What Events and Exhibitions Are On at the New York Botanical Garden?

Updated

The New York Botanical Garden (nybg.org) lists current and upcoming events in its WHAT'S ON and Featured Programs sections, with each entry carrying a specific date range. As of the site's current listings, the headliners are Día de los Muertos (October 3 – November 2) and Flower Power (May 23 – October 18, 2026), alongside a 1960s art and photography display and exhibitions announced for 2027 and 2028. Because these dates shift with the season, treat the site's live schedule as the source of truth before you plan a visit.

What's on now

Día de los Muertos

  • Dates: October 3 through November 2
  • What it is: A fall celebration of memory, life, and renewal, new to NYBG this year.
  • What you'll see: Marigold blooms, a community ofrenda, artfully arranged calaveras, and a larger-than-life Catrina decorated with colorful flowers.
  • Programming: Friendly spirit guides lead visitors through the displays; music and crafts run on weekends.
  • One date to note: A Día de los Muertos parade is scheduled for Sunday, November 1 at 2 p.m.

Flower Power

  • Dates: May 23 through October 18, 2026
  • What it is: A flower show built around flowers as symbols of peace and love, drawing on 1960s hippie culture and its relationship with the natural world.
  • What you'll see: Vibrant botanical displays, plus gallery presentations of 1960s photography and visual art. Grounds installations invite visitors to treat flowers as personal symbols.

'60s Art and Photography

  • Dates: Through October 18, 2026 (runs alongside Flower Power)
  • What it is: Paintings, fashion, photographs, screenprints, and collages by 1960s and '70s artists depicting flowers as symbols of peace and love.
  • Highlights: Andy Warhol's Flowers (1964), plus works by Joe Brainard, Milton Glaser, Carlos Irizarry, Corita Kent, and others.

Announced for later years

NYBG has published plans for 2027 and 2028, which is useful if you're timing a trip around a specific artist:

Exhibition Dates Notes
KAWS Opens May 22, 2027 Garden-wide exhibition across NYBG's 250 acres; described as the largest-scale presentation of the artist's work to date
Cj Hendry summer show Summer 2027 New, energetic and playful summer exhibition
The Orchid Show 2027–2028 slate Returns with work by landscape artists Andy Cao and Xavier Perrot

How to plan around the schedule

  1. Check the live calendar first. The site organizes programming under WHAT'S ON and Featured Programs; these reflect the current lineup rather than a fixed annual schedule.
  2. Match your visit to a date range. Each event above is time-boxed, so a trip in, say, late October could overlap Día de los Muertos and Flower Power — while a visit after October 18, 2026 would miss both.
  3. Watch for single-day programming. Some elements, like the November 1 parade at 2 p.m., happen only once within a longer run.
  4. Look ahead for ticketed blockbusters. Exhibitions like KAWS (2027) are announced well in advance, which helps if you're planning travel around a specific show.

The practical takeaway: NYBG runs overlapping seasonal exhibitions rather than one permanent display, so confirm the current dates on nybg.org before committing to a visit date.