Brooklyn Botanic Garden

I’ve been to Brooklyn Botanic several times, and I’m always a little surprised at how casual the entrance is. The guards are chatty, and people are sitting or standing in a relaxed way that is very different from other types of museums. I’ve noticed this at New York Botanical, too. This time I visited Brooklyn Botanic on a Tuesday, when admission is free, and I noticed what I’ve noticed on other free admission days– there are a lot of regulars, and the guards are really friendly, as if they are just greeters, rather than guards. Near the entrance, several women with babies in strollers clearly had a weekly date to meet at the garden and walk the paths. I know several people who have regular free admission to the garden for one reason or another, and they usually visit at least once a month, if not once a week. Many of the people I observed on Tuesday seemed to visit often, too; they knew where they were going and had an idea of what they would see. This stood in contrast to last week’s visit to the Met, where there was a general air of confusion around the entrance. I wonder how many visitors the Met has who just stop in casually, the way people seem to do with the garden. During this visit, I was reminded of the Grover reading we did for class. As soon as I walked through the gates, even though similar plantings were outside, I immediately started to look at everything I saw as part of the exhibits. I noticed some of the other visitors were doing this, too. It was as if by building a wall around a certain space we had been given permission to look very, very closely, in a way that is usually seen as strange when done outside that wall. This was my fifth visit to the Brooklyn Botanic, but I still got lost. I don’t mind getting lost here, though, because of that permission to look at everything as an exhibit.

Although the definition of the space creates this possibility for close examination, I also noticed a few things that contribute to the casual atmosphere at Brooklyn Botanic. Firstly, its location makes it feel like an extension of Prospect Park, rather than a stand alone destination. Secondly, the relatively minimal amount of signage and interpretation in the outdoor areas (vs. the conservatory) allows vhttp://carolineabrown.com/blog/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=894&message=1isitors to forget that they are in a sort of museum if they want to. In the past, I’ve found this gray area frustrating– when visiting alone I’ve wanted either more information (Why do these roses have such crazy names? Who gets to decide? How do these plants relate to their surroundings? Why are these leaves shaped like this?) or, when visiting with friends, I’ve wanted more of a park experience (Yes, we know there’s no picnicking, we’re just drinking water. Sorry, no, we didn’t realize we weren’t allowed to sit on the grass…)

From a 14-year-old who wants to be a biologist: I love the desert exhibit and the tropical section. It’s so cool to see stuff growing that doesn’t grow here, even though the air is kind of gross in there. I know you’re not really supposed to touch stuff, but sometimes I can’t help tapping my finger on the end of a cactus spine. I wish there was more stuff about how plants are on the inside, though. Also, it would be cool to meet the people who take care of all this stuff.

From a pair of elderly tourists: We were a little sorry that the website said that some of the roses were blooming again; they looked pretty droopy to us. Still, we would love to come back in the spring. Some of the paths around the Japanese garden were a little rough; maybe they could mark more clearly which paths are recommended for whom? The walk down from the entrance is a little steep, but it’s worth it to look out over the cherry trees and the rose garden. We would have liked to sit down to look at things more often.

From a group of neighborhood moms: We’ve been coming to the garden every Tuesday for a few months; it’s a great spot to walk and talk and get a little change of scene from the neighborhood. We generally stay on the main paths, so we don’t really read too much about the plants. We’d probably explore more if some of the paths were wider. For a while we were trying to learn more about the plants, but now we just relax and take it all in. One thing that’s kind of frustrating, though, is that it’s hard for a group of us to sit down anywhere other than the lawn under the cherry trees– sometimes we wind up splitting up onto benches when it’s time to take a break, but then we can’t all face each other or talk together.