Horticulture

Johnny Linville at work on the High Line. Photo by David Kimelman. See more of the gardeners in action in David's album on Flickr.

Johnny Linville, one of the High Line's five full-time gardeners (and frequent equipment model) recently told me about his transition from traditional office job to the world of professional gardening. Up until December of 2007, Johnny helped run a branch of a private company that focused on literacy remediation. He loved his job, but was more passionate about gardening, a hobby he had cultivated nearly all his life, from helping to coordinate a community garden to participating in his native Santa Barbara's Bonsai Club. So, one day during the middle of winter, Johnny took a leap of faith and resigned from his job. He obtained an internship with the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, and was able to gain the technical groundwork to begin his new career.

The Chelsea Grasslands this fall. Photo by Bjoern Amherd.

Now that spring is approaching, our gardeners are beginning the cutback process, which will provide space for new growth during the warmer months. In a traditional garden, plants are cut back when their stalks begin to dry during autumn. In keeping with planting designer Piet Oudolf's belief that a plant's dried seed heads are just as beautiful and important as its flowers, the High Line's vegetation was left in its natural state.

Dawn bondant viburnum in bloom.

February is unexpectedly interesting for blooms on the High Line. This month features three plants: witch hazel (Hamamelis x intermedia 'Pallida'), Dawn bodnant viburnum (Viburnum x bodnantense 'Dawn'), and sweet box (Sarcococca hookeriana).

The rose-colored buds in the picture above are the beginnings of blooms on a Dawn bodnant viburnum, a shrub that flowers during the bleakest part of the winter. Its clusters of flowers have an excellent fragrance in late winter/early spring.

American Coneflower in bloom below the Diller-von Furstenberg Sundeck.

Feeling under the weather? According to High Line gardener Kyla Dippong, the park is a "veritable pharmacy." Many of Section 1's 210 species of plants offer simple remedies, quite a few of which were used by Native Americans long before the advent of the pharmacy as we know it today.

As you continue to battle the cold and flu season, here are a few of our favorite medicinal plants to keep in mind, most of which can be found easily in your local drugstore or herbal remedy shop (but NOT by picking them off the High Line).

Maeve Turner using the Dosatron (affectionately named "Dosie"
by the Horticulture staff) to apply compost tea to specific areas of the High Line.

Maeve, one of our five full-time gardeners, has been on staff since the High Line's opening this past June.  Originally from England, Maeve grew up in Westfield, New Jersey, and first discovered her love for gardening while working at Morning Glory Farm on Martha's Vineyard, where she helped out with everything from seeding to planting to weeding.  After Morning Glory, Maeve completed an internship at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden (which she says was "awesome"), then worked for a private gardening company.  Each job, she says, was a unique experience, and affirmed that gardening is the work environment she enjoys most.

Dear Friends,

2009 has been a remarkable year for the High Line. After spending the spring working on the final stages of construction, we opened the first section of the park in June. Since then, we estimate that nearly 2 million people have visited. We hope you were among these first visitors to the High Line, and that you return again and again in 2010.

The High Line's first year as a public park has been truly amazing. We've pulled together some of our favorite pictures from this incredible, historic year. We hope you enjoy them!

We hope you'll continue to support the High Line as we prepare for 2010.

Many thanks, and happy New Year,

Park visitors stroll and relax on the Diller von Furstenberg Sundeck between 14th and 15th Streets. The Sundeck is one of the High Line's most popular gathering spots, especially for sunbathers on bright summer days, and as a place to watch the sunset. Photo by Iwan Baan

"...The High Line is a hit, and not just with tourists but with New Yorkers who are openly relishing a place where they can reflect and relax enough to get a new perspective on Manhattan."
– Diane Cardwell, For High Line Visitors, Park is a Railway Out of Manhattan, New York Times

Winter Red winterberry holly with grey birch in the Gansevoort Woodland.
Photo by Patrick Cullina.

Here's another sight-seeing item to add to your holiday list – the Winter Red winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata 'Winter Red') that's brightening the Gansevoort Woodland with clusters of lively red fruits.

Photo by Bryan Hou, via Flickr

Happy December!