A version of this story first appeared in the latest edition of the Norwood News. You can see more photos from the exhibit here.
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| (Photos by Haybee Camacho) |
By Haydee Camacho
Weather forecasters were issuing yet another winter weather advisory on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. But inside the Bronx’s New York Botanical Garden, a new Caribbean Garden exhibit provided welcome relief for winter-weary patrons.
Upon entering the main atrium of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, visitors are transported to a tropical oasis of towering palm trees and lush ferns.
“We have so many beautiful plants in our collection and so many grown in the Caribbean,” said Karen Daubman, the Garden’s director of exhibitions and seasonal Displays. “We wanted to highlight those plants. It’s so beautiful for people to stroll through and feel like they are on vacation.”
Visitors agree. “It’s fantastic,” said Marlene Ostertag, an avid gardener who was visiting with her daughter, Karen, a librarian. “There is a little too much snow piled up and having a place of tropical green in the middle of winter is fantastic.”
Near a fountain, Lisa Imundo watched as her 11-year-old daughter Francesca sketched.
“It’s like a little mini vacation,” she remarked. “It lifts the spirits to come in out of the ice and snow. It’s beautiful like summertime.”
