GREEN INDUSTRY
EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE
New York Botanical Garden
Bronx, NY
Photo © by Old-Growth Forest Network
COURSEWORK Completed
Lectures Attended
What's This Tree on My Block? – Learned to distinguish among the five most common genera of the 200 tree species growing in NYC and pinpoint particular species in this quick intro to tree identification.
Plants for Reclaimed Land – The Director of Horticulture at Governors Island discussed which plant species work best on a tough site and which should be removed, contained, and cultivated.
The Historical Flora of New York City: Implications for Conservation Action – NYBG’s Center for Conservation Strategy staff and other authors and experts gave an update on the New York City EcoFlora project.
Queens Botanical Garden
Flushing, NY
Volunteer & Other Experience
Composting Volunteer Day – Joined the NYC Compost Project to lend a hand at QBG processing food scraps and building a compost pile.
Pick & Prep: Farm Fresh Foods – NYC Compost Project–hosted educational and experiential event where we harvested vegetables at the Garden’s farm and prepared a light lunch as a group.
Brooklyn Grange
Long Island City, NY
Brooklyn, NY
Rooftop farm in LIC
Volunteer Experience
Farm Volunteer – Helped weed rows and performed other tasks at Brooklyn Grange’s Long Island City rooftop farm.
Educational Experience
Modeling an Urban Agriculture Business: Interactive Day-Long Intensive Course – Co-founder of Brooklyn Grange discussed models of urban agricultural businesses, with a focus on New York City, presented a framework for thinking creatively about farming in cities. Held at Brooklyn Navy Yard Farm.
Two Coves Community Garden
Astoria, NY
Two Cucurbita I grew in the communal plot
Volunteer Experience
Weekly garden volunteer work including planting pumpkins, weeding, soil preparation at longstanding community garden in Astoria, New York, under the auspices of NYC Parks.
GROW NYC
New York, NY
Volunteer Experience
Completed volunteer training for New York’s leading network of greenmarkets.
Site Visits
Suydam Hills Farm
Ancram, NY
Bryan and Alyssa feeding the chickens
Toured working organic farm centered around an inn built in 1798, with a focus on agroforestry, and featuring protected wetlands, forested hillsides, several acres of farmland, and several outbuildings including a historic barn.
Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture
Pocantico Hills, NY
Garlic drying
Attended lecture tours on foraging, sustainable and regenerative farming, and beekeeping at this working laboratory whose mission is to promote a culture of informed, healthy eating.
Wave Hill
Bronx, NY
Multiple visits to 28-acre historical public horticultural gardens in Riverdale overlooking the Hudson River.
Queens Farm Museum
Floral Park, NY
Toured farm stand, historic house and farm buildings, fields with late-fall crops at New York City’s oldest, largest remaining tract of undisturbed farmland. The farm is on a 47-acre parcel that is the longest continuously farmed site in New York State.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Brooklyn, NY
Visited 52-acre botanical garden holding over 14,000 taxa of plants. Of special interest: the Herb Garden (pictured), the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, the Shakespeare Garden and the Fragrance Garden.
Pleasant Run Nursery
Allentown, NJ
In-depth tour of specialty plant and tree nursery as part of Nursery and Greenhouse Management course at NYBG. Learned about irrigation, soil science, disease management, and other vital aspects of the business.
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS)
Philadelphia, PA
Attended the 2020 Philadelphia Flower Show, one of the nation's largest and longest-running horticultural events, featuring displays by premier floral and landscape designers: diverse and sustainable plant varieties, garden and design concepts, competitions in horticulture and artistic floral arranging, and gardening presentations and features demonstrations.
Sarah P. Duke Gardens
Durham, NC
Tour of Duke University’s botanical garden. Of special note: the Piedmont Prairie section of the Blomquist Garden of Native Plants.
North Carolina Botanical Garden
Chapel Hill, NC
Tour of conservation garden operated under the auspices of University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. Of special note: rare Piedmont wildflowers and other southeastern native plants; Paul Green Cabin (pictured).
JC Raulston Arboretum
Raleigh, NC
Bee Hotel
Tour of botanical gardens and tree exhibits at 10-acre arboretum administered by North Carolina State University. Of special note: Conifer collections; extensive demonstrations of intercontinental disjunction/vicarious pairs.
UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens
Charlotte, NC
Moon Gate
Toured outdoor gardens (highlight: winter flowering plants) and attended lecture on the cocoa tree (Theobroma cacao) and chocolate production in McMillan Greenhouse on campus of University of North Carolina – Charlotte.
Miami Beach Botanical Garden
Miami, FL
Tropical compost heap
Toured 2.6-acres urban green space showcasing native Florida plants and trees including bromeliads, palms, cycad, orchids, and tropical edibles. Also features a Japanese garden, bio-swale, and water gardens including ponds, fountains, and a wetland with mangrove and pond apple trees.