Wave Hill

Riverdale
Bronx

When I began thinking about this posting about Wave Hill, I became a bit stumped as to what to write about it. Wave Hill is a very pretty garden and cultural center located in the Riverdale area of the Bronx along the Hudson River. I’m trying to think what makes it different from the other botanical gardens in New York and worthy of a visit instead of heading over to the New York Botanical Gardens (also in the Bronx) or to the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens.

Wave Hill occupies 28 acres compared to BBG’s 39 and NYBG’s 250, and it’s only slightly cheaper, plus all three of the gardens offer similar free days. One thing Wave Hill does offer is stunning views of the Palisades, something the more inland gardens can’t provide. All three places offer classes, workshops, and family programs, but Wave Hill seems to offer more free programs as well as more casual one-day workshops. BBG and NYBG are the place to go for serious classes—you can earn your certificate in floral design at BBG or get a degree in horticulture at NYBG. 

One thing that is definitely different about Wave Hill is its exhibition program. Wave Hill commissions contemporary artists, often local, to create site-specific works that explore relationship between people and nature. Yes, this sort of work can often be poncy and annoying, but the galleries are small, so it comes in small easily-digested portions. And there are the occasional artists who do this sort of thing well. I personally prefer the exhibitions of 18^th-century botanical drawings and contemporary bonsai that can be found at BBG and NYBG, but it’s still nice that local plant-themed artists have a venue. 

Despite its small size and the fact that it’s not really that different from the other gardens in NYC, I like Wave Hill. This is partially because of its location, partially because it is less crowded, and partially because of its architectural features. BBG and NYBG were both designed at the turn of the century specifically to be botanical gardens. Wave Hill, however, was built in 1843 as a country home for a jurist named William Lewis Morris. It was later rented by Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. and Mark Twain and then purchased in 1903 by George W. Perkins, a partner of J. P. Morgan.  It was the Perkins family that deeded the property to the City of New York. Because it had originally been a private residence, there are lovely Greek and Georgian Revival style buildings and landscaping features.  

A major perk of Wave Hill is that because it’s smaller and less accessible (free parking for drivers, but if you’re on public transportation you need to wait outside a Burger King for the hourly shuttle bus) than the other gardens around the city, it’s also more relaxed. Sure, the Roosevelt Rose Garden at New York Botanical Gardens is lovely, and the Cherry Blossom Festival at Brooklyn Botanical Garden is quite the spectacle, but they’re also so filled with people you may as well be trying to relax in the middle of Bryant Park during lunch hour. 

You can easily meander through the gardens and exhibitions in a couple of hours, so if you’re coming from far away (like Brooklyn) it’s a good idea to time your visit so you can also check out the Van Cortland House Museum. I, however, did not manage to do this as the hours at the Van Cortlandt House Museum are a bit limited, so I need to make it back up there one of these days to see if the man dressed like Ben Franklin’s slightly slimmer brother stays in character when you ask him questions. I’ll let you know how it goes.

www.wavehill.org