Tropical Pavilion

Yes, this is NYC too. The photos for this posting (click here for more) were all taken in the Tropical Pavilion in the Steinhardt Conservatory at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, which was founded in 1910. Brooklyn Botanic is a world unto itself, one of NYC's (and the country's) premier urban oases - 52 acres with over 10,000 different kinds of plants in a variety of outdoor and indoor environments - gardens, walks, esplanades and conservatories. The Steindhardt Conservatory (built in 1988 to replace buildings from 1917) is a complex of greenhouses in realistic environments that simulate a range of global habitats - Desert, Warm Temperate and Tropical pavilions, along with a Bonsai Museum (the largest collection in the US - a must see), the Trail of Evolution exhibit and an Aquatic House. The Tropical Pavilion, the largest of the conservatories, soars to a height of 65 feet to accommodate the tallest trees. It recreates a tropical forest, including waterfalls and streams, representing the primary tropical regions of the world: the Amazon basin, African rainforest, and tropical eastern Asia. Plantings are arranged to represent the categories of fragrance, food, medicine, and industry, along with ornamental plants. Here you can find mango, banana, breadfruit, coffee, cola, vanilla, cinnamon, chocolate, papaya, star fruit, latex, mahogany - it's amazing to see tropical fruits actually growing in the middle of New York City! I would recommend a visit any time of year, although a steamy August day would perhaps not be the best choice for the Tropical Pavilion - try a dreary winter day and be transported to another world ...