Opening Reception of The 13th Annual International Juried Botanical Art Exhibition

On Tuesday, the week of September 12-18 was officially proclaimed Botanical Art Week in New York City by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. On Wednesday evening, the official proclamation was on view at the opening reception for The 13th Annual International Juried Botanical Art Exhibition. In addition to our show, botanical art exhibitions opened at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden (on Tuesday) and the New York Botanical Garden (on Thursday).




At The Hort, we had a packed house for the reception with many of the 39 artists in attendance, some coming from as far as Japan and Australia. Each year this exhibition is presented in partnership with the American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA). This year’s show was selected from a field of over 200 submissions, by jurors Francesca Anderson, Carol E. Hamilton, Dick Rauh and Jessica Tcherepnine. The forty-one works are by artists from the US, Australia, Canada, France, Japan and the United Kingdom. The paintings reflect the international nature of the exhibition, featuring a variety of exotic plants from around the world, including Floss Silk Tree, Red Angel's Trumpet, Orchid Tree and New Zealand's "Woolyhead".








Karen Kluglein, who has two paintings featured in the exhibition, won the Best in Show award for her white-on-white painting of a Franklinia flower. Martha Kemp won the ASBA Award for her drawing of walnuts on vellum. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden Award for Drawings and Prints went to Andrea Wilson for her copperplate etching of Oconee Bells. Other award-winners include Carol Woodin’s Slipper Orchid (NY Central Award); Noriko Fujii’s Parrot Tulip (Ursus Award); and John Pastorizo-Pinol’s Sea Urchin Hakea Pods (Talas Award). Kathy Folino and Heeyoung Kim received Honorable Mentions for their Lichens and Cardinal Flower (respectively).






The exhibition will be on view at The Hort through November 24. In conjunction with the show, we will be offering three botanical art classes in the gallery. Come see the art and learn how to paint your own! For more information, please visit hsny.org

Tomato Horn Worm

Manduca quinquemaculata, Five-spotted hawk moth/tomato horn worm

Recently, I was given a wonderful surprise at the office. Our Horticultural therapists from Rikers Island Greenhouse, Hilda Krus and Laurie Sexton brought me a tomato hormworm from one of the instructional vegetable gardens. The students at the garden were slightly horrified with the color and size of the caterpillar. After much coaxing they finally collected the little beast and marveled at its shape and the horn located on the last segment which gives the caterpillar its name. Here are some photos and culture on the tomato horn worm:




Description: The tomato hornworm is a large pale-green caterpillar with white and black markings. The caterpillar can reach 9 to 10 cm (3 ½ to 4 inches) when fully mature. A projection or spike on one of the last abdominal segments gives the caterpillar the name “hornworm.” The adult moth, called a sphinx or hawk moth, is a medium to large, heavy-bodied moth with narrow front wings. The moth has a spindle-shaped body which tapers at both ends and fairly thick antennae. The adult is a mottled gray-brown color with yellow spots on the sides of the abdomen and a wing spread of 10 to 13 cm (4 to 5 inches).

Injury: The hornworm feeds on the leaves and new stems of the tomato plant, causing extensive damage. During July and August they also occasionally feed on the fruit.

Life Cycle: The adult moth lays eggs on the undersides of tomato leaves in late spring. The eggs hatch in six to eight days and the larvae pass through five or six stages, maturing fully in three to four weeks. The fully grown larvae then burrow into the soil to pupate. The pupa may remain in the soil all winter and emerge as a moth the following spring, or, if the weather conditions are suitable, the moth may emerge from the pupa in two to four weeks. The moths emerge from the soil, mate, and then begin to deposit the eggs of the next generation on tomato plants.

Management: There are a number of natural factors which help to control tomato hornworm populations. One of the most common parasites in home gardens is a small, parasitic braconid wasp. Many wasp larvae feed inside the hornworm, eventually killing the caterpillar. The cocoons containing pupae of these wasps are visible as small white projections on the hornworm’s body. Larvae with cocoons sometimes move sluggishly, but seldom cause additional feeding damage. They should be left on the plant so emerging adult parasites can attack other hornworms.

Hand-picking the hornworms from infested plants in the garden provides safe and effective control in small gardens. It is often surprisingly difficult to find these large larvae on the plants. Their large brown droppings are generally readily apparent, however. Once you find one larva, others are much more easily found.

Adapted from the Cornell Cooperative Extension, 1999

Plant Picks

'Moonlight' Japanese Climbing Hydrangea



Schizophragma hydrangeoides 'Moonlight'

A close relative of the true climbing hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaria), Schizophragma hydrangeoides 'Moonlight' is a self-climbing, deciduous vine. Using adhesive rootlets borne along its stems, it can climb a masonry wall or a tree without harming or overwhelming its support.In fall, the leaves turn from lime green to yellow before dropping to reveal a scaffold of reddish brown woody stems.



The young foliage, however, is like a full moon on a clear night; the heart-shaped leaves , 3 to 5 inches across, have a silvery sheen accented with dark green veins. Creamy, scented, lacecap blooms appear in summer for 6 to 8 weeks. 'Moonlight' prefers well-drained soil with average moisture in dappled sun to full shade. Although slow to start, it will eventually reach 20 or 30 feet.




Article by Lorene Edwards Forkner
Organic Gardening, April/May2010 OrganicGardening.com

Mosquito-ease?

Help relieve the swelling and itching of mosquito bites with basil. Take a few leaves and mash them in your hand to form a poultice and apply directly to bites.