ll find perennials, grasses, shrubs, and trees that were chosen for their hardiness, sustainability, and ever-changing textures and colors in all four seasons.

Little Island Park on Pier 55 is a park on piles on the Hudson River. On top of the piles are concrete “tulips” that hold the soil, lawns and the more than 350 species of flowers, trees and shrubs.

Next is a walk through The Battery’s garden, designed by Piet Oudolf. Visit the Gardens of Remembrance which pay tribute to those who died on September 11, 2001 and the survivors. The Bosque was designed to elicit an emotional response to beauty while the Woodland Gardens feature ornamental grasses and herbaceous perennials in soft shades of blues and pinks.

Our day ends with a visit to the community garden, 6BC Community Garden. This garden began as an empty lot and is now a wonderful botanical and community garden. (B)

THURSDAY, MAY 9 STATEN ISLAND

Today travel by ferry and bus to Staten Island where we will have a tour of the New York Chinese Scholar’s Garden and Snug Harbor Gardens. 

The New York Chinese Scholar’s Garden is based on Ming Dynasty gardens. All components of this garden were manufactured in Suzhou, China (known as a city of gardens). The gardens consist of eight pavilions, a bamboo forest path, waterfalls, a Koi-filled pond, Chinese calligraphy, and a variety of Ghongshi scholar’s rocks.

We will explore two of the Snug Harbor gardens in peak season and then see the propagation center and unusual plants in the Carl Grillo Glass House.

Enjoy free time on the island before returning to your hotel.

On our last evening together, we can relive our travels at a farewell dinner. (B,D)

FRIDAY, MAY 10 END OF TOUR AFTER LUNCH       

Founded in 1891 and now a National Historic Landmark, the New York Botanical Garden is an acclaimed living museum and one of the world’s most important gardens.  Featuring more than a million plants on 250 acres and 50 separate gardens, our guided walking tour will include the Native Plant Garden, the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden, the Thain Family Forest and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory.

Return to hotel approximately 12:30 – 1:00pm. Transfer to the airport for your flight home or enjoy additional time in New York. (B)

Linda Dietrick is a retired professor of German Studies, a past editor of The Prairie Garden, and a trained Master Gardener. Although she grew up in the Philadelphia area as the daughter of a landscape designer, she has lived and gardened in Winnipeg since 1988. In recent years, she and her husband Harold have enjoyed three of Sara Williams’ excellent garden tours. Linda is delighted to have the opportunity to help continue what Sara started.