Battle of the Boroughs: Wildflower Edition

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Brian Lehrer: Brian Lehrer on WNYC. We wrap up the show today with the Five-Borough Wildflower Smackdown. What? Yes, it's not only Mental Health Awareness Month, it's also New York City Wildflower Week, which runs through Sunday. Studies show that connecting with nature can help emotional well-being, so it ties into our last segment to that degree, not to mention, wildflowers are pretty. Here is maybe the most fun part for right now, a Battle of the Boroughs is underway to pick the wildflower that should represent the whole city.

To tell us all about why wildflowers matter, and how to see more of them, and how to vote is urban botanist and ecologist Marielle Anzelone, the founder of New York City Wildflower Week. She's joined by two gardeners, Evie Hantzopoulos, executive director of the Queens Botanical Garden, and Richard Hayden, director of horticulture at the High Line. They're going to champion the wildflowers representing their two boroughs, Marielle will have to speak up for the other three. Marielle, welcome back, and welcome, Evie and Richard.

Marielle Anzelone: Hi, Brian. Good morning.

Evie Hantzopoulos: Good morning.

Richard Hayden: Good morning.

Brian Lehrer: Marielle, tell us about this competition. We tweeted out your photo compilation of the five flowers, and it's on our website at wnyc.org. For people who want to go and look, just click on Brian Lehrer Show. Marielle, can you name the contestants?

Marielle Anzelone: Yes, I can. We want to help New Yorkers get excited about the wild plants that grow throughout the five boroughs. Each borough has a partner organization, and two of them are here today. Each organization chose a plant that they wanted to represent the borough. The candidates are as follows. For Brooklyn, we have Brooklyn Bridge Park, and they chose wild columbine. Staten Island is represented by the Staten Island Museum, and they have pinxter azalea. The Bronx is represented by New York Botanical Garden. They nominated spicebush. Queens is Queens Botanical Garden, they have giant sunflower. Manhattan is represented by the High Line, and they nominated butterfly weed.

Brian Lehrer: Listeners, you can get in on this, too. If you want to call up and vote, you have to describe why you like the wildflower. I guess we can say, besides the five contestants that Marielle just named, if you want to name a write-in wildflower that you think should be the city's official wildflower which is not one of the five, you can do that too. (212)-433-WNYC, (212)-433-9692. Evie Hantzopoulos, tell us about the wildflower representing Queens, the giant sunflower.

Evie Hantzopoulos: We chose the giant sunflower, or Helianthus giganteus, for a few reasons. Number one, I think everybody loves sunflowers. You look at a sunflower, it's yellow, it's bright, it's big, it's happy. I think just the mood that people feel when they see a sunflower was important to us, as you've been talking about mental health. Nature plays a big role in that. We think sunflowers really do uplift people's spirits, but we went beyond that. We went a little deeper. The giant sunflower is native to this area, to Queens, to New York City, to this region, but the sunflower genus, it includes plants from all over the world.

When you look at a place like Queens, when you look at New York City, we thought that it was a very appropriate symbol and a very appropriate wildflower for all of New York City. Of course, it does great things like provides food for bees and birds and bugs, shelter, it gets turned into sunflower oil. There're so many uses for the sunflower. I think it just really represents all of New York City really, really well. We say, "Go, go, go, giant sunflower." We love it, and people love coming to the garden to see the sunflowers here.

Brian Lehrer: Go, go, go, giant sunflower. Richard Hayden, can you tell us about Manhattan's wildflower of choice, the butterfly weed?

Richard Hayden: I sure can. We were really honored that the High Line to be chosen to participate and to represent Manhattan, which we feel really, a lot of responsibility for. We call it butterfly milkweed because we like to remind people that it is a milkweed. It's such a good choice for New York City because it's a tough plant, it grows in tough conditions and really is resilient. It's also bright orange, so it's brash and in your face like a good New Yorker, and it has a lot of benefits.

