NEW YORK, Oct. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The intricate art of kiku (Japanese for "chrysanthemum") is back at The New York Botanical Garden, now through October 30, 2011. The awe-inspiring chrysanthemum sculptures have just been installed in the culmination of the Garden's new exhibition Fall Flowers of Japan.  

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111006/NY82359)

The continually evolving flower show in the Garden's Enid A. Haupt Conservatory highlights the incredible diversity of fall-flowering plants of Japan and rewards repeat visitors with new blossoms and plants throughout the run of the show. The exhibition began on September 17 with Japanese maples and toad lilies amid sweeps of ornamental grasses and chrysanthemums, and continued with camellias and anemones. Now for the final weeks of the exhibition, the crowd favorite kiku take the spotlight.

Botanical Garden experts work up to 11 months each year to grow, train, and shape the chrysanthemums. Cultivated from tiny cuttings, the plants are pinched back, tied to frames, and carefully nurtured. Flower buds develop as the autumn nights grow longer, and in October the plants burst into bloom, a true celebration of the changing of the seasons. A variety of kiku styles are featured, including kengai ("Cascade"), shino-tsukuri ("Driving Rain"), ogiku ("Triple Stem"), and the impressive dome-shaped ozukuri ("Thousand Bloom"). Informal training styles on display will include a variety of shapes such as umbrellas, spirals, columns, a pagoda, and a bridge over a stone pond—all made of chrysanthemums.

Other attractions during the exhibition include a dramatic sculpture made of natural materials in the reflecting pool of the Conservatory's Palms of the World Gallery, a bonsai display in the Courtyard of Shop in the Garden, and weekend programming that celebrates the culture of Japan.

For several years, The New York Botanical Garden has presented Japanese-themed autumn flower shows.

Fall Flowers of Japan puts a new spin on that tradition, showcasing the diversity and magnificence of the flora from that island nation. Recorded Japanese music fills the Conservatory's Seasonal Galleries as the show pays homage to hanami, the Japanese custom of viewing and enjoying the delicate beauty of flowers on display.

The New York Botanical Garden is a perfect destination during any season, and the new exhibition provides another enticing reason to visit this fall.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit http://www.nybg.org/exhibitions/fall-flowers-japan/index.php.

Images are available upon request.  Contact Nick Leshi at nleshi@nybg.org

SOURCE The New York Botanical Garden

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