A New York Landmark
Today, the botanical garden remains one of the world’s most comprehensive plant research and conservation program. Over the last century, the gardens amassed over 7,800,000 plant specimens. Regardless of the time of year, it’s a fantastic New York landmark that shouldn’t be missed.
Holiday Spectacular
However, when the holidays roll around, the botanical garden becomes even more spectacular.
Paul Busse launched the Holiday Train Show in 1992, and it’s only grown more incredible in the years since. Enchanting model trains zip through a display of 150 New York landmarks, each re-created with seeds, pine cones, twigs, leaves and bark.
Part of the fun is trying to guess what what materials make up the miniatures. For example, how’d they create the tiny fans in the original Yankee Stadium or the windows of St. Patrick’s Cathedral? My favorite: the naked bum of a statue made from the shells of two pistachio nuts. Man, oh man. The creativity kills me!