Milkweeds, people might know, are important because they are the host for monarch butterflies, and monarch butterflies are globally endangered. We want to highlight the fact that having this plant around, it's the only plant that the monarch butterfly will actually lay eggs on are milkweeds. We're happy to point out the fact that you can help butterflies, you can help all sorts of other pollinators. We're crazy about milkweed, and we'll have it all over the High Line. If people want to come and visit, they'll be able to see it this summer.

Brian Lehrer: As well as it does in difficult environments, as you said, does it grow spontaneously elsewhere in the borough?

Richard Hayden: That's a good question. I'll let Marielle answer that. We know that butterfly milkweed was native to Manhattan because there have been such good records from botanists that have been kept over the ages, but whether or not it's currently found on the island, Marielle, any ideas?

Marielle Anzelone: I actually don't think so. The places that I know it to be growing still in the wild is a couple places in Staten Island and potentially one spot in the Bronx, but it is in full display on the High Line and actually in some other gardens around the city as well, so-

Brian Lehrer: All right.

Marielle Anzelone: -people can see it.

Brian Lehrer: Now, Marielle, you'll have to tell us about the picks for Staten Island, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. Listeners, if you're just joining us, we're talking about an actual competition among wildflowers. I was debating in my head just now, that's why I hesitated, whether to say a competition between the boroughs or a competition between the flowers. I guess it's both. Each borough has picked a kind of official wildflower that it has entered in a contest to become the official wildflower of New York City.

Listeners, which one do you want to support? Or name another one or just tell us a good place if you want to call up and just tell us a good place you like to go to see wildflowers. (212)-433-WNYC, 433-9692. We just heard about the contestants for Queens, the giant sunflower, and Manhattan, the butterfly milkweed. Marielle, you'll have to tell us about the picks for Staten Island, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. I see, at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, they are pushing forth spicebush. What is spicebush?

Marielle Anzelone: Spicebush is a native shrub, so it's a woody plant. I actually got a little bit of flak from people, where they were saying that they took some issue with some of these choices because, looking at this, you think, "Okay, well, it's woody, so how is that a wildflower?" Actually, I define wildflowers as plants that are angiosperms, so they have flowers, and they grow in the wild. It can be a tree, it can be a shrub, and we have two shrub contestants.

One of the is spicebush. New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx felt that it was very representative because it's ubiquitous, it does grow in all five boroughs, and it's a really important part of forest understories throughout the city. It has these great leaves that are scented when you rub them, hence the name spicebush, and it's an important food plant for the spicebush swallowtail butterfly.

Brian Lehrer: The Staten Island Museum is putting forth the pinxter azalea. How would you describe that briefly?

Marielle Anzelone: This is an interesting one because this is the only one that wasn't nominated by the partner organization because Staten Islanders are, as always, way ahead of the curve, and Staten Island voted for their own wildflower representative in the 1980s. They already had a wildflower representing the borough, and it was pinxter azalea. We're cheekily saying that this is the species that already has some political experience under its belt.

Brian Lehrer: Brooklyn Bridge Park, on behalf of that borough, putting forth the wild columbine. Which flower is that?

Marielle Anzelone: Wild columbine is really interesting because it's a red and yellow wildflower so it’s very striking if you see it in the wild. It is pollinated by ruby-throated hummingbirds, which we actually have in New York City. That's another really exciting ecological- -relationship.

Brian Lehrer: Wait a minute, we have a write-in vote from Rosemary in Manhattan who wants to nominate I think a much-maligned wildflower. Rosemary, you're on WNYC. Hello.

Rosemary: Hello. Hi. I think the dandelion. I've heard a saying where flowers are only weeds that people-- it’s the reverse. Weeds are flowers that people don't like. There was a [unintelligible 00:10:29] May and all the dandelions grew and it was so beautiful. My niece came and was in love with it. Then she came a month later and was so sad, “Where did the flowers go?” She thinks of it as a flower. Not only that, it's New York tough. I think it can be for all five boroughs. What kind of flower grows in the crevices of cracks of cement and it's so happy, feeds the bees and the animals.

