NEWSLETTER
Bronx, NY (July 12, 2023) —Celebrate the winged creatures who beautify our gardens and put food on our tables during Wave Hill’s Bees, Butterflies & Blooms Weekend, August 12–13! Wave Hill is home to many different pollinators, including native bees, butterflies and our resident honeybees. Spend the day chatting with naturalists and beekeepers, visiting our honeybee hives, creating art, joining walks with experts to see pollinators in action and more. The gardens are full of flowers, so expect to see a bounty of butterflies snacking on plants and learn more from our butterfly experts. Swing by The Shop to purchase tasty honey, beeswax candles and a host of bee and butterfly-themed gifts.
There is a full program of events for gardeners and naturalists of all ages, including special events just for families. Bees, Butterflies & Blooms Weekend is a premium-admission weekend, with a $2 surcharge per visitor; there is no admission charge for children under six. Events this weekend are all free with admission to the grounds, but a materials fee will be collected for the Candle Making Workshop.
Pollinators are vital to our gardens and to sustaining ecosystems everywhere. Come spend the weekend
paying tribute to them—and honoring the ways we can all help sustain these crucial creatures.
BEES, BUTTERFLIES & BLOOMS WEEKEND
SATURDAY AUGUST 12 – SUNDAY AUGUST 13
Welcome Table and Pollination Info Station 10AM–4PM
Plan your visit here! Pick up self-guided tours and activities, chat with an insect expert and go home with a list of
pollinator-friendly plants.
Native Pollinator Walk 11AM–11:45AM; 1–1:45PM
Flowers attract the attention of both human and animal visitors. Honeybees, bumblebees and butterflies are easily spotted in the garden, but solitary bees, beetles and other native pollinators are often overlooked. With net in hand, naturalist Chris Kreussling scours the garden for all sorts of hard-working pollinators, offering a close-up look at a variety of insects before returning them to their pollinating duties. Ages 10 and older welcome with an adult.
Meet the Butterflies 11AM–3PM
Meet butterfly experts from the Tenafly Nature Center as they showcase a collection of beautifully colored butterflies and their caterpillars, sipping nectar, taking flight and munching on their favorite plants. Learn about the life cycle of butterflies and their importance to our ecosystem. Visit a butterflies' mini habitat tent and ask questions or simply relax and enjoy the space while butterflies flit and fly about.
Hives and Honey Headquarters 11AM–4PM
Chat with beekeepers Mufti Ahmed, Pam Golben and Junior Schouten. Peek inside an empty hive, check out live
bees in an observation hive (weather permitting) and learn fascinating facts about honeybees.
Drop-in Candle-Making Workshop 11AM–2PM Saturday Only
Drop by Armor Hall and try your hand at creating rolled beeswax candles to take home and enjoy. Materials fee collected upon entry to workshop; each kit includes enough supplies to make several candles. For adults and children ages 5 and older welcome with an adult.
Cooking Demo: A Taste of Honey 12PM–1PM Sunday Only
Honey is a sweet liquid produced by honeybees from the nectar of flowers. Discover fascinating facts about honey and compare the complex tastes of honey with a Wave Hill beekeeper and Chef Nick Acosta of Great
Performances, Wave Hill's exclusive caterer. Sample delicious recipes using local honey and take home recipes designed to take advantage of honey harvest season. Ages 10 and older welcome with an adult.
FAMILY PROGRAMS
Family Art Project: Can You Bee-It 10AM–1PM
Have you tried weaving? Hone your cardboard loom weaving technique by making hexagonal creations in the shape of a beehive’s cells. Beautify your soft beehive with yarn scraps and cork-bees while learning about life in the hive.
Nature Detectives: Pollinator Walk for Families 1PM–2PM
Join environmental educator Olivia Kalin on an expedition to find colorful butterflies, busy bees and other creature pollinators and their favorite flowers. Ages 5 and older welcome with an adult.
Yoga for Busy Bees
11AM–12PM Saturday Only
Join environmental educator and yoga instructor Corinne Flax as she guides young yogis through a sequence of fun poses inspired by our favorite pollinators. Learn a cooling “bee’s breath” technique, move together through a celebratory “sun salute” and pose like a lotus flower or butterfly. Ages 5 and older welcome with an adult.
Wave Hill Incorporated is an independent non-profit cultural institution governed by a volunteer Board of Directors. The City of New York owns the buildings and grounds of Wave Hill. With the assistance of the Bronx Borough President and Bronx representatives in the City Council and State Legislature, Wave Hill’s operations are supported with public funds through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; the Zoos, Botanical Gardens and Aquariums Grant Program administered by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; the National Endowment for the Arts; and New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
About Wave Hill
A 28-acre public garden and cultural center overlooking the Hudson River and Palisades, Wave Hill’s mission is to celebrate the artistry and legacy of its gardens and landscapes, to preserve its magnificent views, and to explore human connections to the natural world through programs in horticulture, education and the arts.
HOURS: Open all year, Tuesday–Sunday, 10AM–5:30PM. Marco Polo Stufano Conservatory 10AM–Noon; 1–4PM. ADMISSION TO THE GROUNDS: $10 adults, $6 students and seniors 65+, $4 children 6-18. Free Thursdays. Free to Wave Hill Members, children under 6.
DIRECTIONS at wavehill.org.
Images available upon request
Contact: Martha Gellens 718.549.3200 x232 or marthag@wavehill.org