getting high in NYC

I am proud to be a New Yorker.

I live in a city that has the creativity, intelligence, and generosity to build The High Line. What an insanely wonderful gift this park is. Do not pass go, do not collect $200, go directly to The High Line.

A single post can't do justice to the park. I'd need one to extoll the landscape design (James Corner Field Operations together with Piet Oudolf), another to praise the architecture (Diller Scofidio + Renfro), perhaps two posts to cover individual plants, and I'd still want to rave about the synergistic combination of the Manhattan skyline with the planted landscape.

I'm sure there will be many posts about The High Line here at GardenBytes, so please consider this Part One. As an entirely inadequate introduction to the park, here's a little history.

The High Line is an elevated railroad structure built in the 1930s, running from Gansevoort Street in the meatpacking district to 34th Street next to The Javits Center. It allowed for the movement of freight cars without clogging street traffic, and spurs were built to enter directly into warehouses. Abandoned since 1980, the tracks were quickly colonized by hardy volunteer plants, which inspired the naturalized planting style of The High Line park today.

South of 30th Street, The High Line is owned by the City of New York; it was donated to the city by CSX Transportation, which still owns the northern portion (30th Street to 34th Street). Construction on the first city-owned section (Gansevoort to 20th Street) began in 2006, although neighborhood residents first organized to save The High Line in 1999.

The second section (20th to 30th Street) is scheduled to open in 2010. The future of the third section is by no means secure and is tied to the development of the Hudson Rail Yards, by the MTA and Related Companies (a private developer).

The High Line opens at 7 am, a great time to have it almost all to yourself. (For more details about hours, directions, and access, visit www.thehighline.org.) Entering at Gansevoort Street, you're in a grove of 20 foot tall birch trees (Betula populifolia and B. platyphylla ‘Whitespire’, above).

At the 20th Street entrance, the juxtaposition of a multi-level parking lot with sweeps of prairie flowers and ornamental grasses tells you you're not in Kansas anymore. Either way, you'll want to walk the park from one end to the other. Allow a couple of hours if you're a plant/garden lover. Bring a friend, bring a book, bring a picnic.

Be sure not to miss:

a grove of 3-flowered maple trees (Acer triflorum) nestled into a corner of the elevated railway,

the juxtaposition of rusty railroad ties with colorful flowers (Stachys officinalis 'Hummelo'), or

a spur built to deliver freight inside a warehouse that now delivers beauteous blue blooms (Nepeta siberica).

Who could resist the wooden chaises, positioned for lazy gazing across the Hudson?

Drought-tolerant stonecrop (Sedum telephium 'Red Cauli') and companion grasses naturalize between concrete planks, imitating the original volunteer plants that colonized the railroad tracks.

I struggle to communicate the significance of this park. So do me a favor, don't take my word for it. Get down there and see it for yourself. You won't be sorry.