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Greenhouses Galore

Growing plants in the Northeast year-round is no mean feat! Here is a look at greenhouses of all stripes throughout the city.

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Weir's Greenhouse
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Weir's Greenhouse

Weir's Greenhouse is the only 19th century commercial greenhouse structure to survive in New York City. It was in 1895 by James Weir Jr., whose family was in the local horticultural business. The original greenhouse on this site was built in 1880 by a prominent architect named Mercein Thomas, who is better known for his Romanesque Revival Brooklyn homes. The current structure was an 1895 alteration of the original building, though it is believed that very little of the original structure was retained during the construction.
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Wm. Brown Greenhouse
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Wm. Brown Greenhouse

The owner of these greenhouses' Wm. Brown was a player in the Brooklyn brewing business. In 1884 he led a group of investors in the purchase of the Bedford Brewery in present-day Crown Heights, and proceeded to upgrade its equipment and practices. Following a research and development trip to Europe, Brown returned to Kings County with the perfect recipe for lager beer, and the perfect name for his new brew: Budweiser. Unfortunately, the Anheuser-Busch corporation had already trademarked the name, following their own delegation's trip to the brewing city of Budweis in Bohemia. (Brown backed down, and the business was renamed Nassau Brewery.) An avid horticulturist, Brown commissioned the Lord & Burnham architectural firm to design a pair of heated greenhouses straddling the planned right of way for Robinson Road (now Parkside Avenue), east of Flatbush Avenue.
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Sailors' Snug Harbor, Greenhouse
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Sailors' Snug Harbor, Greenhouse

The Sailors' Snug Harbor grounds once maintained a greenhouse to provide distractions and horticulture for its retired seamen. Now, the old greenhouses have been replaced by modern structures and serve as the showcase for the Staten Island Botanical Gardens (who co-maintain Sailor's Snug Harbor.)
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Enid A. Haupt Conservatory
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Enid A. Haupt Conservatory

Enid A. Haupt Conservatory ca. 1978 The Enid A. Haupt Conservatory is perhaps the crown jewel of the New York Botanical Garden. It was key to the garden's initial mission to further " the collection of and culture of plants, flowers, shrubs, and trees, the advancement of botanical science and knowledge." The greenhouse was a relatively new typology, so the Botanical Garden hired the best architects of the type, Lord and Burnham Co., as its designers. The Haupt Conservatory was designed in the Italian Renaissance style. Portions of this crystal palace are renovated approximately every 20 years in order to ensure that the plants inside are taken care of with the most advanced technology. The high temperature and humidity of the tropical biomes cause the steel and glass structure to constantly expand, contract, and rust. Some of the more notable renovations occurred between 1935 and 1950 when much of the ornate decoration was removed in favor of a modernist look. Most recently, the Palm Dome has undergone structural stabilization and lead-based coating removal by Beyer Blinder Belle in 1973 and Jan Hird Pokorny Associates in 2019. The Conservatory is comprised of 11 biomes. The biomes, each contained under a dome, form a C-shape around the Palm Dome, the largest in the center. Interconnecting pavilions connect tropical plants, desert flora, fern forests, and seasonal exhibits to one another. The conservatory is still a major resource for the international study of horticulture, drawing hundreds of scientists a year. Built during an era where greenhouses were primarily an accessory of the elite, the New York Botanical Garden's conservatory enabled New Yorkers of all backgrounds to experience the flora and fauna of faraway lands.
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Central Park Conservatory Garden
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Central Park Conservatory Garden

This beautiful glass conservatories and greenhouses were built in 1899 for Central Park's visitors to enjoy. However they were not to last and in the 1930s, they met their end at the hands of Master Builder Robert Moses. Moses viewed them as too expensive to maintain and had them torn down. In their place, Moses planned the Central Park Conservatory Garden that survives to this day.
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Brooklyn Botanic Garden
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Brooklyn Botanic Garden

The start of the Brooklyn Botanical Garden dates back to 1897 when New York State legislation reserved 39-acres for the garden. The Garden opened to the public in May, 1911. A series of conservatories were built for the BBG, and they serve to display and develop everything from Bonzai trees to Aquatic Plants. The first was built in 1912 by McKim, Mead and White in the Tuscan Revival style and now is known as the Administration Building.
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Ford Foundation
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Ford Foundation

Ok, this one's cheating... Designed by the architecture firm of Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates (both former principles at Eero Saarinen and Associates), this International style building was completed in 1968. The building was constructed for and continues to house the Ford Foundation. Some of the modern features of the building include load-bearing concrete and weathered steel as the materials, which are highly visible, as well as simple, unadorned facade. The most striking feature of the design is the interior garden within a greenhouse-like atrium. Visible through the glass facade, the large open space and lush vegetation were designed to create transparency and an interactive experience for the building's occupants and visitors.
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