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Plant People

Plant People

Written by: New York Botanical Garden
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Plant People explores the ways our relationships with plants are tied to current environmental issues, and how art and culture reflect our connection to the ecosystems we rely on to thrive.


Through lively stories and conversations with scientists, gardeners, artists, and experts, join the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) for deep dives into everything from food systems and horticulture to botanical breakthroughs in the lab and the field, and the many ways our daily lives are sustained by plants. Then stay for discussions on how we can return the favor, protecting what we have—and cultivating what we need—to ensure plants and people continue to support each other for future generations.


Host Jennifer Bernstein, NYBG’s President & CEO, guides you through the role of humans in caring for our shared planet, whether you’re in your backyard garden, tending a window sill full of houseplants, or finding your love of nature in a concrete jungle. Let NYBG—rooted in NYC’s cultural fabric for over 130 years and a beloved respite in the heart of the Bronx, the city’s greenest borough—be your anchor for understanding how plants make a difference in your life, and our world, every single day—in ways both big and small.

© 2024 The New York Botanical Garden
Earth Sciences Nature & Ecology Science
Episodes
  • Plant People Season 3 Trailer
    Jan 26 2026

    From the tallest chestnut trees to the strangest pitcher plants, the botanical world is FULL of fascinating stories. And this season on Plant People—the third for NYBG’s award-winning podcast—we’re doing a deep dive on a different plant each episode.


    Tune in every other week starting February 2 as Jennifer Bernstein, the Garden’s CEO and President, joins authors, scientists, and other experts to explore the lives of particularly unique plants on our planet.

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    2 mins
  • Special feature from the Smithsonian's Sidedoor podcast: "King of the Herbs"
    Aug 5 2025

    While Plant People is between seasons, we have a special episode, "King of the Herbs", from our friends at the Smithsonian's Sidedoor podcast:

    It’s a wild herb that countless cultures have used for centuries as a wonder drug to cure any ailment. It's so rare and valuable that it’s been dug to extinction nearly everywhere, except a small area of the United States. This time on Sidedoor, we go searching for the elusive wild American ginseng—and find that scientists, conservationists, and criminals are also on the hunt.

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    30 mins
  • Ecotourism: Inspiring a Plant-Powered Economy
    Jul 14 2025

    We’re wrapping up Season 2 with NYBG’s Chief Science Officer, Mauricio Díazgranados, Ph.D., who discusses how engaging with nature through travel makes us more inclined to protect it—and the ways that tourism can actually help our planet. As an avid adventurer and botanist who has worked all around the world, Dr. Diazgranados knows how vital it is to make exploration both sustainable and economically beneficial. Here he walks us through his vision for the bioeconomy, where the world’s biodiversity hotspots become opportunities for ecotourism, enhancing the lives of local communities while funding the conservation of our planet’s irreplaceable flora and fauna.

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    29 mins
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