Not only that, my mother used to make dandelion salad. Granted, I used to go to my neighbor's house for dinner that night, but it's such a versatile plant and it's beautiful. People just have a negative opinion of it because, “Oh, it's a dandelion, your parents told you you had to take it out so you see it as ugly,” but look at it. It's like a daffodil. It's bright. It brings color. It brings food for everyone. [crosstalk] And it’s easy, no chemicals.

Brian Lehrer: Rosemary, you're so good at this you're going to have to start a wildflower public relations consulting firm because that was really great. Marielle in all seriousness, how do people vote on which wildflowers should be the city's one?

Marielle Anzelone: We have a website and it's www.wildflowernyc.org. We have all of the candidate profiles there with photographs. We have platforms where each flower talks about what they do and the relationships that they have, and then people can choose which one to vote for. You just do it right on the website. It's really easy and quick.

Brian Lehrer: Is there a prize besides bragging rights?

Marielle Anzelone: The prize we hope will be policy. We're talking to New York City council members because we would like to see this entered into local law. New York City has really wonderful and robust climate legislation but we don't really have biodiversity legislation. We're hoping that this can be something that we have a more expansive view of New York City and the reasons why we need to be thinking about biodiversity and ecology. We're hoping that getting people excited about our local native wildflowers will help us push that along.

Brian Lehrer: Let's get at least one more call in here. Sonia in Brooklyn, you're on WNYC. Hi, Sonia.

Sonia: Hi. Good morning. I'm calling today because I found your topic very interesting. I really enjoy wildflowers. I was raised in Brooklyn, in South Brooklyn my entire life. We lived in a small house and we didn't have a lot of lawn space so I made it a point to plant a lot of wildflower seeds to attract bees and the monarch butterflies. I wanted to suggest to New Yorkers there's a place in Brooklyn that a lot of people don't know about. It's called the Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center and it's open to the public.

Basically this place, it has birds, crabs, fish and other wildlife. It's a preserved area, and there's many wildflowers there. The conservation of volunteers, they take their time and they plant a lot of perennials and wildflowers including switchgrass, butterfly milkweeds, and it's just a really nice place to go see. There's sandy dunes and there's a lot of beach plants there.

Brian Lehrer: Sounds like a great place. Sonia, I'm going to have to leave it there because the show is about to end. Thank you so much. That was really great and another place that New Yorkers can go especially as the weather gets warm. Evie and Richard, I want to give you each 30 seconds because you've been nice enough to come on and just promote what's going on at your places. Queens Botanical Garden, Evie, 30 seconds.

Evie Hantzopoulos: Yes, we're right here in Downtown Flushing, accessible by public transportation. We are blooming. You can see all sorts of native plants and wildflowers, native trillium, baptisia or false indigo, wild geranium. There's lots of things that you can see right now, the dogwoods and tulip trees, which are native trees that flower, and also lots of cultural programs. We welcome everyone to come now and then also later this summer, lots and lots of other native wildflowers will be blooming on our green roof and all throughout the garden. We welcome people to come down. You can see actually all the candidates here at the garden as well.

Brian Lehrer: Richard, briefly the High Line. It's hard to keep people away from the High Line really.

Richard Hayden: It is but I don't think people know just how much ecological function we have on the High Line. We have all sorts of native bees, and birds, and butterflies that are visiting. This is a great synergy that's going on because we have decided to do our horticulture celebration this year around New York City native plants. Starting in June, we'll have signage in the park, we'll have some engagement opportunities for some of our seated conversations and family events. We're really excited to be talking about this important subject.

Brian Lehrer: That's great. Marielle for you, as the founder of New York City Wildflower Week, I see you have wildflower walks coming up. We have 20 seconds.

Marielle Anzelone: Yes, we have wildflower walks. People can check this out on the website nycwildflowerweek.org. There's also a link to the voting website so please New Yorkers, go vote, wildflowernyc.org. All the information's there and if you want to join us on a walk to see some of these plants in bloom, you can do that too.

Brian Lehrer: The Wildflower Five-Borough Smackdown is on. Thank you all three for coming on. Great segment.

Marielle Anzelone: Thank you, Brian.

Evie Hantzopoulos: Thanks, Brian.

Richard Hayden: Thanks, Brian.

 

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